Mighty Russian Music - Medtner, Rachmaninov, Shostakovich

Yevgeny Sudbin's new recording is finally available: the original 1926 unabridged version of Rachmaninov's 4th Piano Concerto, coupled with Medtner's 2nd Concerto and a Sudbin transcription for solo piano of a Rachmaninov song as an encore.  Grant Llewellyn and the North Carolina Symphony Orchestra are the collaborators.  The recordings were made in Raleigh, NC, in 2008, by BIS.  Of course, there is a detailed essay about the music by Sudbin, as in his prior recordings.

This young pianist has impressed me tremendously, both in recordings and in his solo recital at Peoples' Symphony Concerts last season.  He has incredible technical and interpretive gifts, everything he plays comes alive, and he makes what he plays sound better than it really is!  Rachmaninov was dissatisfied with the original version of his 4th Concerto, and produced a concise revision making major cuts, but Sudbin makes a convincing piece of the original.  Medtner's piano concerti have never found broad popularity, there are few recordings, but while you are listening to Sudbin in this or the 1st Concerto (on a prior Sudbin release), you are convinced it is a terrific piece.  The North Carolina Symphony Orchestra sounds like a major league band on this recording, which features the usual rich BIS sound.  Highly recommended!

For my gym listening this morning, I pulled off the shelf Valery Gergiev's recording of Shostakovich's 7th Symphony, made in a joint concert by the two orchestras he was directing back in 2001 - the Rotterdam Philharmonic and the Kirov Orchestra.  I had bought this when it was first issued and just never got around to listening until now.  There is only word for this recording: WOW!  I'm late to the game, so I suspect most real Shostakovich fanatics will have long since acquired this one.  If not, don't hesitate...

Comments

[Alan Masters]

I have the new Sudbin on order and look forward to its arrival. As to the Shostakovich, Bernstein's Chicago symphony recording for DG has a pretty high WOW factor too.
I've been listening over the weekend to Sony's recent box of Lenny & the NYPO in Haydn. Its a mixed bag due in main to the variable sonics. At its best, e.g. the Paris symphonies, these are terrific performances in good 60's sound. Listen to Bernstein and the NYPO power thru the outer movements of the 86th and you are left wondering if even Beethoven excelled Haydn here in devising high energy symhonic allegros. Alas, in 30 years of concertgoing I've never heard this or any other of the Paris symphonies live.

[Art Leonard]

I transfered the Sudbin recording to my iPod and have listened again and again. The Medtner grows in stature with each hearing, and I am almost convinced by Sudbin's argument that the original version of the Rach 4 is better than the cut-up revision.
As to Bernstein's Haydn - Agreed, it is truly spectacular. I haven't invested in the new box, having acquired all of the Haydns when the so-called "Royal Edition" was issued. Bernstein in Haydn may not be the latest in "period practice" but, as you say, with a modern orchestra and a vigorous approach, he really shows how Haydn was a major precursor to Beethoven. Hadyn might, had his career lasted a bit longer, have stretched himself to write something like the Beethoven 2nd.... which to my mind marks as much of a revolutionary break from the 1st as the Eroica does from those that come before...