All recordingsPrices shown exclude VAT. (UK tax is not payable for deliveries to United States.)
See Terms & Conditions for p&p rates. | |  | Sviatoslav Richter plays Chopin
As early as 1948 Richter recorded a Polonaise Op.25 No.1, and in 1950 the Ballade No.2 Op.38, few Studies… An avowed enemy of 'completism' the present programme is a fabulous example of his choices, excluding the famous Funeral Sonata, Walzes or First Piano Concerto…, leaving these to Gilels: ‘far better than me' in his opinion! “Here is Richter at his most godlike, taking the breath away with his astonishing tempos and also with his utterly original take on pieces that could be worn thin by over-familiarity, notably the Ballades.” BBC Music Magazine, February 2013 ***** | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | Lang Lang: The Chopin Album
The music of Chopin has accompanied Lang Lang throughout his career, and now, in his 30th-birthday year, Lang Lang records his first album entirely devoted to his music. The Chopin Album – Lang Lang’s third album for Sony Classical – includes a selection of Chopin’s best loved and most recognisable piano muisc, including the ever-popular “Minute” Waltz, and the Études, which Lang Lang made his renowned Beijing Concert Hall recital with at the tender age of 14. Included with the Deluxe Limited Edition CD is a bonus DVD in which Lang Lang explains how Chopin has been a close companion. The video contains archive footage of Lang Lang playing Chopin, with excerpts from his early concerts and competitions. It also includes complete performances of the Grande Valse brillante (recorded live in Vienna), the “Heroic” Polonaise (recorded at Berlin’s Berghain Club), and the “Black Keys” Étude in G-flat major (recorded at London’s Roundhouse during the 2011 iTunes Festival). “his Grande Valse Brilliante is brilliant indeed; so are the cascading double sixths in the eighth étude in D-flat major...Lang Lang’s grin and enthusiasm are genuine: he simply loves playing his piano, communicating the joy of music. Bang Bang and glitter aside, that’s not something anyone should knock” The Times, 26th October 2012 *** “This album reflects his lifelong love for Chopin, and shows how fresh and individual his take can be...he delivers an exhilarating blend of poetry and power. The accompanying DVD is surprisingly amateurish, but reminds us of the god-given talent he was born with.” The Independent, 28th October 2012 “[Op. 25] No. 1 establishes the pianist's beautifully modulated sonority along with the kind of affettuoso gestures his critics love to hate...It's ironic how Lang Lang's most interesting playing occurs when he attempts to 'interpret' the least. Sony's resplendent, seductively resonant engineering deserves the highest praise.” Gramophone Magazine, November 2012 “For the most part the playing is warm and communicative, beautifully shaped, luminously projected and boldly coloured - probably too bold and luminous for those who prefer more aristocratic refinement and reserve in their Chopin but without the exaggerated, showy style so many have found off-putting.” BBC Music Magazine, February 2013 **** “Overall, there is more maturity and emotional investment than I expected from the performer. Lang Lang’s rubato speaks of a serious artistic imagination, and it produces very distinctive playing. For many a listener the effect may wear thin after a few listens, but for others this will be intoxicating.” MusicWeb International, April 2013 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | Chopin: Etudes Opp. 10 & 25
Recorded September 1960. This outstanding recording of the complete Chopin Études by Maurizio Pollini is being published for the first time by Testament. It was made by EMI at Abbey Road a few months after Pollini had won the Chopin Competition in Warsaw. Pollini had already recorded for EMI the Chopin Piano Concerto No.1 in E minor with the Phiharmonia Orchestra conducted by Paul Kletzki, a recording universally acclaimed as a classic. Peter Andry, who produced the recording of the Études, later recalled Pollini’s play-through of the first set as a spine-tingling experience: “This was pianism of the very finest kind” he said. “Rarely had I heard such perfection. He seemed to play these demanding works effortlessly. I remember the occasion even now as one of my greatest musical experiences.” The recording reproduces with striking immediacy and clarity a performance that captures the 18-year-old pianist’s sensitive and sympathetic emotional response to these works. It is very different to the large-scale and grandiose DG recording made a decade or so later by Pollini as a more mature artist in a venue with a more reverberant acoustic. Critics and pianists who have already heard this recording by the young Pollini have all been astonished by its musicality and spontaneity, qualitities that go right to the heart of Chopin’s genius in writing these challenging but musically inspired compositions. It is a unique addition to Pollini’s extensive recorded catalogue and shows this great artist at the very beginning of his professional career as a musician of the highest calibre. “It's utterly superb: there's a freshness about Pollini's playing, a spontaneity that's absent from his more magisterial later Chopin, and his technique is even more dazzling, too. If there's a more naturally musical and immaculate recording of the Studies than this 1960 account, then I have yet to hear it.” The Guardian, 20th October 2011 ***** “it is surely astonishing that Pollini could reject his early superfine brilliance,his aristocratic musicianship, his patrician ideal in the Chopin Etudes...What superb articulacy in, say, Op. 10 Nos 2, 4 and 5, and what awe-inspiring assurance and uncanny technical perfection in the treacherous double notes of No 7...All lovers of great piano-playing will need to add this to their collection” BBC Music Magazine, January 2012 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | Chopin - Etudes, Sonatas & Impromptus
Canada’s “First Lady of Chopin” has embarked on an incredible year of recitals, orchestral concerts and master-classes and will be performing at the Cadogan Hall and Fairfield Hall in May. Her previous Chopin recital CD on ATMA (ACD22597) has received excellent reviews. “Big-boned, dramatically powerful and intimately eloquent by turns” BBC Music Magazine, August 2010 **** “...lesser mortals may weep with envy at such unfaltering authority...What a glittering and assured curtain-raiser to the Op. 10 Etudes; and if she can command with the best of them she can just as easily take you into her confidence...she offers an unfailing balance of sense and sensibility.” Gramophone Magazine, August 2010 | | | (also available to download from $21.75) | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | Géza Anda plays works by Haydn, Schumann, Ravel, Liebermann, Chopin & Brahms
This is the second installment of Géza Anda’s recordings from the archives of the SWR. His early reputation was built upon his unrivaled mastery of the great Romantic repertoire. His infallible sense of form, and understanding of the inner workings of the music and his brilliant, unsentimental performing style have influenced subsequent generations of pianists. These are recordings from 1950, 1951 & 1955. | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | Chopin - Etudes
“Ashkenazy's 1971-2 recording of the Etudes is among the finest Chopin he recorded for Decca. Seasoned listeners might still prefer his more youthful Melodiya set, but the Decca version is consistently rewarding.” BBC Music Magazine, March 2009 **** | | | (Sorry, download not available in your country) | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  |
“Arrau's technique is dazzling, especially for clarity - he uses little pedal - but here it’s difficult to forget that the etudes are etudes. Equally dry, ageing sound quality doesn't help.” BBC Music Magazine, Proms 2007 *** “Arrau makes each piece wholly and uniquely his own.” Gramophone Magazine | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  |
| | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | Chopin - Etudes
“His virtuosity is totally self-effacing so that the listener's engagement with Chopin's world is complete.” Penguin Guide, 2011 edition | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  |
“An exciting and fiery interpretation of the Etudes. Ashkenazy's magnificent rendition of the famous Revolutionary Study (Op. 10 No. 12) is one of the best - rhythmically well-grounded and strong-pulsed.” BBC Music Magazine, November 2006 | | | (Sorry, download not available in your country) | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |
|
Gramophone Awards 2012
Gramophone Magazine