One special moment in time, and classical music

Skybird · 12-30-07, 11:53 AM

Admitted, this post is highly subjective and personal!

My christmas presents included a recording that I planned to get since a long time: a CD that by many is considered to be the benchmark performance for Rachmaninoff's 3rd piano concert, both regarding the orchestra and the pianbo player: Martha Argerich in the Philharmonia in Berlin 1982, with the DSO (back then still nammed RSO) Berlin conducted by Riccardo Chailly.

This is some special memory for me:

First, the concert itself is fantastic and one of the most emotional, dramatic, fast-paced and melodic pieces of classical music I know off. I love it since half my life, and it both carries me away completely and often moves me to tears at the end - not because it is so sad, but so triumphant and simply more than I can emotionally bear.

second, my Mum and me were sitting in the audience, while my Dad was perfoming with the orchestra on stage. Afterwards we both boasted with pride what a wonderful job my Dad was able to do. He like many of his colleagues of that time consideres this evening to be one of the top ten events in his whole career.

Third: the concert ranks amongst the five or six top challenges for classical piano. It is ridiculously difficult to play, not only because of the lunatic speed at which rachmaninoff wanted it to be played, but because of the extremely difficult inner structure of the piano composition as well.

And last but not least: Martha Argerich. I see her as one of the greatest of all time in her realms, playing most others against the wall, if pushing for it. Only Horowitz I once heared in a recording, and playing parts of it even faster - but at the price of making very many mistakes and stumbles. Argerich, on the other hand, plays it with maximum risk - but with almost no mistake. I must admit I have problems with Horowitz anyway - i almost never like his play. Argerich plays in some parts like a rabid demon, with devil chasing her himself, but still with more variation and emotional expression than most others. She has been gifted an extremely precious and rare talent, without doubt.

The orchestra performance also is very, very good, and pinted out by many critics. chailly back then was seen as a good conductor, but not amongst the best, but he was extremely well-liked my musicians m becasue different to many other conductors he was close to the orchestra, and was behaving very much okay and kind towards musicians. Often conductors suffer from primadonna syndrom. while Chailly liked show, he never did it at the cost of the orchestra. That's what earned him much respect and sympathy over here. In his realm - Italian music, opera, triumphant fanfare-styled effect-music, you need to look long to find somebody better, the problem with him is that EVERYTHING is at risk to sound like Itlaian opera when he is doing it.

Similiar sympathies for his way to handle inter-humane relations were only earned by Kent Nagano over here.

And today I found out that that concert in parts is on youtube.

Bam-slam-hit-the-wall-falling-flat-laughing-loud!

You can see the first movement in two parts here

And the second half of the last movement and the final here:

All in all you get 25-30 minutes of the whole program.

A special moment it was for all participants. This is arts at its very best!

STEED · 12-30-07, 02:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skybird

Admitted, this post is highly subjective and personal!

My christmas presents included a recording that I planned to get since a long time: a CD that by many is considered to be the benchmark performance for Rachmaninoff's 3rd piano concert,

Are I see you got good taste Skybird.

joea · 12-30-07, 04:49 PM

Wonderful music!!!

Konovalov · 12-31-07, 07:37 AM

Listening and watching now. Thanks for sharing.

Skybird · 12-31-07, 08:21 AM

Youtube holds many videos of Argerich, I can only recommend to seartch and check there. She is playing like a fighting tiger, and as energetic like an exploding nova. You only have one or two of this kind in a century.

Check also her doing the sonata no. 7 B-dur op 83 by Prokofiev, which is another of these absolute top difficulty checkspoints for piano players that separates the very good ones from the true masters. I think youtube only offers a minute of the first part. and if that doesn't already make you wonder how that can be done without steel fingers and a computer brain, find somewhere the third and last part of it, the famous "Precipitato", which is a real nightmare for piano due to the unsual 7/8 beat it is written in, kicking the player constantly out of any regular rythm. Musically i do not like the music by the sound of it, but technically this is some of the most difficult to be done in the world of music.

She is also famous for her recordings of Liszt and Chopin, both of which she plays in an absolutely unique way and outburst of explosive power, and most fragile beauty. Horowitz is said to have been at awe when first listening to her when she was a young girl in the 50s, and from his closer circle it was said that in a way he was almost afraid of her wild energy in her play. as one critic once put it: she does not play a concert - she devours it like a hungry wolf and does not leave a single bit of it.

The CD I got combined the Rachmaninoff concert with Tchaikowsky's 1st piana concert, which again is considered to be an absolute top class performance.

Pump up the volume and get blown away here - rock is lame compared to this:
http://www.amazon.com/Rachmaninoff-C...9107440&sr=8-1

Musical sound as an expression of madness. Now I need to find a golden shelf for it!

BTW, when she was young, this Argentinian young woman was a real beauty, too!

12-30-07, 11:53 AM	#1
Skybird Soaring Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: the mental asylum named Germany Posts: 42,604 Downloads: 10 Uploads: 0	One special moment in time, and classical music Admitted, this post is highly subjective and personal! My christmas presents included a recording that I planned to get since a long time: a CD that by many is considered to be the benchmark performance for Rachmaninoff's 3rd piano concert, both regarding the orchestra and the pianbo player: Martha Argerich in the Philharmonia in Berlin 1982, with the DSO (back then still nammed RSO) Berlin conducted by Riccardo Chailly. This is some special memory for me: First, the concert itself is fantastic and one of the most emotional, dramatic, fast-paced and melodic pieces of classical music I know off. I love it since half my life, and it both carries me away completely and often moves me to tears at the end - not because it is so sad, but so triumphant and simply more than I can emotionally bear. second, my Mum and me were sitting in the audience, while my Dad was perfoming with the orchestra on stage. Afterwards we both boasted with pride what a wonderful job my Dad was able to do. He like many of his colleagues of that time consideres this evening to be one of the top ten events in his whole career. Third: the concert ranks amongst the five or six top challenges for classical piano. It is ridiculously difficult to play, not only because of the lunatic speed at which rachmaninoff wanted it to be played, but because of the extremely difficult inner structure of the piano composition as well. And last but not least: Martha Argerich. I see her as one of the greatest of all time in her realms, playing most others against the wall, if pushing for it. Only Horowitz I once heared in a recording, and playing parts of it even faster - but at the price of making very many mistakes and stumbles. Argerich, on the other hand, plays it with maximum risk - but with almost no mistake. I must admit I have problems with Horowitz anyway - i almost never like his play. Argerich plays in some parts like a rabid demon, with devil chasing her himself, but still with more variation and emotional expression than most others. She has been gifted an extremely precious and rare talent, without doubt. The orchestra performance also is very, very good, and pinted out by many critics. chailly back then was seen as a good conductor, but not amongst the best, but he was extremely well-liked my musicians m becasue different to many other conductors he was close to the orchestra, and was behaving very much okay and kind towards musicians. Often conductors suffer from primadonna syndrom. while Chailly liked show, he never did it at the cost of the orchestra. That's what earned him much respect and sympathy over here. In his realm - Italian music, opera, triumphant fanfare-styled effect-music, you need to look long to find somebody better, the problem with him is that EVERYTHING is at risk to sound like Itlaian opera when he is doing it. Similiar sympathies for his way to handle inter-humane relations were only earned by Kent Nagano over here. And today I found out that that concert in parts is on youtube. Bam-slam-hit-the-wall-falling-flat-laughing-loud! You can see the first movement in two parts here And the second half of the last movement and the final here: All in all you get 25-30 minutes of the whole program. A special moment it was for all participants. This is arts at its very best! __________________ If you feel nuts, consult an expert. Last edited by Skybird; 12-31-07 at 02:37 AM.

12-31-07, 07:37 AM	#4
Konovalov Ocean Warrior Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: High Wycombe, Bucks, UK Posts: 2,811 Downloads: 9 Uploads: 0	Listening and watching now. Thanks for sharing. __________________ "In a Christian context, sexuality is traditionally seen as a consequence of the Fall, but for Muslims, it is an anticipation of paradise. So I can say, I think, that I was validly converted to Islam by a teenage French Jewish nudist." Sheikh Abdul-Hakim Murad (Timothy Winter)

12-31-07, 08:21 AM	#5
Skybird Soaring Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: the mental asylum named Germany Posts: 42,604 Downloads: 10 Uploads: 0	Youtube holds many videos of Argerich, I can only recommend to seartch and check there. She is playing like a fighting tiger, and as energetic like an exploding nova. You only have one or two of this kind in a century. Check also her doing the sonata no. 7 B-dur op 83 by Prokofiev, which is another of these absolute top difficulty checkspoints for piano players that separates the very good ones from the true masters. I think youtube only offers a minute of the first part. and if that doesn't already make you wonder how that can be done without steel fingers and a computer brain, find somewhere the third and last part of it, the famous "Precipitato", which is a real nightmare for piano due to the unsual 7/8 beat it is written in, kicking the player constantly out of any regular rythm. Musically i do not like the music by the sound of it, but technically this is some of the most difficult to be done in the world of music. She is also famous for her recordings of Liszt and Chopin, both of which she plays in an absolutely unique way and outburst of explosive power, and most fragile beauty. Horowitz is said to have been at awe when first listening to her when she was a young girl in the 50s, and from his closer circle it was said that in a way he was almost afraid of her wild energy in her play. as one critic once put it: she does not play a concert - she devours it like a hungry wolf and does not leave a single bit of it. The CD I got combined the Rachmaninoff concert with Tchaikowsky's 1st piana concert, which again is considered to be an absolute top class performance. Pump up the volume and get blown away here - rock is lame compared to this: http://www.amazon.com/Rachmaninoff-C...9107440&sr=8-1 Musical sound as an expression of madness. Now I need to find a golden shelf for it! BTW, when she was young, this Argentinian young woman was a real beauty, too! __________________ If you feel nuts, consult an expert.

12-30-07, 04:49 PM	#3
joea Silent Hunter Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: At periscope depth in Lake Geneva Posts: 3,512 Downloads: 25 Uploads: 0	Wonderful music!!!