What are you listening to and WHY might anyone be interested? (Vol.IX)

Originally Posted by Florestan:

Well Kuma, do tell?  Two very contrasting albums.  I have both these on Vinyl and CD too and as you are probably hinting at, the difference in interpretation is night & day or better yet warm(er) vs. cold(er) temperament (ie. Lang Lang to Pollini).  What do you think of the Sony vinyl?

Doug,

I think this new Sony vinyl isn't as good as old CBS Masterworks digital pressings.

The surface noise is not as low and on a few spots there are some cogging noise. So what I have is a defective pressing. This is a clean and clear recording with a mid hallway perspective albeit this perspective keeps changing from distant to close mic'd tune to tune. Better than the old DG Pollini vinyl in terms of distortion in upper regsiters but not as good as Wunder DG vinyl.  A decent bottom end weight but less than Wunder pressing, too. Pianissimo gets too soft. This is a wide dynamic recording so the level is set rather low. But, considering how inexpensive this set ( I have seen as low as 15$ USD ) and having experienced some $$ audiophile vinyls not measuring up in terms of quality control, I can *almost* forgive the inconsistency. I'd reckon CD is decent without a surface noise.

Performance wise, I don't think this Pollini set is definitive. As usual he is cool and reserved Grace Kelly. The whole set sounds too orderly and compact. I would like to hear more human side exposed. The No.9 sounds like a bunch of icicles banging around than flying butterflies.  I am expecting earlier Etudes when he did along with Chopin Piano Concerto No.1. Does he have another later recordings?

I haven't heard too many complete Etudes, to be honest,  but certainly I am having tough time with Lang Lang's rendition, too.

Next to someone like Horowitz, he sounds a bit shallow and uninterseting particularly in a soft passages that he falls down. He plays with plenty of care and thought. There's a subtle nuances he puts in which is nice. There seem to be his preference in bravura tunes as a whole and he struggles how to suspend the note to create tensions and anticipation. I just get on with his sense of timing.

oh. Malcuzynski just slays Lang Lang in Waltzes. 

Even Padrewski's lively Op.18 is more compelling than goody two shoes salon Lang Lang set. Op.64/1 lacking bouncy rhythm and fun I hear from Malcuzynski nor as ellegant as Lipatti. He does not offer much musically *for me*.

Wunder's Andante Spianato & Grand Polonaise is one of my favourite performance along with Horowitz and Kempff. So I was curious to hear what Lang Lang does with it.

I am not sure if his awkward and abrupt note transition is on purpose or not. The right and left hand are not well integrated on the Andante. He just does not sound as a matured player. Again, his emotive effort sounds mechanical and forced ending up like a showman trying to impress rather than reaching down deep into the tune. I don't object to a showmanship. I adore Horowitz's 

charming rambunctious playing. ( pity he never re-recorded this tune since 1945. )

Overall, there is no driving momentum to a great finale or creative interests along the way.

On contrast, Wunder starts off rather conventionally but the back end of the program is just breathtaking. Confident yet so beautiful. Finger work remains linear throughout and never gets syrupy or too romantic. Structually he remains simple and very little filgrees. Honest and unassuming presentation which is my preference for Chopin. I don't get on with frilly girly Chopin.

Oddly there is a slight similarity to Kempff's playing altho Wunder has a less sophistication. I mean some of the phrasing Kempff offers is so natural and intuitive. There's always an element of surprise.

I guess the daring moves might come with maturity.

So I dont have a very much nice thing to say about Lang Lang's Chopin. But you asked.

I like Wunder's LP so much I bought another one. 

New vinyl arrival:-

A great album, the difficult second album, after Guitar Town, and then he follows with Copperhead Road, not that many artists that were able to do that. Mind you the rest of his albums aren't too shabby either.

On vinyl:-

Didn't realise that this Jerry Donahue was the Fairport Convention JD. 

Great version of Peter Gunn.

959 for the second time.

Hi Kuma,

Great reply!  I really appreciate reading your ideas and it is good for perspective that I hear them as you point out many things I wouldn't have noticed.  It's also nice because this is the Music Room.  I think years ago it was a much more conducive room to discuss anything about music.

On many points we agree but on others I guess we'll have to agree to disagree.  While I don't care for everything that any artist does (even my most preferred ones) I can say the same about Wunder and Lang Lang.  Individually, their is some things that I don't care for but more importantly, each in his own way offers some great and unique ideas and artistry.  

While Wunder offers a solid, non-offending (read: safe) performance I won't fault Lang Lang for leaning slightly off center for a slightly more poetic take.  Yes, miles and miles away from the characters that we had with the old school boys such as Lipatti, Malcuzynski, Rubenstein, Kempff or Horowitz etc. but different to me doesn't mean wrong.  We already have these other guys record and legacy so why would Wunder or Lang Lang try to emulate them?  What I've seen of Lang Lang is that in the last few years he has matured remarkably compared to his start and is growing.  He is only 30 and we're comparing him to recordings of guys who were more than twice his age maybe.

For the Etudes (and maybe all of Chopin), Pollini mostly misses the mark for me.  Excellent player overall, it's just his philosophy and mine differ and not by a small margin either.  Thirty years ago I thought Pollini was the man but I'm not thrilled anymore by him (unless I'm in a certain mood).

Lang Lang, while far from perfect, to me is heading in the right direction.  He is actually quite musical now and this is what I look for.  Doesn't have to be to my taste but at least not afraid to be musically inclined or different than the crowd.  This is a point that many people seem to miss as his virtuosic beginnings still hang like a cloud over him by many people's perception (ie. Bang Bang).  My view is that Chopin's purpose in writing the Etudes was not just to add harder studies to gives pianist something to do.  Czerny and others already wrote hundreds of these whose sole purpose was to build technique (and I like many of these too so they are not all bad or trite!).  Chopin has written works that are technically and artistically among the hardest pieces ever.  The problem is you can't necessarily get to the musical aspect until you master the technique.  Frankly, it is a small club consisting of those rare people who have both skills.  Many have the technique but not the artistry.

On the Andante Spianato & Grande Polonaise Brillante I do like both Wunder and Lang Lang.  Each do so many wonderful things with this.  But with Lang Lang, I think of the two, his playing is more convincing (true to the score (but still not the ideal specimen or last word)?).  His pianos contrast more with his fortes and on and on down the line his tranquillo is more tranquil, his dolcissimos are sweeter, his leggierissimos are more delicate, his sforzandos and accents more assured and his sherzo is more playful.  While not wrong, just different, Wunder is much more sober in his interpretation.  I think of his Finale of the third Sonata and his Agitato isn't very agitated and especially in contrast to his leggiero elements.  Overall it is very square and predictable.  This is more his style there is much to appreciate in his playing too.  That he can pace himself and build a slow climax is no small feat.  I just love his Polonaise-Fantaisie which is a deep and complicated piece with a remarkable climax.

I'm just so happy to get any piano music on vinyl that either of these are tops to me.   I play both quite a lot and only wish I'd have bought a second Wunder on vinyl as they seem to be scarce now. I haven't seen his new 300 in vinyl either?

Doug

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkIVJVwAA4o

I don't know if that is considered taking the Etudes to a higher or a different level. Either way, the playing is just magnificent.

Just checking my sanity and trying to objectively listen to Pollini's ballades. Sorry Doug, Kuma, but Pollini and Chopin is the combination for me. Fantastically sweeping playing, full of emotion and of course that rock solid structuring.

Cheers,

EJ

Haim, thanks - this has absolutely made my day.  Now I can't focus on what I was supposed to do anymore and I blame you .  Hamelin is simply an amazing pianist and I couldn't do justice trying to describe how impossible it is for a mere mortal to do what he does.  I'll only say that that the calm, controlled ease as he appears and looks like is very deceptive.  I struggle to play the original versions but I find it very apropos to have Godowsky's idea's to help understand the music of Chopin better (or at least from another viewpoint).  Returning to the original them one has a clearer sense of the musical direction somehow.

Of these five, I've at one time or another have worked on the original Nouvelle Etude No. 3 in A-flat (note the error in the about description of the link) as well as the Op. 10 no 6 & 9.  Today it is the Op. 10, No 6 which has me in its grip (from around the 7'-40s mark).  I've spent many hours with this piece.  I won't stop watching this and then playing it for a week or two now.  It is a very sad and profound piece.  To conceive this for left hand alone is just beyond what I can comprehend and simply stunning.  It is a marvel.  Besides this, it is a good example of where an alternative version does wonders for (my) inspiration.  Playing the original E-flat minor Etude (one of the easiest technically but also the one of the deeper musically) I will often think of and compare to the emotionally overflowing Godowsky version.  A beautiful contrast to the simplicity of the original.  The sorrow is equivalent though and not lost in the transcription.  That is the beauty of great music.

Thanks again,

Doug

Blue Box.

On vinyl.

In HighRes 44.1/24, one of the many recent Mendelssohn and very well played again.

One of the very good modern string quartets.

-

Aleg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5XfvF143R0

Frescobaldi has very strange harmonies; mesmerizing music, my very favourite composer.

Meditative and Italian-light at the same time; not French style; not cold-Bach pre; has strong own style.

Highly recommended.

Haim,

Are you going to see him in May?

EJ,

I haven't gotten to his Preludes or Ballades yet. Love his Nocturnes, tho. A good balance between left and right side of brain.

Steely Dan "Decade"

more or less a hits package, gives me a chance

to listen to the Dan from time to time.

A nice album to relax with after work.

On Original 1969 Vinyl.

Vinyl.

Dave Matthews Band "Crash"

My first ever DMB album and still a favorite.  The last track,

"Proudest Monkey", is a bit of workout for the system. Rock, pop,

jazz, funk  - it is all in the mix in this album..

Where, Kuma? Two years ago I missed his performance at the University of Chicago.