anderson@uwvax.ARPA (05/06/84)
<> I greatly prefer playing music to listening to records, so my collection is fairly small. Here are some of my favorites: Piano Music of Erik Satie, Vol. 1, Aldo Ciccolini (Angel 35442) Cesar Franck, Works for Piano, Joerg Demus (MHS 1152) This record features Franck's two masterpieces for piano "Prelude, Choral and Fugue" and "Prelude, Aria and Finale" which exemplify the "cyclic" structure where, in a multi-movement work, themes are shared between movements. Liszt's B minor Sonata is another example (although it is essentially 1 movement). Wanda Landowska/ Bach Goldberg Variations (RCA VIC-1650) Everyone has their own favorite recording of the Goldberg Variations, and this is mine. The piano just does not make it for this work. Landowska's harpsichord playing is full of personal touches, while staying within what I think was Bach's intended style. Sviatoslav Richter/ Beethoven Sonata op. 57 (Appassionata) (ARTIA MK 1550) This is a Russian recording of a live performance. The last movement is played with complete, fiery abandon, the most exciting ten minutes of recorded music I have ever heard. Richter later made a studio recording which had no mistakes (here, he slightly botches the final arpeggios) but doesn't have the same fire. Oscar Peterson/ Tracks (Pausa 7119) If you enjoy piano music, you HAVE to hear this record (or anything else by Oscar; this is a solo record so you get to hear more of him). In terms of phrasing, structure, dynamic range, polyphony and virtuosity, this music has strong "classical" elements.
hardie@sask.UUCP (Peter Hardie) (05/24/84)
My favourite recording of piano music is The Piano Music of Alkan played by Raymond Lewenthal. I happen to like the beat-the-&^%$-out-of-the- piano school of music and Alkan certainly did that in Quasi-Faust which contains the most gorgeously complex fugue I have ever heard. I lost the record in my move to Canada and would dearly love to get another copy but it is now out of print. Second favourite (also lost and haven't heard for a long time) was Gyorgy Cziffra playing Liszt's Transcendental Etudes.