The grand old man of the piano

Press, 25 October 1982, Page 11

The grand old man of the piano

Clossicolreconh review '

ALLAN FRANCIS

Chopin. The Nocturnes Vol. 2. Artur Rubinstein. RCA Red Seal LSC 7050 2-disc set recorded in RCA Italian studios.

It would be fair to claim that despite the overwhelming tide of superb pianists which have flooded the market in the last 20 years or so, that there are one or two father figures who still dominate the musical scene come what, or who, may.

Rubinstein is one of the more obvious choices for this role so there would be no prizes for putting forward his name among the leading pianists of the day, considering in particular, his flair for Chopin. Apart from his other proven fields, his version of the "Polonaise” must still rank among the best available and equally his Nocturnes show his sensitive touch has not diminished. Of course, one may be

thinking of the present and the recordings under review are some 14 years old so we are stili considering the master in terms of 1968 and his flexibility had certainly not

waned at that time.’ The flowery liner notes tell us that "Rubinstein is about to unlock the inner secrets of these incredible compositions” and the listener might well wonder.just what he's been missing all these years up to now. It makes for good publicity though, even if the credibility is slightly suspect, but there is no question that Rubinstein does make a very good job of 19 Nocturnes, selected in what appears to be random order. For the record the Opus numbers are 9. 15. 55. 62. 72.15. 27, 32. 37 and 48 and the lyric quality of these versions, with a warm piano sound, is especially attractive these days when the "hard" sound is becoming all the rage.

Mozart. Weber. Clarinet Quintets played by the Eder Quartets with Kalman Berkes, clarinet. World Records WR 4493 from the Telefunken catalogue.

No-one seems to want clarinet quintets anj’ more — or at least that is the impression one gets from reading the current record catalogue. All that aristocratic elegance has been stuffed away in the archives since the sixties, apart from one version in 1978 in the case of the Weber and the early seventies with the Mozart.

I do note though, that Benny Goodman's 1957 account is still lingering bravely on but it would be hard pressed to match the warmth and flawless brilliance of the Telefunken recording and Kalman Berkes. Tempos on both works are slower than usual — also

unusual for modern recordings. but all the more welcome for the showing of deference to the compositions rather than current fashion.

Luciano Pavarotti. Mascagni. Cavalleria Rusticana. Leoncavallo. Pagliacci highlights. Mirella Freni, Giuseppe Patane, Ingvar Wixell, Piero Cappuccilli and Gianandrea Gavazzeni with the London Opera Chorus and the National Philharmonic Orchestra. Decca SXL 6986. Another Pavarotti you say? Agreed, they certainly are making a feast of the tenor these days and I couldn’t help recalling his own words about rationing out those high notes of which there are only so many and no more.

Many of these were well spent in this recording, par-

ticularly the Mascagni highlights, which happen to be one of my favourites. Mirella Freni, too. was an added bonus with her extraordinary purity of tone and unfailing accuracy. and seems to go just as well with Pavarotti as she does with the arch rival, Domingo.

Small wonder she is in such demand. Pavarotti's fine, open voice is possibly at its best with these composers, starting from a long way off in the first excerpt and finishing with a roar in the last. A generous slice of each work is included and the master is in excellent form.

Grofe-Tomita. Grand Canyon Suite. Anderson-Tomita. Syncopated Clock. Isao Tomita and the Plasma Symphony Orchestra play the two suites, arranged, or re-ar-

ranged, by Tomita. RCA Red Seal ARLI 4317.

To those not familiar with the histrionics of Isao Tomita this recording may come as a bit of a shock. Indeed, shock is the operative word, judging from his last excursions into turning orthodox musical pieces into electronic nightmares.

Not that this need be an unpleasant sensation, any more than “Alice in Wonderland” is something which should not be placed in front of children. Tomita simply turns the switch of reality one short degree and the result is either chaos or spoof.