Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No. 1 in C minor for Piano, Trumpet and Orchestra Op. 35; Concerto No. 2 in F Major for Piano and Orchestra Op. 102; Quintet in G minor for Piano and Strings Op. 57 - Yefim Bronfman (piano), Los Angeles Philharmonic, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Juilliard String Quartet

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
This is a splendid recording, featuring three of Shostakovich's major works involving his own instrument, the piano. They display all the mercurial, contradictory aspects of his style, from dance-hall banality to sophisticated counterpoint and inspired melodic inventiveness, from mournful desolation and bleak hopelessness to the wild, obsessive, sardonic humor of desperation. The two piano concertos, though written over 20 years apart, show a certain similarity in their melancholy slow movements and frantically rollicking Finales, though the first, more popular one, opens with a highly dramatic movement, the second with a relatively peaceful one. The recording brings together a Russian-born virtuoso pianist with a special affinity for the composer's style, a great quartet steeped in 20th-century music, and a first-rate orchestra. The resulting performances are brilliant, moving, and exciting; Bronfman's virtuosity is stunning and the solo trumpeter in the first concerto is terrific. The string playing is wonderful--rich and colorful in sound, rhythmically incisive, deeply expressive; the first violinist's tone soars radiantly in the many stratospheric passages. --Edith Eisler

Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No. 1 in C minor for Piano, Trumpet and Orchestra Op. 35; Concerto No. 2 in F Major for Piano and Orchestra Op. 102; Quintet in G minor for Piano and Strings Op. 57 - Yefim Bronfman (piano), Los Angeles Philharmonic, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Juilliard String Quartet, Music, Dmitri Shostakovich, Chamber, Classical, Classical Artists, Classical Music, Concerto, Orchestral & Symphonic, Piano Concerto, Quintet for Keyboard and Four String Instruments

Shostakovich: The Jazz Album
Average customer rating:

Shostakovich Jazz Album

Shostakovich the Jazz Guy

Wonderfully engaging light music from Shostakovich

Shostakovich Defies Stalin With "Jazz Music"

High spirits from a composer known for melancholy

Shostakovich: The Jazz Album

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Jazz Suites 1 & 2

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ASIN: B0000041ZT
Release Date: 1993-02-16

Tracks:

Jazz Suite No. 1: I. Waltz
Jazz Suite No. 1: II. Polka
Jazz Suite No. 1: III.Foxtrot
Piano Concerto No. 1 In C Minor, Op. 35 (Concerto For Piano, Trumpet And Strings): I. Allegretto
Piano Concerto No. 1 In C Minor, Op. 35 (Concerto For Piano, Trumpet And Strings): II. Lento
Piano Concerto No. 1 In C Minor, Op. 35 (Concerto For Piano, Trumpet And Strings): III. Moderato
Piano Concerto No. 1 In C Minor, Op. 35 (Concerto For Piano, Trumpet And Strings): IV. Allegro con brio
Jazz Suite No. 2 (Suite For Promenade Orchestra): I. March
Jazz Suite No. 2 (Suite For Promenade Orchestra): II. Lyric Waltz
Jazz Suite No. 2 (Suite For Promenade Orchestra): III. Dance 1
Jazz Suite No. 2 (Suite For Promenade Orchestra): IV. Waltz 1
Jazz Suite No. 2 (Suite For Promenade Orchestra): V. Little Polka
Jazz Suite No. 2 (Suite For Promenade Orchestra): VI. Waltz 2
Jazz Suite No. 2 (Suite For Promenade Orchestra): VII. Dance 2
Jazz Suite No. 2 (Suite For Promenade Orchestra): VIII. Finale
Tahiti Trot (Tea For Two)

Customer Reviews:

Shostakovich Jazz Album.......2006-01-29

An excellent rendition of Shostakovich's two jazz suites plus his Piano Concerto #1. However, I've heard Rostropovich conduct all three in person, and would welcome a recording of his, since he was a great friend of Shostakovich's. It hasn't been done, and until it is, this will suffice as a fine addition to any classical library.

Shostakovich the Jazz Guy.......2005-10-10

If Shostakovich had decided to write in the Russian folk idiom, this CD would probably be the best glimpse into that genre.

Intending to raise the level of Soviet jazz, we now have two jazz suites scored for orchestra, but featuring instruments used in a way we don't normally hear in Shostakovich. Using xylophone, twangy guitar, accordion, harmonica, and saxophones, we are treated to various "dance forms" such as waltzes, polkas, foxtrots, and marches. Shostakovich goes from the militant, to the humorous, to the sensual, each with an engaging and "catchy" Russian melody and unusual orchestration. He also orchestrates the famous "Tea for Two" into a short fantasia, which is rather whimsical.

The 1st piano concerto is a kind of odd fit on this CD in my opinion. More in the vein of what we are used to hearing from mainstream Shostakovich, he is rather melodic and often quotes from other works. The bare bones orchestration of piano, trumpet, and strings gives this work a very transparent feel. The first movement has an ominous opening theme. The slow second movement is very exciting in its own right with its sense of drama, rarely dwelling in lugubriousness, carrying the sense of dread from the first movement. The third movement is a sort of recitative to the last movement. The last movement has an unusual string mode mixture, the piano goes into a dance feel and the trumpet has some fanfare licks. Both piano and trumpet work together very well as separate soloists in this movement. He ends in a fury with piano and string poundings, the piano has some raucous quotes, and the trumpet ends with fanfares.

Overall, the performances are stellar. The jazz suites have natural Russian flair, the slow with great sumptuousness, the fast never taking itself too seriously and never careening out of control. The piano concerto doesn't fit the program in my opinion, but a very fine performance indeed. This CD is a must for any collection and an easy introduction to the lighter side of Shostakovich.

Wonderfully engaging light music from Shostakovich.......2004-12-05

Who knew Shostakovich had such a sense of humor? This disc is delightfully entertaining and sparkles a the turn-of-the century cosmopolitan sound that is simultaneously reminiscent of Milhaud, Gershwin, and Ibert. The result is something supremely different. It's certainly worth a listen or two.

Shostakovich Defies Stalin With "Jazz Music".......2004-08-26

Although he was much better known as a composer of symphonies, fifteen in all (the most of any major composer since Beethoven), many of them large and bold, Dmitri Shostakovich had moments where he could be light-hearted. Given that he worked under the watchful eyes of the Soviet Communist Party and that tyrant of Iron Curtain political correctness Joseph Stalin, this is nothing short of a miracle. This album of "jazz music", all of which was composed in the 1920s and 1930s, demonstrates Shostakovich's more "light-hearted" side.

The works featured here include the composer's First Piano Concerto (with pianist Ronald Brautigam and trumpeter Peter Masseurs), the famous Tahiti Trot, and the two Jazz Suites that Shostakovich composed in 1934 and 1938 respectively. Each of the four works gives us the knowledge that Shostakovich knew how to be wickedly subversive and humorous under severe conditions, though it is not necessarily "jazz music" the way Americans might think. There are twists in these works, as well: for example, the jaunty Foxtrot of the Jazz Suite No. 1 incorporates what sounds like a Dobro (more commonly associated with American bluegrass and country music).

The Jazz Suite No. 2, of course, contains the famous Second Waltz in the key of C Minor that director Stanley Kubrick used for his final film, the psychosexual drama EYES WIDE SHUT, in 1999. In fact, this very recording, by Riccardo Chailly and the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, is the one that Kubrick used. It has a salon feel to it, and has as much in common with Johann Strauss' classic waltz style as it does with Shostakovich's own individualistic approach to things.

Both Brautigam and Masseurs are brilliant in the Concerto, and Chailly and the Concertgebouw demonstrate the kind of orchestral brilliance that serves them as well in this lesser-known Shostakovich collection as it does in their Bruckner and Mahler sojourns. It comes highly recommended as an unusual look into how great music with humor could be created under extreme circumstances.

High spirits from a composer known for melancholy.......2004-06-26

It's too bad that Riccardo Chailly and the Concertgebouw haven't recorded more Shostakovich (perhaps because Haitink did), since this project is pretty winning. As several other reviewers have noted, however, the term "jazz" here is a bit of a misnomer. Some of the music is lighter than usual for the composer, but anyone expecting to find even as much as what Bernstein created in his "jazz moments" is likely to be a bit disappointed.

But never mind, the recording is superb. Shostakovich's "Piano Concerto No. 1," for piano, trumpet and strings, is one of his most wittily engaging works, and Ronald Brautigam (piano) and Peter Masseurs (trumpet) sound wonderful. The final movement is fairly hilarious, despite a somewhat introspective middle movement that precedes it. The second of the two "Jazz Suites" has the dark little waltz made famous by its appearance in Kubrick's "Eyes Wide Shut." (This is the very recording used in the film.)

As if all this weren't enough, the concert closes with the composer's hilarious take on "Tea for Two" called "Tahiti Trot." Its sparkling insouciance is a gentle reminder that despite the composer's anguish and pain, he still had wit to spare.

Tracks:

Brandenburg Concerto No.2, BWV 1047: III. Allegro assai
Birthday Ode For Queen Anne: Eternal Source Of Light Divine
Concerto For 2 Trumpets In C Major, RV 537: 1. Allegro
The Prince Of Denmark March
Canzon V
First Symphonic Suite: Rondeau
Trumpet Tune 'Martial Air': Martial Air
Trumpet Concerto In E-Flat Major: III. Finale. Allegro
Sonata a 9 zu der Kayserlichen Serenade
Voluntary In C Major
Trumpet Concerto In E-Flat Major: II. Andante
Trumpet Concerto In E-Flat Major: III. Rondo
Pictures At An Exhibition: Promenade
Petrushka: Dance Of The Ballerina & Waltz
Also sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30: Introduction
Lieutenant Kije: Symphonic Suite, Op. 60: Kije's Wedding
Hary Janos Suite: Entrance Of The Emperor & His Court
Swan Lake, Op. 20: Naepolitan Dance (Act III) - Tchaikovsky
Rondo For Lifey
Concerto No. 1 For Piano, Trumpet & String Orchestra, Op. 35: IV. Allegro con brio
Tsar Saltan: Flight Of The Bumblebee
The Three Aces - Clarke
A Bugler's Holiday
Variations On The Carnival Of Venice

Customer Reviews:

It was faulty on the last title to be played The Carnival of Venice.......2007-06-01

I returned this to New Castle. Box 15550. I have heard nothing. The date of the return was 15/05/07 from my Throop postoffice in Dorset. I sent it recorded delivery. Over to you. There was nothing on the return screen to explain the fault. ie faulty track. So after many attempts to get intouch I sent it to the address on the paper inside the parcel. Please help.
I am a Grandmother so I am over 13 ???

Awesome Collection!.......2006-07-04

As a young boy I would play my trumpet from my father's old Arban's method book. My private trumpet teacher (Mr. Bonfield) would love to play duets with me from the Merchant of Venice. One day I heard Wynoton Marsailas play a a flawless rendition of The Merchant of Venice on my local clasical radio station. It was flawless and brought back many fond memories of studiying the trumpet as a youngster with my beloved teacher. This collection contains that rendition and a wide selecton of clasical trumpet pieces. You may not recognize every song, but you will enjoy the high quality of the music and artists on this CD. Anyone looking for an introduction to quality, classical, trumpet music should buy this CD. The price also makes this an affordable must for any true trumpet fan.

A Wonderful Collection.......2004-01-26

This is a splendid anthology of music. Traditional Baroque and orchestral pieces up front, and a few surprises nearer the end. A splendid work. The price makes it a steal. Add it to your cart. You will not be sorry. There is technical excellence - peace in some of the songs and real energy in others.

Wonderful edition to your trumpet collection........2003-10-21

Trumpet fans should all own this album, that is if they don't already own all of the pieces on here on separate recordings (it would take a while to obtain them all). This recording features a bunch of great classical trumpeters and innovators such as Armando Ghitalla, Phil Smith, Wynton Marsalis, Mark Gould, H.L. Clarke, Ron Romm, Charles Schleuter, William Vacchiano, and more. Great performances of Bach's "Brandenburg Concerto No. 2", the Haydn and Hummel Concertos, Wynton's excellent performance of J.B. Arban's "The Carnival Of Venice", the New England Brass Ensemble performing "Trumpet Voluntary", a very good job done by a Baroque Orchestra of the Vivaldi Concerto for Two Trumpets, "The Three Aces" played by H.L. Clarke, and Leroy Anderson's classic "A Bugler's Holiday".

Overall this is a great listen to some of the best trumpet players of all-time in this idiom. All of the pieces are impeccably played by some of the best. I didn't discover this tape in my collection until recently, and boy I'm glad I did.

Quite the CD.......2001-04-17

If I were you, I would buy this CD. It is a diverse collection of amazing performances of quintessential pieces - an important addition to any classical music fan's collection. Heck, even if you're not big on classical music (or trumpet music or brass music or music at all) you should purchase this compact disc.

Tracks:

Piano Concerto No.1 In C Minor, Op.35: Allegretto
Piano Concerto No.1 In C Minor, Op.35: Lento
Piano Concerto No.1 In C Minor, Op.35: Moderato
Piano Concerto No.1 In C Minor, Op.35: Allegro Con Brio
Piano Concerto No.2 In B Minor, Op.61: Allegro
Piano Concerto No.2 In B Minor, Op.61: Andante
Piano Concerto No.2 In B Minor, Op.61: Allegro
Piano Sonata No.2 In B Minor, Op.61: Allegretto
Piano Sonata No.2 In B Minor, Op.61: Largo
Piano Sonata No.2 In B Minor, Op.61: Moderato

Customer Reviews:

Music to make the heart race and the soul sing.......2007-05-06

I've owned this recording for some time, but I'd forgotten about it until I heard the second piano concerto used as background music on a documentary the other night. The melody from the second movement kept running through my head until I found it on my iPod and sat down to listen to it. I don't know why I ever let it fall out of regular rotation. It's lovely, and this performance is very good. For the price it's outstanding.

The first and second concertos are seperated by over 20 years, Stalin's purges, and WWII. They feel very different. There's an irreverant smartness and swagger to the first concerto that's missing in the second, which is tighter and sharper, though still full of Shostakovich's great sense of humor. It's the second concerto that I like better, though. It's filled with exercises for a piano student (and in fact is technically relatively easy for the pianist), but those exercises are elevated by brilliant polishing and fantastic panache into something more. The second concerto may be a relatively minor piano concerto, but it has some of the most exquisitely lovely music out there, and it's thoughtfully performed on this disk.

I don't consider this desk an essential part of my music collection, but music on it moves me. I could listen to it over and over again (and I have, four or five times in the last two days). Both concertos contain a spirit and a humanity that transcend the time and place of their composition, but they're also wonderful musical artifacts of the USSR, part of a musical tradition that couldn't have come from any other place or time. Listen to both concertos and you can get some feeling for what it meant to survive Stalin's reign. The SPCO under Hugh Wolff is right for this music, and Leonskaja is the right soloist. Definitely worth the money.

Good for the price maybe.......2006-08-11

I'm really surprised this recording is garnering such wholeheartedly positive reviews. I find some interesting moments but, as a whole, think both concertos have been done much better elsewhere.

I'd like to say I could recommend this disk based on the price as a starter at least, but I feel too strongly that Ms. Leonskaja's performance is out of character with the music in many places, and, even worse, she often doesn't display passion or understanding for it.

One instance of this, by way of contrast to her playing, would be how, in his performance of the cadenza of the first movement of the second concerto, Shostakovich's grandson uses textural contrast in playing, rabato, and accelrando to build to the climax of the coda when the orchestra reenters. She, by comparison, plays rather droningly until, suddenly, the orchestra is finishing the movement. Not that she doesn't use or surely know accelrando etc., but she just uses her piano technique haphazardly without larger purpose.

This kind of playing seems to me also evident in the first concerto. She rambles without giving momentum to the music. Her technique is fine, but she doesn't have a large scale perspective down.

I'd have to agree with a previous reviewer that a bright spot is the second movement of the second concerto. This movement is usually played almost apologetically as a quiet interlude. The performance on this disk may be only slightly more dynamic, but gives it romantic depth. It is with NO apologies that this music should be offered. It is simply beautiful, and the conducting is fully in synch with the subtleties of the music. Ms. Leonskaja shines here too. This seems best in synch with her playing .

2 of 2 instant positve reviews? i don't f88cking think so. even my best friends aren't that highly disposed

what a deal!.......2005-10-19

I'll add my 5 stars to those of the other reviewers. For a budget disc the production standards are very high. The orchestral strings are beautifully recorded and the solo work (piano but also trumpet in concerto no.1) is excellent. This CD is generously packed as well. A great deal.

WHAT A PERFORMANCE!!!!!!.......2004-08-23

Brilliance, clarity and beauty beyond measure,
is what we find in this renditions of the
Piano Concertos by Shostakovich(One of my favourite composers).
Leonskaja is ready and well prepeared
for the task. Equally brilliant are Hugh Wolff and the
St. Paul Chamber...The price is great too and the sound
is superb...

Leonskaja is Very Impressive Here; So is the St. Paul CO.......2004-06-18

I had recently reviewed the newish release of the two Shostakovich Piano Concertos played by Marc-André Hamelin. Raved about them, in fact. They were coupled with the all-but-unknown Second Piano Concerto by Rodion Shchedrin, which I'd never heard before but fell in love with. I honestly didn't think I'd hear better performances of the Shostakovich pieces anywhere - and that's saying a lot, considering that virtuosi like Bronfman and Dimitry Alexeyev have recorded them in the last few years. Elisabeth Leonskaja is a pianist I'd only vaguely known of before a friend introduced me to her recording of the Brahms First Concerto; I was stunned at the beauty and brains of her playing. It wouldn't be the usual Brahms player who could make the switch to Shostakovich easily. Brahms is weighty and in these two concertos Shostakovich is, for the most part, the class clown. I'm happy to report that Leonskaja makes the transition beautifully. These performances are light-hearted and deeply felt at the same time. If anything, the second movement of the Second Concerto is better than Hamelin's or anyone else's that I've ever heard. When I first heard it I had to play it three times in a row because I was reluctant to leave it, it's THAT gorgeous. In the concerto she is helped immensely by the fine playing of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra under Hugh Wolff. In that slow movement the muted strings are simply ravishing. Each time I hear the attacca beginning of the last movement, with its silly, gimpy headlong 7/16 insistence, I laugh out loud. The trumpet soloist in the First Concerto is Gary Bordner. His playing is stunning.

Shostakovich's Second Sonata is definitely NOT of a piece with the two concerti. It is a big, introspective, mostly spare essay in Shostakovich's polyphonic style. If you know his Préludes and Fugues, you'll have some idea of the style. Leonskaja plays magisterially here, never afraid to let Shostakovich's spareness tempt her to rush the second and third movements. Very nice, indeed.

Tracks:

I. Nocturne: Moderato - Viktoria Mullova
II. Scherzo: Allegro - Viktoria Mullova
Passacaglia: Andante - Viktoria Mullova
IV. Burlesque: Allegro Con Brio - Presto - Viktoria Mullova
I. Moderato - Gidon Kremer
II. Adagio - Gidon Kremer
III. Adagio - Allegro - Gidon Kremer

Tracks:

I. Allegretto - Heinrich Schiff
II. Moderato - Heinrich Schiff
III. Cadenza - Heinrich Schiff
IV. Allegro Con Moto - Heinrich Schiff
I. Largo - Heinrich Schiff
II. Allegretto - Heinrich Schiff
III. Allegretto - Heinrich Schiff

Tracks:

I. Allegretto - Peter Jablonski
II. Lento - Peter Jablonski
III. Moderato - IV. Allegro Con Brio - Peter Jablonski
I. Allegro - Cristina Ortiz
II. Andante - Cristina Ortiz
III. Allegro - Cristina Ortiz

Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No. 1 in C minor for Piano, Trumpet and Orchestra Op. 35; Concerto No. 2 in F Major for Piano and Orchestra Op. 102; Quintet in G minor for Piano and Strings Op. 57 - Yefim Bronfman (piano), Los Angeles Philharmonic, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Juilliard String Quartet

Average customer rating:

Fizzy and infectious in the concertos, uplifting in the Piano Quintet
More of the Spectrum of Shostakovich
Not worth it!
Great Soaring Piano Concerto
buy it for the quintet!

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ASIN: B000034CZ5
Release Date: 1999-11-23

Amazon.com

This is a splendid recording, featuring three of Shostakovich's major works involving his own instrument, the piano. They display all the mercurial, contradictory aspects of his style, from dance-hall banality to sophisticated counterpoint and inspired melodic inventiveness, from mournful desolation and bleak hopelessness to the wild, obsessive, sardonic humor of desperation. The two piano concertos, though written over 20 years apart, show a certain similarity in their melancholy slow movements and frantically rollicking Finales, though the first, more popular one, opens with a highly dramatic movement, the second with a relatively peaceful one. The recording brings together a Russian-born virtuoso pianist with a special affinity for the composer's style, a great quartet steeped in 20th-century music, and a first-rate orchestra. The resulting performances are brilliant, moving, and exciting; Bronfman's virtuosity is stunning and the solo trumpeter in the first concerto is terrific. The string playing is wonderful--rich and colorful in sound, rhythmically incisive, deeply expressive; the first violinist's tone soars radiantly in the many stratospheric passages. --Edith Eisler

Customer Reviews:

Fizzy and infectious in the concertos, uplifting in the Piano Quintet.......2006-01-11

After dulling my senses listening to the two Shostakovich piano concertos in lackluster readings by Mihail Rudy and Mariss Jansons, I needed a tonic. This CD shoots out of the speakers with infectious joy. It's also in Sony's best 24-bit sound, and on that basis alone would rank among the veyr best. Bronfman and Salonen have decided to cut loose (something neither does that often), catching Shostakovich's witty side perfectly. The composer himself is even more unbuttoned in his classic EMI recording, but in inferior sound.

The major work here, however, is the Piano Quintet, a large-scale work in the affirmative mode of the Fifth Sym. Shostakovich seems to be parodying nothing here; although there are haunting moments, particularly the string canon in the first movement and the solo violin that opens the slow movement, the Quintet, rare for this composer, is not clouded by melanchily. The Scherzo is rollicking, the finale presents a dancing tune one could almost whistle, alternating with ghostly memories of the first movement. Sony captures the sound of Bronfman's piano and the Julliard Quartet with amazing depth and fidelity--I've never heard any chamber work recorded so brilliantly.

In all, this is Shostakovich at his most lovable--a very unlikely word applied to him--played with geniality and tremendously appealing sonics.

More of the Spectrum of Shostakovich.......2005-11-27

During the past two years the Los Angeles Philharmonic has been delighting audiences with a Shostakovich Festival and during that time frame the orchestra is performing all fifteen symphonies, most of the concerti and chamber works as well as the quartets by both members of the orchestra and visiting ensembles. It is a time to respect the spectrum of the genius of Shostakovich as well as to broaden each of our exposures to works we might not know.

This CD recorded in 1999 serves as happy adjunct to this Shostakovich Festival. Yefim Bronfman is the fine soloist who offers both piano concerto numbers 1 and 2 (with the excellent assistance of trumpeter Thomas Stevens on the first) in collaboration with Esa-Pekka Salonen and the LA Philharmonic. The performances wink and dazzle and then turn to the quiet nostalgia in the slow movements. This is simply excellent Shostakovich in writing and performance!

The final work on this ambitious CD is the Quintet for piano & strings in G Minor here performed by Bronfman and the Julliard String Quartet. The balance is perfection! This is a very fine recording that stands with the finest for the concerto recordings and adds the tasty dollop of the Quintet as a superb bonus. Recommended. Grady Harp, November 05

Not worth it!.......2005-02-17

The downright stupid introductory essay in the booklet of this CD sets the tone for what one is about to hear. The playing is uninspired, the interpretations are one-dimensional. Shostakovich and listeners deserve better than this. I regret having bought it!

Great Soaring Piano Concerto.......2003-11-04

Having just recently heard a perfomrance of Concerto No. 2, I was knocked out by the beauty and intense beauty of the piece. Learning that he wrote it for his son, a budding pianist explains even more. From the sections that begin as a piano exercise, then bursting forth into joy and full throttled joy, this is sensuous, fun music. No wonder this is included in collections of romanctic piano music.

The First Concerto is a fitting tribute of sorts to his job as pianist for a silent theater, with chasing sounds of strings and piano then orchestra along with some brilliant solo trumpet.
Playful, fun listening.

The third piece for Quintet for Piano and Strings again exhibits great sensual style, with its beautiful falls and energetic crescendos. There is a delightful bolero type dance, then dropping again into a tragic sounding, all then resolved in balance and a sense of rightness at the end. Magnificent with the strings, especially the soaring violin section in the Intermezzo.

buy it for the quintet!.......2002-01-26

This recording falls under the unfortunate "almost there" category.
High marks for Bronfman, who plays with sparkle and fire throughout. Unfortunately, the orchestral treatment is not nearly as convincing.
After comparing this recording with an earlier Chandos disc featuring Maxim conducting and Dimitry Jr. as piano soloist(con. no. 1), I find the "in-the-family" reading in ways more compelling.
Truly, Bronfman brings out more color, and a livelier performance- more natural pianism. But the orchestral rendering here is noticeble subdued, further worsened by the prominent soloist level of the mix.
Lest we forget, Shost. played up the drama of the soloist(individual) vs. orchestra(powers that be) nature in his concertos. On the Chandos disc we are asked to consider this.
There, the real sarcasm and hints of things darker is easily apparent. A much more emotionally complex reading.
Here with Salonen, we miss out almost totally. It is much too "pretty", almost Mozartian.
Other faults worth mentioning-
dry recording sound throughout,
defensive posture in the liner notes.

Tracks:

Trumpet concerto: Brandenburg Concerto No.2 - Trumpet Concerto
Petrouchka
Pictures at an Exhibition
Leonore Nos. 3&2
Ein Heldenleben
Symphony No.5
Scheherazade
Don Juan
Fetes
Piano Concerto In G
Piano Cto. No. 1
Pines Of Rome
Concerto For Orchestra
Carmen Prelude
Firebird Suite
Parsifal Prelude
La Mer
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3 (Post Horn)
Capriccio Espagnol
American In Paris
Magnificat

Customer Reviews:

Orchestral Trumpet Player's Bible:.......2003-05-08

I carry this recording around with me in my case, and listen to it before auditions, concerts, rehearsals, etc. It's simply how the excerpts (along with trumpet playing in general) should sound. Smith's virtuostic playing, coupled with his vast orchestral experience, really teach the parts. All trumpet players, top to bottom, have something to learn from this CD--and while the entire work (with orchestra) and part should be studied (Smith actually recommends this), it is still very useful to hear one of the finest players on earth performing just the trumpet part.

Essential Recording for Any Trumpet Player.......2001-05-24

If any principal orchestral trumpet player has succeeded Adolph Herseth as the "state of the art," the probable consensus among his peers would be Philip Smith of the New York Philharmonic. His virtually flawless technique, gourgeous sound, rarified musicianship and exceptional leadership make him virtually unique in his field, and his more than 20 years with the Philharmonic (plus his early years with the Chicago Symphony) have firmly established him as one of the greats in the history of orchestral brass performance.

Measured simply as a documentation of his skills, this recording would be an extraordinary document - the playing throughout is stupendous. But this is much more than that; Mr. Smith proves to be as articulate (mild "New Yoahk" accent and all) as he is talented, and his performance suggestions are truly helpful, even for those of us without his superhuman abilities. The recorded sound is superb, and overall this is a joy to listen to at every level. I recommend it without reservation for any trumpet player aspiring to a higher level of musicianship and performance - and if you play it at full volume shortly after your warmup, your neighbors will be very impressed.

Most Excellent.......1999-12-13

As a trumpet player, I must say that Phil Smith's comments during each track are immensely beneficial. His thoughts have produced profound understanding in my trumpet playing, and despite the fact that this CD is intended as a grouping of Phil Smith's insights into common Orchestral Excerpts and his following demonstration, I have countless times listened out of pure enjoyment than to gain expert insight. His tone is the most beautiful I have ever heard, and it shows on this CD. I recommend this particularly for any aspiring trumpet student.

Awesome!.......1999-10-25

The previous reviewer of this CD missed the point of the CD. Lets say your working on the Carmern Prelude or Stravinsky Pétrouchka you buy this CD, and learn how Philip Smith (one of the greatest symphonic trumpet players in the world) would interpret and play it. Thats why its entitled Orchestra Trumpet Excerpts.

Excellent for aspiring trumpet players, otherwise..........1999-05-31

This CD would be excellent for aspiring orchestral trumpeters and soloists; although Philip Smith conveys his expertise exceptionally well, this short snips of music on this CD are no substitute for the actual full-orchestra recordings.

Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No. 1; Haydn: Piano Concerto No. 11

Average customer rating:

Haydn, far beyond "wit, charm and grace."
Great DSCH, Haydn lacks charm
odd pairing/great album
from A to Z with Argerich

Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No. 1; Haydn: Piano Concerto No. 11

Manufacturer: Polygram Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B000001GLS
Release Date: 1994-11-01

Tracks:

Concerto For Piano And String Orchestra: 1. Allegro moderato
Concerto For Piano And String Orchestra: 2. Lento
Concerto For Piano And String Orchestra: 3. Moderato
Concerto For Piano And String Orchestra: 4. Allegro con brio
Concerto For Piano And Orchestra In D Major: 1. Vivace
Concerto For Piano And Orchestra In D Major: 2. Un poco Adagio
Concerto For Piano And Orchestra In D Major: 3. Rondo all 'Ungarese: Allegro assai

Customer Reviews:

Haydn, far beyond "wit, charm and grace.".......2005-08-30

A word of caution: ignore, completely and without reservation, the comments of our first reviewer who dismissed Ms. Argerich's performance of the Haydn as lacking in "wit, charm and grace." For this performance embodies so much more than these (relatively) minor virtues that he appears to have utterly missed the point. Friends, this is a Haydn you haven't heard before. This is a Haydn you must hear. The playing is Dazzling. Breathtaking. Sublime. No collection of Haydn, or Argerich, should be without this CD.

Great DSCH, Haydn lacks charm.......2004-09-24

This disc highlights exactly what is so right, and so wrong, about Martha Argerich's playing. In the Shostakovich, where percussiveness, motor-perfect technique and a sterling touch reign, she is supreme. If your main interest is this piece, this is a good CD to check out for a dramatic, lean and taut reading. However, if you're interested in the Haydn, here Martha falls short, for the usual reasons. She is capable of many things, but wit, charm and grace aren't high on the list. This is Haydn on steroids, and while caffeinated might suit Martha's style it doesn't suit Joseph's. The entire D Major concerto is rushed and colorless: playing it fast ain't the point, Martha dear. At the breakneck speed she takes the finale, there's no time to shape phrases. The piano sounds big and bangy, out of place for Haydn. I'm no purist, but I also don't think you can import any character into any music, either.

The orchestra that accompanies her, the Wurttemberg Chamber Orchestra, is an ensemble I've never heard of. They do a fine job keeping up with her, and play with great polish, though without any particular signature or style. They are recorded in what I would normally call an overly reverberant acoustic, but here the lushness takes some of the edge off Miss Martha's steely fingers. Still, some of the sound is a bit smudgy--and nuance? Forget nuance when you're going at Warp 7. I can't recommend this recording with more than a modest enthusiasm, and all of it for the Shostakovich, but you may want to check it out if you see it used (read: cheap).

odd pairing/great album.......2004-02-11

I remember reading the Gramophone review for this album when it was intially released, and the critic wasn't too happy with it, the major complaints being Argerich's apparent unwillingness to play along with a lackluster orchestra and indifferent trumpeter. After hearing the album for myself, I wonder what that particular critic had for lunch.

I've heard enough versions of the Shostakovich concerto to put this one at the top of my list, even though I'd have to give Carol Rosenberger the top award for playing the Texas-saloon-type passage in the final cadenza with a lot of "swing".
Yes, Martha Argerich *does* sound like she's just one small step ahead of everyone else playing; in a way, it's unavoidable when you consider her flawless and superhuman technique. It's an adventurous performance, sounding as live as it could be for a non-live recording.
The Haydn, on the other hand, gets high marks from me for being a tight, shining performance, plus the rare treat of hearing a non-traditional cadenza (by Wanda Landowska, I think) in the slow movement. The concerto (Haydn's most popular) is flawlessly performed, and very enjoyable.

from A to Z with Argerich.......2001-06-26

Martha Argerich tackles these 2 diverse concertos with equal ease and brilliance, her dazzling, flawless technique serving both composers well. Though I normally don't like such a change in era and mood on a single CD, it somehow works on this one.

The Shostakovich, though it has a beautiful opening melody, and a slow, sorrowful second movement, has for the most part such rambunctious playfulness, with it's almost comical trumpet solo (by Guy Touvrow) that one can almost pictue acrobats and clowns...the music overflows with humor and life, and is perfect for Martha's fleet fingers.

Tracks:

Symphony No. 1 In F Minor, Op. 10: Movement 1 (Allegretto)
Symphony No. 1 In F Minor, Op. 10: Movement 2 (Allegro)
Symphony No. 1 In F Minor, Op. 10: Movement 3 (Lento)
Symphony No. 1 In F Minor, Op. 10: Movement 4 (Allegro moderato)
Concerto For Piano Trumpet and Strings, Op. 35: Movement 1 (Allegro moderato)
Concerto For Piano Trumpet and Strings, Op. 35: Movement 2 (Lento)
Concerto For Piano Trumpet and Strings, Op. 35: Movement 3 (Moderato)
Concerto For Piano Trumpet and Strings, Op. 35: Movement 4 (Allegro brio)
The Age Of Gold Ballet Suite, Op. 22: Introduction (Allegro non troppo)
The Age Of Gold Ballet Suite, Op. 22: Polka (Allegretto)
The Age Of Gold Ballet Suite, Op. 22: Danse

Shostakovich: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2

Average customer rating:

Stunning
An excellent performance
As always, Lyndon Gee delivers perfecton!

Shostakovich: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2

Manufacturer: Naxos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B00000144R
Release Date: 1995-10-24

Tracks:

Festive Overture, Op.96: Festive Overture, Op.96 - Piano Concerto No. 2 in F Major, Op. 102
Piano Concerto No. 2 In F Major, Op. 102: Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 2 In F Major, Op. 102: Andante
Piano Concerto No. 2 In F Major, Op. 102: Allegro 'The Age Of Gold' Ballet Suite Op.22a
'The Age Of Gold', Ballet Suite, Op. 22a: Introduction
'The Age Of Gold', Ballet Suite, Op. 22a: Adagio
'The Age Of Gold', Ballet Suite, Op. 22a: Polka
'The Age Of Gold', Ballet Suite, Op. 22a: Dance - Piano Concerto No.1 in C Minor, Op.35
Piano Concerto No. 1 In C Minor, Op.35: Allegretto- Allegro vivace- Moderato
Piano Concerto No. 1 In C Minor, Op.35: Lento
Piano Concerto No. 1 In C Minor, Op.35: Moderato
Piano Concerto No. 1 In C Minor, Op.35: Allgero con brio

Customer Reviews:

Stunning.......2006-03-26

The quality of this performance is stunning. Performed by the composer, the Shostakovich piano concertos sparkle on this recording. The orchestra that helped to create this stunning performance is lively and rhythmical. Shostakovich's upbeat and intriguing piano concertos draw each individual listener into the music. Whether you are a fan of classical music or just someone looking for some good music, I am sure that you will appreciate this CD. Trust me; I am a classical pianist, and I have won several piano competitions. This stunning CD is an amazing investment.

By the way, if you enjoy this CD, you might want to buy a CD of Chopin's equally stunning piano concertos!

An excellent performance.......2005-01-14

First of all, Shostakovich was a magnificent composer and performer. The works featured on this CD are a very good representation of his satyrical, ironic style, and the performance of the pieces is perfect. Sometimes the music is dischordant, but never to much; it makes its point without going too far. I bought this CD since I play piano and am working on Shostakovich's Concerto No. 2, and I have not been dissapointed. The sheer speed of some of the pieces is stunning, and the grace and beauty of the slower pieces also amaze me. I highly recommend this recording.

As always, Lyndon Gee delivers perfecton!.......2003-05-17

This CD is a magnificant listen! Christopher Lyndon Gee is an amazing conductor, and being a student of his I can say he's a brilliant man as well. If you want the best...go get and Lyndon Gee CD!

Average customer rating:

Evgeny Kissin in Concert (Box Set)

Manufacturer: Brilliant Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Fantasy

ASIN: B000274T8U
Release Date: 2004-05-25

Music Review: