A Tale of Two Schumanns

Posted by: Todd A on 03 December 2001

No, this is not a dissertation on Schumann’s two famed personae Florestan and Eusebius; rather, it is a comparison of two new(ish) recordings of solo works by Schumann. One is the recent release on DG of Maurizio Pollini playing the Davidsbundlertanze and Concert sans orchestre (Op 14) and the other is the earlier release on Hyperion of Marc-Andre Hamelin playing the Fantasie, Second Sonata, and Symphonic Etudes.

The difference between the two is not as stark as, say, the difference between Kempff and Richter, but the recordings are not of equal stature, either.

Put simply, the Pollini disc is the better of the two. On this disc, the aging Pollini reveals himself to still be in top form technically and musically. Both works are just astonishing. True, the playing in Davidsbundlertanze may not be as delicate as Kempff’s, but Pollini varies his playing levels absolutely appropriately. Piano parts are rendered piano, forte a loud and emphatic forte. The playing is insightful and engaging and never overbearing. Pollini varies the approach enough so one can hear the difference between Schumann’s two personalities. And as for the “Concert,” well, let me just write that I cannot imagine it being presented with more clarity and precision and ultimate musical perfection that it is here. Pollini presents these works with an air of near-total authority. He has definitely softened up some from some of his earlier recordings, but if one seeks a soft interpretation, these recordings will not suffice. The sound quality of the recording is top-notch. Overall, this disc is one of my favorite of the year and one of the finer recent piano releases.

Now for Hamelin. Here is a pianist that can at least match Pollini in technique. He cannot, at least in Schumann at this point, match him musically. Granted, these are different pieces and need to be approached differently, but they are all from close to the same period (excepting the revision) so differences in style will show. Now Hamelin does a superb job in the Second Sonata. This is the best performance on the disc. There’s bravura to the playing and an absolute mastery of the final movement. Very enjoyable. The Etudes, too, are done quite well. Hamelin opted to use the 1852 revision, so anyone who wants the extras will have to look elsewhere, but the works that he plays are quite good. All throughout the work I was happily engaged, except, that is, for the final movement. He plays it too quickly for my tastes. Yes, he can play fast, but where’s the meaning. Here he blows it. I still prefer Kempff. Now for the Fantasie. Here’s a dud. Again, the playing is superb, but the interpretation is lacking. There are numerous over-long pauses, as if Hamelin is trying to let us know that this is dramatic music. Beyond that the performance just did not get me going. Overall, this is a good disc and one that I will return to (except for the Fantasie). The sound in the Sonata and Etudes is simply astonishing; Tony Faulkner has done it again.

I will not presume to say that either of these recordings will supplant earlier recordings by pianistic giants (how could they?), but I do offer the Pollini as a recording of considerable stature.

[This message was edited by Todd Arola on MONDAY 03 December 2001 at 20:42.]

Posted on: 20 February 2002 by herm
Davidsbündlertänze aka DBT

Recently I rediscovered Pollini's recording of Schumann's First Sonata. DBT has always been one of my three favorite Schumann pieces (along with the Kreisleriana and Carnaval), so yesterday the inevitable occurred: I purchased a copy of Pollini's new recording.

The funny thing is, I have an old tape recording of a recital of Pollini's at the 1985 Salzburger Festspiele, featuring a DBT.

After listening to the CD I checked the timings first, and the funny thing is: the CD sounds faster, but in reality it lasts three minutes longer. And there are no extra repeats.

The other things is, we're looking at a cassette tape that's fifteen years old at the least, a recording of a FM broadcast on equipment too crappy to discuss, and nonetheless the piano sound is better than on the DG recording. Those powerful fistfuls of notes are grubby on the CD, while they're absolute clear on the tape.

And that's because the tape presents the Pollini piano sound as we know it. There's a certain dryness in the bass that allows the trebles to wing upwards as if the keys are made of sunshine. I had noticed this before, on Pollini's recent recording of the Chopin Ballades, that this unique sound was gone, there was a kind of resonance wedded to a hurriedness in P's playing.

This hurried character of course explains why the CD DBT sounds faster while it's actually slower. Apart from that delicious lucid quality I miss those delicate rubati that make the Salzburg performance such eminent evidence that early Schumann is the most sexy music on the planet, hands down.

Well, maybe I'm just spoiled by this live performance. I'm going to give the CD a couple more shots. Still it doesn't look like it's going to supplant the Perahia and Berezovsky CDs. In that case I'll keep the Pollini for the Concert sans Orchestre.

Herman