To mark the bicentenary of Chopin’s birth, two leading Russian pianists tackle the great Romantic composer’s two piano concertos: Evgeny Kissin plays the F minor Concerto op. 21, a key work in Chopin’s output, while Nikolai Demidenko performs the E minor Concerto op. 11, a virtuoso display vehicle of the first rank. They are accompanied by the Warsaw Philharmonic under the direction of Antoni Wit. Enthusiastically acclaimed by the audience at Warsaw’s Philharmonic Hall on 27 February 2010, this memorable concert has been captured in first-class sound and picture quality.
Picture Format DVD: NTSC 16:9
Sound Formats DVD: Dolby Digital 5.1., DTS 5.1, PCM Stereo
Region Code: 0 (worldwide)
Running Time: 96:54 min
Disc Format: DVD 9
FSK: 0
January 2011
*****
“Anyone who (like me) has found themselves resistant to Kissin's toy-soldier showmanship...needs to hear his brilliant account of the Concerto in F minor...In pianism of bel canto beauty, Kissin uncovers all the yearning of the slow movement, and delivers a crisp finale notable for its elastic buoyancy and perfectly judged rubatos.”
May 2011
“Throughout the first movement [of No. 1] there is no sense of showmanship for its own sake...Kissin's approach is altogether more pianistic, an emphatic revelry in the possibilities of the instrument. Throughout his performance one is struck by the exacting precision of his playing - has there been such note-perfect playing since Michelangeli?”
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