Comments for Pianoroll

Comment on Chopin’s Scherzo No. 3: “The Orchestra” by Scott

Scott — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 22:02:24 +0000

I have always admired Arthur Rubinstein’s performance of this scherzo. It was through him I first heard a recording from the 50′s, and which I have fallen in love with the piece.

Your breakdown of the piece was what I was looking for.

Comment on 1001 Classical Compositions You Must Hear Before You Die by Wilfried Lingenberg

Wilfried Lingenberg — Sun, 10 Jul 2011 17:41:43 +0000

Without looking too closely: For my taste, Clementi and Medtner are missing … (For the latter, I recommend 2nd and 3rd concertoes, selection of Fairy Tales, selection of Songs; for Clementi Sonatinas op. 36 and selection of his Sonatas, e. g., op. 41 and op. 50, plus maybe some Symphonies). For Rachmaninov, I personally think that the Songs op. 38 are by far his most distinguished contribution to the genre.

Comment on Liszt (and Rachmaninov) Misunderstood? by Wilfried Lingenberg

Wilfried Lingenberg — Sun, 10 Jul 2011 17:22:34 +0000

Really mature thoughts you are developping here. And you happen to touch on a point which has always disappointed me about Brendel’s book: He has so many important and valuable insights, but with Rachmaninov, he curiously makes exactly the same mistake he fights against regarding Liszt: Only seeing the virtuoso and overlooking the outstanding musician and thoughtful composer. Fortunately, this is decades ago, and the days Rachmaninov needed special efforts to advocate his compositorial qualities are long over. I sometimes wonder how Brendel himself today thinks about what he wrote in his younger days.

Comment on Liszt (and Rachmaninov) Misunderstood? by JoseM

JoseM — Wed, 04 May 2011 17:12:25 +0000

Excelent job, I think Hamelin is a very thoughtful interpreter too, and that the less known works of both composers are so, because of what you said about “being hollow, superficial and pretentious” when in reality Liszt was a humble, dreamy and a humanist, and his works reveal a tremendously huge amount of passion and ideas about the world and others and not pretentiousness, also not all the people have the capability to see the music as a whole but see it as the now, so it is impossible for them to understand both players really big works if I may say, as Dante Sonata, the Harmonies Poetiques et Religiuses and others, for Rachmaninoff the inner chromatics and broken octaves make it sound futile messy and “bangy” for some when in reality it’s meant to reveal the composers character obviously and extreme the musicality to quite a level, well this response was longer than I thought haha, thanks for the post!

Comment on Liszt (and Rachmaninov) Misunderstood? by Cliff

Cliff — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 08:56:18 +0000

Great essay, would never have thought of Liszt in this way. Will have to go back and listen to his music with new ears.

Comment on Pogorelich in Jerusalem by Rob

Rob — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 04:07:15 +0000

Totally agree with your comments about Ivo’s earlier playing: no one’s Bach I’ve ever heard can touch that disc of 2 and 3. Also agree on the comment about Gaspard.

This is tragic. I read a review of a show in Ireland that made many of the same observations.

Great blog.

Comment on My Take on Schumann’s Carnival Scenes from Vienna by Romanze F Major

Romanze F Major — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 01:19:29 +0000

[...] My Take on Schumann's Viennese Carnival The Scherzino continues in a completely conventional way, moving the theme to F major the dominant. But shortly afterwards Schumann switches keys in a sequence that leads to A major. My favorite part of the Scherzino is the very . [...]

Comment on Two Performances of Scarlatti’s Sonata K380 by Peter Schrama

Peter Schrama — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 18:45:29 +0000

Hello Ariel,
I regret, but your youtube Link ist blocked by Sony for Germany Interner Users.
The message is:
“Dieses Video enthält Content von Sony Music Entertainment. Es ist in deinem Land nicht verfügbar.”
But I could find another Dinu Lupatti Interpretation on Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Kw4guiNipE&feature=related
Also all Youtube-Horowitz Sony Recordings are blocked by Sony for Germany.
Regards
Peter Schrama

Comment on Pogorelich in Jerusalem by Meta

Meta — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 18:04:23 +0000

Hi Ariel,
I just enjoyed your Bach-Schumann posting! Thanks!!! — And I thought about what Pogorelich might have meant with his всего хорошего, “all the best” he wished you: he might have wanted to warn you from becoming an “only pianist”. You seem to be very young. And talented in many ways. Cultivate as many ways as possible! — And become a mentally round and healthy person—- All the best for you!!!

Comment on Pogorelich in Jerusalem by Meta

Meta — Sat, 02 Oct 2010 14:52:51 +0000

Hello,
it was great fun to read your description of the Pogorelic concert in Jerusalem. The famous pianist played in Schaffhausen, Switzerland on sept 28th and I had the honour of being the page turner. I had tried to prepare myself very well (not being a professional pianist), researching all the videos on youtube, everything that could be found about him, knowing, that something extraordinary was ahead. What I experienced was reeeeaaaallly extraordinary. It left me upset, heart aching, shocked. Some of the notes (copies) were even practically illigible, painted red and blue in a really bizzarre way (it felt like looking into the appartment of a messy). The programm was: Beethoven opus 111(!!!), “Für Elise”, opus 78 “für Therese” (which was the illigible one. — I even turned back to the exposition by error, although he went on directly into the Durchführung….which I realized seconds too late ), Sibelius Valse triste, Gaspard de la nuit (as usual really unusual)
“Deconstruction” could have been the motto of the evening ….
The swiss audience was polite, most people stayed, nobody talked, there was polite applaus and no encore of course.
I really felt deeply sorry for the once gleaming star…….and glad when I could breathe fresh air again after the concert…
Never experienced such a thing before!!