# Prokofiev Piano Sonata no. 8



## pianoville

This wonderful piano sonata has always been one of my favorites, both to play and listen to (even though it's darn difficult to play!). Every time I listen to this piece I seem to find new little things. There are so many layers in this piece, almost like a symphony for solo piano!

What are your thoughts about this sonata, and what are your favorite recordings of it?


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## Phil loves classical

Richter on DG. Yes, it's great.


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## BiscuityBoyle

Absolutely impossible to choose between Gilels and Richter, my favorite is whoever I'm listening to at the moment. It's the type of work like the Liszt sonata, or op.111, where no single interpretation could ever exhaust its riches. But so far no third performer I'm aware of has plumbed its depths like the two Soviet giants.


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## EdwardBast

My favorite performance, by a long way, is this one by Boris Giltburg, although the man's posture and spidery fingers are creepy to watch:






Don't know if he recorded it on other media.

One of the things I love about this sonata, my favorite by Prokofiev, is its labyrinthine progressions and the sense that it creates its own laws of counterpoint that only apply there, in the outer movements at least. The essence of all that is dark in the work seems (to me, obviously) to grow from the passage at m. 61ff. in the first movement, the drop of a minor 9th from D to C# and what follows. It's like a malign incantation from a fairy tale. Comes back with a vengeance in the middle of the finale (along with the theme of the second movement and everything else). For me, the thematic unity of the whole is executed more successfully in this sonata than in any of the others, even the Sixth.


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## Mandryka

EdwardBast said:


> My favorite performance, by a long way, is this one by Boris Giltburg, although the man's posture and spidery fingers are creepy to watch:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Don't know if he recorded it on other media.
> 
> One of the things I love about this sonata, my favorite by Prokofiev, is its labyrinthine progressions and the sense that it creates its own laws of counterpoint that only apply there, in the outer movements at least. The essence of all that is dark in the work seems (to me, obviously) to grow from the passage at m. 61ff. in the first movement, the drop of a minor 9th from D to C# and what follows. It's like a malign incantation from a fairy tale. Comes back with a vengeance in the middle of the finale (along with the theme of the second movement and everything else). For me, the thematic unity of the whole is executed more successfully in this sonata than in any of the others, even the Sixth.


Very good performance on the CD, I don't know this youtube yet -- did he use a Fazioli on the CD?


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## EdwardBast

Mandryka said:


> Very good performance on the CD, I don't know this youtube yet -- did he use a Fazioli on the CD?


I never heard the CD, only this performance on youtube! Never heard of Fazioli either, until I saw it on the piano in this video.


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## pianoville

EdwardBast said:


> My favorite performance, by a long way, is this one by Boris Giltburg, although the man's posture and spidery fingers are creepy to watch:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Don't know if he recorded it on other media.
> 
> One of the things I love about this sonata, my favorite by Prokofiev, is its labyrinthine progressions and the sense that it creates its own laws of counterpoint that only apply there, in the outer movements at least. The essence of all that is dark in the work seems (to me, obviously) to grow from the passage at m. 61ff. in the first movement, the drop of a minor 9th from D to C# and what follows. It's like a malign incantation from a fairy tale. Comes back with a vengeance in the middle of the finale (along with the theme of the second movement and everything else). For me, the thematic unity of the whole is executed more successfully in this sonata than in any of the others, even the Sixth.


Very well said, and great performance, although a slightly too fast first movement imo.


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## Josquin13

Prokofiev's 8th is one of my favorite piano sonatas of the 20th century (along with his 9th Piano Sonata), & naturally, I've collected a variety recordings of the work over the decades, & listened to other versions on You Tube, as well. Prokofiev dedicated the sonata to pianist Emil Gilels, who played it in concert many times, and recorded it in the studio, too. Recording-wise, I think you have to start with Gilels. As he finds powerful human emotions in this sonata that others arguably don't bring out to quite the same degree (which is something that can be said of the older Russian pianists' recordings of Prokofiev's 8th, in general, at least in comparison to non-Russian pianists). Indeed, there is a melodic, lyrical tenderness (and inwardness) in the 1st movement of Prokofiev's 8th that Gilels thoroughly understands.

Of course, it helps that he was there (at the time) & lived through the same turbulent, brutal, merciless, murderous, anxiety ridden, terror filled Stalinist era as the composer, out of which this music was born during World War 2; & that Gilels knew Prokofiev personally. There are irrepressible life-affirming qualities in this music, too, since Prokofiev enriched older musical forms with his extraordinary imagination & originality: All of which informs Gilels' playing & understanding of Prokofiev's music (the same is true for David Oistrakh, Sviatoslav Richter, & other interpreters that lived through the horrors of the repressive Stalinist regime & era, with the composer). Fortunately, there are several different versions of Gilels playing the 8th, both live & in the studio that can be heard on You Tube, so you can take your pick:

















etc.

Sviatoslav Richter also liked and played Prokofiev's 8th Piano Sonata--to the extent that he was initially "a tiny bit disappointed" with the Piano Sonata No. 9 that Prokofiev dedicated to him in 1947: which on first impression Richter thought was "a little simplistic"--as he wrote in his "Notebooks & Conservations". Richter's DG recording of the 8th is equally remarkable, & essential listening: 



. I've long found it difficult to choose between Richter & Gilels in the 8th Piano Sonata. Every time I think Gilels edges Richter out, I listen to Richter again, and decide he's every bit as perceptive. Suffice it to say, they're both remarkable in the 8th sonata. & fortunately, choosing between the two pianists in the 9th Piano Sonata isn't required, as Gilels showed Richter the courtesy of never playing the 9th. Although I suppose it's possible that Gilels didn't care for the 9th, as he didn't play the 6th or 7th either.









https://www.amazon.com/Scriabin-Deb...keywords=sviatoslav+Richter+prokofiev+debussy

Interestingly, the calmer, more serene, less energized 9th Piano Sonata grew on Richter, and when he finally performed the work in concert for the first time in 1951, he wrote that he now saw it was "a radiant, simple and even intimate work. In some ways it is a Sonata domestica. The more one hears it, the more one comes to love it and feel its magnetism. And the more perfect it seems. I love it very much." For Prokofiev fans, Richter's playing of the 9th sonata is as essential to hear as Gilels' playing of the 8th, IMO:










Elisso Virsaladze or Wirssaladze is another pianist that is truly remarkable in the 8th, and I wouldn't want to be without her Live Classics recording, either: 




Among other Russian pianists, Nikolai Petrov's 8th is well worth hearing too: 



, along with Lazar Berman's 8th: 



, and Andrei Gavrilov, who recorded the 8th twice--once for EMI in 1978 (analogue), and later for DG (digital)--both recordings are excellent, although I slightly prefer Gavrilov's earlier EMI 8th:










Yet there are times when I want to get away from the heavier, more emotional & sometimes slower, older Russian interpretations, & hear how non-Russian pianists see & interpret Prokofiev's 8th (just as I like to occasionally listen to the peculiarities of Glenn Gould's interpretation of Prokofiev's 7th Piano Sonata). Among the digital recordings made by non-Russian pianists, I've especially enjoyed American pianist Anne-Marie McDermott's Prokofiev, and her 8th fascinates me: 



.

I also find the Dutch pianist Ivo Janssen extremely interesting in Prokofiev. He doesn't play this music like the older Russian pianists. I'm not sure I can articulate or pin down exactly why, but I sense in Janssen's approach to Prokofiev that his intensive experience playing the complete solo keyboard works of Bach has given him special insights into Prokofiev's music, especially the three "War time" sonatas--nos. 6, 7, & 8. I think it makes him more sensitive to the formal elements and structure of this music, and the counterpoint, too. One doesn't normally think of the fiercely original Prokofiev as having been heavily influenced by the keyboard works of Bach, but Prokofiev did develop an important early fascination with the Toccata form through Robert Schumann's Toccata, Op. 7, which made a strong impression on him as a boy--with its driving, motoristic, percussive rhythms, and this influence stayed with Prokofiev for the rest of his life. And of course Schumann was deeply influenced by Bach. Prokofiev was likewise familiar with Bach's counterpoint, having played "The Art of the Fugue" for his final piano examination in 1914 at the Conservatory in St. Petersburg where he studied. So, performances such as Janssen's--that are not quite so heavily focused on the weighty expression of human emotions in this music, tend to allow us to hear the more formal classical elements, & perhaps Bach-like connections?, in Prokofiev's music: 




https://www.amazon.com/Prokofiev-So...r=1-1&keywords=anne-marie+McDermott+prokofiev
https://www.amazon.com/Prokofiev-Wa...sr=1-2-catcorr&keywords=ivo+janssen+prokofiev

Though, admittedly, Prokofiev's music is built upon a diffusion of modern and classical styles mixed together. As his music contains a wide array of influences from Bach, Schumann, Beethoven, Ravel, Mozart, Haydn, N. Tcherepnin, Gliere, Scriabin, Stravinsky, Mussorgsky, & even Russian & Ukrainian folk songs, etc.. Yet, Prokofiev was never plainly imitative of anyone. He was too talented for that. He refused to wear masks, as he wrote in his autobiography. Interestingly, for all of Prokofiev's striving to create a modern idiom that was uniquely his own, he never felt the need to abandon the older, conservative 3 or 4 movement sonata forms, and thus follows in a long line of notable pianist-composers, which shouldn't be underestimated.

Finally, Barbara Nissman and Matti Raekallio are worth hearing too. Both pianists have recorded the complete Prokofiev Piano Sonatas 1-9 (while Raekallio additionally recorded the Visions Fugitives, the Ten Pieces from Romeo and Juliet, and Sarcasms). At times, I find that Raekallio can play like a young Richter, with amazingly fast fingers in the 7th, for instance, and I wouldn't want to be without his Ondine set, especially his 7th, 8th, and 9th Piano Sonatas, and Visions Fugitives:









https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/7997494--prokofiev-piano-sonatas-nos-1-9
https://www.amazon.com/Prokofiev-Pi...-2-catcorr&keywords=matti+raekallio+prokofiev
https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/8306264--prokofiev-by-nissman

If I were pressed to pick 5 recordings of Prokofiev's 8th Piano Sonata for my desert island, it would be a very tough decision, but I'd definitely take Gilels, Richter, & Wirssaladze, and then maybe Petrov (or possibly L. Berman or Gavrilov), and lastly, well... either McDermott, Janssen, or Raekallio (as I'm undecided about which of these three I like best, as all three are so brilliant in this music). It's such a great work, and I must say that, over the years, I've enjoyed listening to all the different pianists I've mentioned. As with all great music, Prokofiev's 8th Piano Sonata seems to be able to accommodate & inspire a variety of fascinating interpretations. Indeed, Prokofiev greatly enriched and expanded the piano (and violin) literature, to such an extent that I'd presently consider his 9 Piano Sonatas (& Visions Fugitives, etc.) to be among the most underrated solo keyboard music in the history of music.

P.S. I wanted to add that a recent purchase of a set (last summer) of Prokofiev's 9 Piano Sonatas, yielded yet another interesting 8th, from Russian pianist Vladimir Ovchinnikov--whose approach, curiously, isn't along the same lines as the 8ths by the earlier Russian pianists; so, I gather the older influence of the former Soviet era has now passed in Russia: https://www.amazon.com/Prokofiev-So...coding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=R87CXEN4J9SJ1CV0YEF2. I could say the same thing about Boris Giltburg's 8th on Naxos.


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## Dimace

EdwardBast said:


> My favorite performance, by a long way, is this one by Boris Giltburg, although the man's posture and spidery fingers are creepy to watch:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Don't know if he recorded it on other media.
> 
> One of the things I love about this sonata, my favorite by Prokofiev, is its labyrinthine progressions and the sense that it creates its own laws of counterpoint that only apply there, in the outer movements at least. The essence of all that is dark in the work seems (to me, obviously) to grow from the passage at m. 61ff. in the first movement, the drop of a minor 9th from D to C# and what follows. It's like a malign incantation from a fairy tale. Comes back with a vengeance in the middle of the finale (along with the theme of the second movement and everything else). For me, the thematic unity of the whole is executed more successfully in this sonata than in any of the others, even the Sixth.





Josquin13 said:


> Prokofiev's 8th is one of my favorite piano sonatas of the 20th century (along with his 9th Piano Sonata), & naturally, I've collected a variety recordings of the work over the decades, & listened to other versions on You Tube, as well. Prokofiev dedicated the sonata to pianist Emil Gilels, who played it in concert many times, and recorded it in the studio, too. Recording-wise, I think you have to start with Gilels. As he finds powerful human emotions in this sonata that others arguably don't bring out to quite the same degree (which is something that can be said of the older Russian pianists' recordings of Prokofiev's 8th, in general, at least in comparison to non-Russian pianists). Indeed, there is a melodic, lyrical tenderness (and inwardness) in the 1st movement of Prokofiev's 8th that Gilels thoroughly understands.
> 
> Of course, it helps that he was there (at the time) & lived through the same turbulent, brutal, merciless, murderous, anxiety ridden, terror filled Stalinist era as the composer, out of which this music was born during World War 2; & that Gilels knew Prokofiev personally. There are irrepressible life-affirming qualities in this music, too, since Prokofiev enriched older musical forms with his extraordinary imagination & originality: All of which informs Gilels' playing & understanding of Prokofiev's music (the same is true for David Oistrakh, Sviatoslav Richter, & other interpreters that lived through the horrors of the repressive Stalinist regime & era, with the composer). Fortunately, there are several different versions of Gilels playing the 8th, both live & in the studio that can be heard on You Tube, so you can take your pick:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> etc.
> 
> Sviatoslav Richter also liked and played Prokofiev's 8th Piano Sonata--to the extent that he was initially "a tiny bit disappointed" with the Piano Sonata No. 9 that Prokofiev dedicated to him in 1947: which on first impression Richter thought was "a little simplistic"--as he wrote in his "Notebooks & Conservations". Richter's DG recording of the 8th is equally remarkable, & essential listening:
> 
> 
> 
> . I've long found it difficult to choose between Richter & Gilels in the 8th Piano Sonata. Every time I think Gilels edges Richter out, I listen to Richter again, and decide he's every bit as perceptive. Suffice it to say, they're both remarkable in the 8th sonata. & fortunately, choosing between the two pianists in the 9th Piano Sonata isn't required, as Gilels showed Richter the courtesy of never playing the 9th. Although I suppose it's possible that Gilels didn't care for the 9th, as he didn't play the 6th or 7th either.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> https://www.amazon.com/Scriabin-Deb...keywords=sviatoslav+Richter+prokofiev+debussy
> 
> Interestingly, the calmer, more serene, less energized 9th Piano Sonata grew on Richter, and when he finally performed the work in concert for the first time in 1951, he wrote that he now saw it was "a radiant, simple and even intimate work. In some ways it is a Sonata domestica. The more one hears it, the more one comes to love it and feel its magnetism. And the more perfect it seems. I love it very much." For Prokofiev fans, Richter's playing of the 9th sonata is as essential to hear as Gilels' playing of the 8th, IMO:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Elisso Virsaladze or Wirssaladze is another pianist that is truly remarkable in the 8th, and I wouldn't want to be without her Live Classics recording, either:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Among other Russian pianists, Nikolai Petrov's 8th is well worth hearing too:
> 
> 
> 
> , along with Lazar Berman's 8th:
> 
> 
> 
> , and Andrei Gavrilov, who recorded the 8th twice--once for EMI in 1978 (analogue), and later for DG (digital)--both recordings are excellent, although I slightly prefer Gavrilov's earlier EMI 8th:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Yet there are times when I want to get away from the heavier, more emotional & sometimes slower, older Russian interpretations, & hear how non-Russian pianists see & interpret Prokofiev's 8th (just as I like to occasionally listen to the peculiarities of Glenn Gould's interpretation of Prokofiev's 7th Piano Sonata). Among the digital recordings made by non-Russian pianists, I've especially enjoyed American pianist Anne-Marie McDermott's Prokofiev, and her 8th fascinates me:
> 
> 
> 
> .
> 
> I also find the Dutch pianist Ivo Janssen extremely interesting in Prokofiev. He doesn't play this music like the older Russian pianists. I'm not sure I can articulate or pin down exactly why, but I sense in Janssen's approach to Prokofiev that his intensive experience playing the complete solo keyboard works of Bach has given him special insights into Prokofiev's music, especially the three "War time" sonatas--nos. 6, 7, & 8. I think it makes him more sensitive to the formal elements and structure of this music, and the counterpoint, too. One doesn't normally think of the fiercely original Prokofiev as having been heavily influenced by the keyboard works of Bach, but Prokofiev did develop an important early fascination with the Toccata form through Robert Schumann's Toccata, Op. 7, which made a strong impression on him as a boy--with its driving, motoristic, percussive rhythms, and this influence stayed with Prokofiev for the rest of his life. And of course Schumann was deeply influenced by Bach. Prokofiev was likewise familiar with Bach's counterpoint, having played "The Art of the Fugue" for his final piano examination in 1914 at the Conservatory in St. Petersburg where he studied. So, performances such as Janssen's--that are not quite so heavily focused on the weighty expression of human emotions in this music, tend to allow us to hear the more formal classical elements, & perhaps Bach-like connections?, in Prokofiev's music:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> https://www.amazon.com/Prokofiev-So...r=1-1&keywords=anne-marie+McDermott+prokofiev
> https://www.amazon.com/Prokofiev-Wa...sr=1-2-catcorr&keywords=ivo+janssen+prokofiev
> 
> Though, admittedly, Prokofiev's music is built upon a diffusion of modern and classical styles mixed together. As his music contains a wide array of influences from Bach, Schumann, Beethoven, Ravel, Mozart, Haydn, N. Tcherepnin, Gliere, Scriabin, Stravinsky, Mussorgsky, & even Russian & Ukrainian folk songs, etc.. Yet, Prokofiev was never plainly imitative of anyone. He was too talented for that. He refused to wear masks, as he wrote in his autobiography. Interestingly, for all of Prokofiev's striving to create a modern idiom that was uniquely his own, he never felt the need to abandon the older, conservative 3 or 4 movement sonata forms, and thus follows in a long line of notable pianist-composers, which shouldn't be underestimated.
> 
> Finally, Barbara Nissman and Matti Raekallio are worth hearing too. Both pianists have recorded the complete Prokofiev Piano Sonatas 1-9 (while Raekallio additionally recorded the Visions Fugitives, the Ten Pieces from Romeo and Juliet, and Sarcasms). At times, I find that Raekallio can play like a young Richter, with amazingly fast fingers in the 7th, for instance, and I wouldn't want to be without his Ondine set, especially his 7th, 8th, and 9th Piano Sonatas, and Visions Fugitives:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/7997494--prokofiev-piano-sonatas-nos-1-9
> https://www.amazon.com/Prokofiev-Pi...-2-catcorr&keywords=matti+raekallio+prokofiev
> https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/8306264--prokofiev-by-nissman
> 
> If I were pressed to pick 5 recordings of Prokofiev's 8th Piano Sonata for my desert island, it would be a very tough decision, but I'd definitely take Gilels, Richter, & Wirssaladze, and then maybe Petrov (or possibly L. Berman or Gavrilov), and lastly, well... either McDermott, Janssen, or Raekallio (as I'm undecided about which of these three I like best, as all three are so brilliant in this music). It's such a great work, and I must say that, over the years, I've enjoyed listening to all the different pianists I've mentioned. As with all great music, Prokofiev's 8th Piano Sonata seems to be able to accommodate & inspire a variety of fascinating interpretations. Indeed, Prokofiev greatly enriched and expanded the piano (and violin) literature, to such an extent that I'd presently consider his 9 Piano Sonatas (& Visions Fugitives, etc.) to be among the most underrated solo keyboard music in the history of music.
> 
> P.S. I wanted to add that a recent purchase of a set (last summer) of Prokofiev's 9 Piano Sonatas, yielded yet another interesting 8th, from Russian pianist Vladimir Ovchinnikov--whose approach, curiously, isn't along the same lines as the 8ths by the earlier Russian pianists; so, I gather the older influence of the former Soviet era has now passed in Russia: https://www.amazon.com/Prokofiev-So...coding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=R87CXEN4J9SJ1CV0YEF2. I could say the same thing about Boris Giltburg's 8th on Naxos.


Thanks a lot, both of you, for the information. This is the way I like to listen: With full explanation and reason! BRAVO!


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## BiscuityBoyle

Josquin13 said:


> Prokofiev dedicated the sonata to pianist Emil Gilels


Gilels _hated_ when people made that mistake - the sonata was dedicated to Prokofiev's second wife Mira Mendelson, he "merely" premiered it.



Josquin13 said:


> I suppose it's possible that Gilels didn't care for the 9th, as he didn't play the 6th or 7th either.


Gilels played the 7th in the early 1940s, and Prokofiev loved the performance so much he decided that Gilels should premier the next one. "Отлично разыграл сонатку", he said of Gilels's performance.


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## EdwardBast

pianoville said:


> Very well said, and great performance, although a slightly too fast first movement imo.


Yeah, the first movement is a bit fast. And he takes a few odd liberties with dynamics. I guess I overlook these things as much as I can because I find his timing in critical slower passages so … poetic? It's amazing how the tiniest subtleties of timing can impart a sense of consciousness to the sound. Like it is a sentient entity in motion rather than just sounding notes? Anyway, I babble …


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## lextune

Richter is in another league in Prokofiev's 8th.

His tone is pure magic, and there are pianistic details that border on the unbelievable. 
For just one example; in the 1st mvmt coda, at measure 279, marked precipitato at the third beat, Richter brings out the top voice, (which Prokofiev has singled out with upward facing stems), more clearly than any other pianist I have ever heard.

Truth be told, in the wash of virtuosity going on, nearly every other pianist is merely content with playing the notes, and fails to point out the voice completely.

The moment comes at 15'04" in this video:






...compare it to anybody.

Ashkenazy at 14'29" (and here you can see the measure in question)






...he "kind of" brings it out, but the stark relief Richter achieves is no where to be found.

....and in the video in the posts above, of one Mr. Giltburg, (the moment comes at about 14'28" for him)....he literally does not even play the notes. 

For Prokofiev's 8th Piano Sonata there is Richter, and then Gilels, and then everybody else. There are many other great performances though. The live video of Kissin is quite impressive:


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## Josquin13

BiscuityBoyle said:


> Gilels _hated_ when people made that mistake - the sonata was dedicated to Prokofiev's second wife Mira Mendelson, he "merely" premiered it.
> 
> Gilels played the 7th in the early 1940s, and Prokofiev loved the performance so much he decided that Gilels should premier the next one. "Отлично разыграл сонатку", he said of Gilels's performance.


I stand corrected, sorry. I had heard/read that it was dedicated to Gilels, on the old Amazon forum, and didn't check it. But I see now, upon checking the facts that you are right. Thanks for correcting me. (Unfortunately, it's too late to edit and change my post.)

Thanks also for the information on Gilels playing the 7th. I knew that he had never recorded it, and assumed incorrectly that he hadn't played it.

I checked the Doremi label's discography of Gilels, and they list only two performances of Prokofiev's 8th Piano Sonata by him. I had thought there was more than that, as I have a Mobile Fidelity CD that I believed was a different performance from either the 1967 live Moscow and 1974 studio Vienna recordings. But Doremi lists it as the 1974 Vienna recording, and those are the only two performances on their discography.

Sorry, I don't read Russian. Could you please translate into English what Prokofiev said about Gilels' performance of the 7th?

For anyone who's interested, here are the dates & various labels for the two recorded performances of Gilels' 8th (taken from the Doremi website):

Piano Sonata No.8 in B-flat, Op.84

26/1/1967 - Moscow - Live

MELODIYA MELCD 722 (5CD)
MELODIYA CD 10 00719 (CD) 
OLYMPIA MKM 161 (CD)
BRILLIANT CLASSICS 92615 (10CD)

19-23/9/1974 - Vienna

MELODIYA 33S 10-06129-30 (LP) 
MELODIYA/EURODISC 86 323 MK (LP) 
MELODIYA/COLUMBIA M 33824 (LP) 
MELODIYA/VICTOR VIC-2014 (LP)
MELODIYA/VOX CDX 5122 (2CD) 
MOBILE FIDELITY MFCD 919 (CD)
MELODIYA/VICTOR VICC 2086 (CD) 
PHILIPS 456 796-2 (2CD) 
PHILIPS PHCP 20591-2 (2CD)


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## EdwardBast

lextune said:


> Richter is in another league in Prokofiev's 8th.
> 
> His tone is pure magic, and there are pianistic details that border on the unbelievable.
> For just one example; in the 1st mvmt coda, at measure 279, marked precipitato at the third beat, Richter brings out the top voice, (which Prokofiev has singled out with upward facing stems), more clearly than any other pianist I have ever heard.


14:38 - She nails it:


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## BiscuityBoyle

Josquin13 said:


> Sorry, I don't read Russian. Could you please translate into English what Prokofiev said about Gilels' performance of the 7th?


A slangy and colloquial way of saying "he nailed the sonata, played it superlatively".


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## tdc

A great Piano Sonata. Classy, seductive, dark, mysterious and multi faceted. 

Richter and Prokofiev go very well together.


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## Josquin13

BiscuityBoyle said:


> A slangy and colloquial way of saying "he nailed the sonata, played it superlatively".


Thanks for your translation. It's too bad that Gilels didn't record it.


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## chill782002

I really like Trifonov's rendition on his recently released "Silver Age" album (even though this sonata was composed well after the Russian Silver Age). The 2nd movement is particularly delightful.


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## Guest

Richter, Berman, and Trifonov are my favorites.


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