# Indispensable interpretations of crucial works?



## DavidMahler (Dec 28, 2009)

List 10 or more of your favorite pieces paired with what you feel is the definitive recorded version


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## kv466 (May 18, 2011)

- Rachmaninov Piano Concertos no. 2 and 3, Earl Wild and The Royal Philharmonic under the direction of Jascha Horenstein; really, for that matter, all four and the Variations

- Grieg Piano Concerto, Earl Wild and The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Rene Leibowitz

- Mozart Piano Concerto no. 20 kv466, Evgeny Kissin and The Moscow Virtuosi under the baton of Vladimir Spivakov

- Vivaldi Four Seasons, Joseph Silverstein with the Boston Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Seiji Ozawa

- Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto no. 1, Earl Wild and The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Anatole Fistoulari

- Beethoven Piano Concertos no. 3 & no. 4, Glenn Gould and the New York Philharmonic under the direction of Leonard Bernstein

- Beethoven Piano Concerto no. 5, Glenn Gould and the American Symphony Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski

- Bach's Keyboard Concertos 1,2,3,4,5 & 7 Glenn Gould's versions, Bernstein and Golschmann

- The Complete Mozart Symphonies, Sir Neville Marriner conducting The Academy of St. Martin in the Fields

- The Complete Chopin Etudes, Earl Wild

- Beethoven Piano Sonatas no. 8, 17, 18, 23 among several others, Glenn Gould

- Beethoven Piano Sonata no. 21, Cladio Arrau

- Holst: The Planets, Charles Dutoit conducting Symphonique de Montreal

- Chopin Scherzi and several others, Artur Rubinstein

- Johann Nepomuk Hummel Piano Concertos in a-minor and b-minor, Stephen Hough and The English Chamber Orchestra



Anyway,...these are some of my favorites that I know I will not find a better version of (and have heard dozens up dozens of others to compare)...there are at least 20 more that I feel very strongly about but I don't like taking up a whole page on one post. There are several hundred other works I like very much but usually enjoy hearing them played by almost anyone.

Look forward to seeing some more from ya'll!


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## Aramis (Mar 1, 2009)

> - Chopin Scherzi and several others, Artur Rubinstein


I have the scherzos and ballades CD from him and I hardly like it. They don't really convey the wildness of these pieces (like ending of 3rd scherzo) and the sound itself leaves a lot to be desired.


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## kv466 (May 18, 2011)

Aramis said:


> I have the scherzos and ballades CD from him and I hardly like it. They don't really convey the wildness of these pieces (like ending of 3rd scherzo) and the sound itself leaves a lot to be desired.


Honestly, it was a toss up between his and Wild's...my favorite by Artur is without a doubt the 3rd and he shows the crazy wildness in the video from Kultur, which is the performance I was referring to.






Actually, I may have been premature in that call because all I was thinking of at the moment I wrote the post was this very performance...I also have a few video cassettes of him playing the others, I think, and again that is where I got my inspiration...the only cd I have of him that I love is Liszt Piano concerto no. 1, I forget with which orchestra and conductor.

Anyway,...if you don't like this vid then I would be incredibly interested in know your favorite!


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## jalex (Aug 21, 2011)

Aramis said:


> I have the scherzos and ballades CD from him and I hardly like it. They don't really convey the wildness of these pieces (like ending of 3rd scherzo) and the sound itself leaves a lot to be desired.


I agree. Rubinstein's are good but not great I think. Except the 4th Ballade, which is a pretty fine interpretation. Sound is okay on the recordings I have but his sniffing is quite annoying.


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## Polednice (Sep 13, 2009)

Lots of Brahms things by lots of pianists.


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## Ukko (Jun 4, 2010)

What does "crucial works" signify? That spec throws me off; Prokofieff's 1st Violin concerto can't be a 'crucial work', can it? If it were, Szigeti's recording from shortly after the Dawn of Life would qualify.


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## Aramis (Mar 1, 2009)

kv466 said:


> Anyway,...if you don't like this vid then I would be incredibly interested in know your favorite!


I do like it (especially his lovely accent when he talks before starting playing) but I still prefer O FORGIVE ME Argerich's rendition, the legendary one:


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## DavidMahler (Dec 28, 2009)

Crucial works means anything you want it to mean. Prokofiev 1 is crucial to me


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## kv466 (May 18, 2011)

Aramis said:


> I do like it (especially his lovely accent when he talks before starting playing) but I still prefer O FORGIVE ME Argerich's rendition, the legendary one:


Haha,...I love his accent and his posture during that intro...and you're forgiven; I don't like her but I can't negate how damned good she can make some pieces sound, so yeah...me gon' listen now...thanks for sharing...I knew I shouln't have put the Chopin because I haven't heard those by hundreds of performers as I have the others I listed...except the Etudes; those I have and I stick with Earl all the way...also a fan of Valentina's on the tube.

'yo no puedo tocar estudio de Chopin'


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## ElQ (Sep 12, 2011)

Raymond Lewenthal's recording of Totentanz with the LSO is BY FAR the best version, in my opinion.


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## Ukko (Jun 4, 2010)

DavidMahler said:


> Crucial works means anything you want it to mean. Prokofiev 1 is crucial to me


OK then; Mahler's 5th may be a crucial work too. Lombard/Aquitaine is, as far as I know, a unique interpretation; the arrow points up, not down. Maybe not a Stairway to Paradise, but it lifts the world off Atlas's back for most of a hour.

[I topped off supper with a chunk of "Torte strawberry shortcake", and my attitude seems much improved.]


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## Aramis (Mar 1, 2009)

kv466 said:


> Haha,...I love his accent and his posture during that intro...and you're forgiven; I don't like her but I can't negate how damned good she can make some pieces sound, so yeah...me gon' listen now...thanks for sharing...I knew I shouln't have put the Chopin because I haven't heard those by hundreds of performers as I have the others I listed...except the Etudes; those I have and I stick with Earl all the way...also a fan of Valentina's on the tube.
> 
> 'yo no puedo tocar estudio de Chopin'


Never heard the Wild recording, he, I keep reaching for Pollini when feel like listening to the etudes. Nothing comes close to his "Ocean". Wait, I don't like this pseudo, I mean: last from second set.

This one is pretty good too though + played by guy with Chopin-hair:


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## Jeremy Marchant (Mar 11, 2010)

DavidMahler said:


> List 10 or more of your favorite pieces paired with what you feel is the definitive recorded version


Sorry, there's no such thing as a definitive version of anything.

That said, I have yet to hear a performance of Shostakovich's sixth symphony that comes anywhere near that of the Leningrad PO (as it was then) under Mravinsky, recorded at a public performance in February 1965 in front of a noisy, flu-ridden audience (at one time available in the UK on Melodiya).


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## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)

*** continued... ***


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## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)




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## HarpsichordConcerto (Jan 1, 2010)




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## Taneyev (Jan 19, 2009)

What I love:
Tchaikovsky trio: Gilels-Kogan-Rostropovich live
Tchaikovsky SQs: Borodin quartet
Borodin SQ 1 and 2: Borodin quartet
Haydn 6 SQ op.50ld Tokyo
LvB violin sonatas Igor Oistrakh and wife
Mozart Symph.concertante David e Igor Oistrakh
Taneyev violin suite Oistrakh-Malko
Shosta.v.c.1: Oistrakh-Mitropoulos live
Mussorsky Pictures piano:Horowitz live 1950
Islamey:Simon Barer
LvB Waldstein:Horowitz
Miaskovsky v.c. Oistrakh
Dvorak v.c. Milstein-Dorati
Khatchaturian v.c. Oistrakh-Gauk
Enescu v.s.3; Enescu-Lipatti
Medtner v.s."epique" Oistrakh-Goldenweiser
Elgar v.c. Sammons
Elizalde and Rodrigo v.concertos: Ferras
Kodaly cello solo son.First Starker
Enough for now.


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## Ravellian (Aug 17, 2009)




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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

Jeremy Marchant said:


> Sorry, there's no such thing as a definitive version of anything...


I agree, if we want to "play" semantics, I myself use the term "benchmark" which implies it's highly respected across the board. But even that term can be a bit wishy washy in some ways. Better to say something to the effect of "this recording is my favourite" or something of the kind.



> ...
> That said, I have yet to hear a performance of Shostakovich's sixth symphony that comes anywhere near that of the Leningrad PO (as it was then) under Mravinsky, recorded at a public performance in February 1965 in front of a noisy, flu-ridden audience (at one time available in the UK on Melodiya).


So I take it you're not an audiophile, Jeremy? I'm not either, the most important thing to me is to be able to hear the music as clearly as possible. Of course, my expectations of a mono recording, live recording, analogue, digital or digital remastered, etc. differ. It's flexible. I think some people who focus too much on recording quality miss out on a lot. I've got a friend who only buys digital (DDD) recordings and I don't really see eye to eye with that on the whole, but we get along fine, it's not a big deal enough to divide us in the "guts" of music, which is basically the music itself, pure and simple...


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

In terms of what I think are "benchmark" recordings, here are a few off the top of my head -

Hindemith - Violin Concerto (Oistrakh/LSO/composer)
Liszt - Sonata in B minor (Horowitz, rec. London, 1930's)
Bruckner - Symphony #6 (Bavarian SO/Sawallisch)
Schumann - Piano Concerto (Lipatti/Philharmonia Orch./von Karajan)
Schoenberg - Violin Concerto (Hahn/Swedish RSO/Salonen)
Peter Sculthorpe - Earth Cry, Mangrove, Irkanda IV (Sydney SO/Challender)
Malcolm Arnold - Symphony #1 (Bournemouth SO/composer)
Lutoslawski & Dutilleux - Cello Concertos (Rostropovich/Orch. de Paris/Lutoslawski/Baudo)
Messiaen - Quatour pour la fin du temps (Loriod/Poppen/Fischer-Dieskau/Meyer)
Milhaud - La Creation du Monde; Le Bouef sur le toit (Orch. National de France/Bernstein)
Bernstein - Symphonies Nos. 1 "Jeremiah," & 2 "Age of Anxiety;" Chichester Psalms (Ludwig/Foss/Israel PO/Wiener Singverein/composer)
J. Strauss Jnr. - Die Fledermaus (Singers/VPO/von Karajan)
...


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## Polednice (Sep 13, 2009)

Based on the top six I mentioned in another thread:

*Essential Brahms*
*Requiem - Simon Rattle*
*Symphonies - Bernard Haitink* (preferably LSO, not so keen on the RCO sound)
Hungarian Dances - Four-Hand Piano (no orchestral versions please!), only ever been pleased with James & Kathryn March
*Late Klavierstucke - Murray Perahia*
*Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel - Stephen Kovacevich*
Piano Sonatas - Anatol Ugorski

*Essential Dvorak*
Piano Concerto - Pierre Laurent-Aimard/Harnoncourt
Cello Concerto - Haven't found a perfect one yet!
*Piano Quintet - Portland String Quartet + someone I can't remember!*
Requiem - Neeme Jarvi
*Late Symphonies - Sir Colin Davis* (LSO again)
*Tone Poems - Neeme Jarvi, but Harnoncourt for the Water Goblin*

*Essential Grieg*
*Lyric Pieces and other Solo Piano* - I flick between the complete sets of Einar Steen-Nokleberg and Eva Knardahl
Peer Gynt (complete) - Neeme Jarvi
Piano Concerto - Leif Ove Andsnes/Mariss Jansons
Sigurd Jorsalfar - Neeme Jarvi
Symphony/Symphonic Dances - Dmitri Kitajenko
Complete Orchestral Sets - Either Neeme Jarvi or Ole Kristian Ruud

*Essential Tchaikovsky*
Nutcracker - Gergiev
Piano Concerto No. 1 - Quite like Volodos, but I haven't settled on one
Symphony 1 - Jurowski
Symphony 2 - Neeme Jarvi
*Symphony 4 - Rozhdestvensky*
*Manfred - Petrenko*
Symphony 5 - Petrenko
Symphony 6 - Haven't found a perfect one yet!
*Francesca da Rimini - Christoph Eschenbach ftw!*
Romeo and Juliet - Gergiev
Violin Concerto - Hahn

*Essential Mendelssohn*
Violin Concerto - Ehnes (at the moment)
*Midsummer Night's Dream - Ozawa (Judi Dench!)*
*Piano Trios - Trio Jean Paul, no question*
*String Octet - Lincoln Centre Chamber Music Society*
Symphonies - Andrew Litton


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

My favorites include:

Monteverdi - L'Orfeo / Concerto Italiano (Naive)
Handel - Water Music - Royal Fireworks Music / Jordi Savall (Avie Vox)
Bach - Brandenburg Concertos / Concerto Italiano (Naive)
Haydn - Symphony No 96 / Szell - Cleveland Orchestra (Columbia-Sony)
Mozart - Symphony No 39 / Szell - Cleveland Orchestra (Columbia)
Beethoven - Symphony No 4 / Steinberg - Pittsburgh Symphony (Command)
Beethoven - Coriolan Overture / Boult (Vanguard)
Mendelssohn - Symphony No 3 and Hebrides Overture / Maag (London)
Schumann - Fantasy in C Op 17 / Anda (DG)
Schumann - Manfred Overture / Munch - Boston Sym (RCA)
Schumann - Symphony No 3 / Leibowitz (Reader's Digest orginally)
Brahms - Piano Concerto 1 / Curzon-Szell (London)
Brahms - Symphony No 3 / Abbado - Dresden Staatskapelle (DG)
Brahms - Alto Rhapsody / Marian Anderson
Dvorak - Symphony No 8 / Szell (Angel? - the late one, not the Cleveland Orchestra)
Bruckner - Symphony No 8 / Klemperer (Angel)
Elgar - Pomp & Circumstance Marches / Boult (Angel)
Elgar - Enigma Variations / Barbarolli (Angel)
Vaughan Williams - Symphony No 2 / Barbarolli - Halle (Angel)
Vaughan Williams - Symphony No 4 / Previn LSO (RCA)
Nielsen - Symphony No 3 - Bernstein - New York Phil (Columbia)
Nielsen - Symphony No 4 - Bernstein - New York Phil (Columbia)
Nielsen - Symphony No 5 - Blomstedt - San Francisco (Decca)
Barber - Symphony No 1 - Essay No 1 / Meecham (Unicorn)
Harbison - Symphony No 1 / Ozawa - Boston Symphony (?)

it's hard to stop at twenty, let alone ten 

(Most of the above are LPs, the reissues on CD are probably on different labels)


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## science (Oct 14, 2010)

Ten ... 

1. Beethoven's 5th - Kleiber
2. Stravinsky's Rite of Spring - Gergiev
3. Dvorak's 9th - Kubelik (and the 8th by Kertesz) 
4. Beethoven's late piano sonatas - Pollini 
5. Crumb's Black Angels - Kronos Quartet (had to do it once) 
6. Bach's Goldberg Variations - Gould
7. Dvorak's Cello Concerto - Rostropovich, Karajan
8. Elgar's Cello Concerto - Du Pre, Barbirolli 
9. Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra - Reiner 
10. Tchaikovsky's Symphonies 4-6 - Mravinsky
11. Brahms' Piano Quintet - Rubinstein & Guarneri
12. Rachmaninov's Elegiac Trios - Beaux Arts
13. Debussy's Preludes - Michelangeli 
14. Schubert's Winterreise - Fischer-Dieskau, Moore
15. Britten's War Requiem - Britten

Close enough...


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

science said:


> Ten ...
> 
> 1. Beethoven's 5th - Kleiber
> 2. Stravinsky's Rite of Spring - Gergiev
> ...


Tough, isn't it? 

I forgot about Kertesz's 8th - it's at least a tie with Szell in my book.

Can you believe I don't have the DuPre Elgar in my collection? "Inconceivable...."
Now that's something that needs to be remedied right away!


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## kv466 (May 18, 2011)

Yup,...heard it...saw it...twice...the same # of mistakes is counted. I stick with A.R.


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## joen_cph (Jan 17, 2010)

Agree concerning the mentioned 
- Hummel Concerti /Hough
- Beethoven 5/Kleiber
- Tchaikovsky 4-6/Mravinsky (that makes three of us !)
- Enescu Sonata 3/Enescu,Lipatti

Haven´t heard Oistrakh/Goldenweiser in Medtner Sonata 3; sounds interesting - but Goldenweiser got a bit slow in his old days ? Feighin/melodiya is splendid.
Haven´t heard the famous Maag/Mendelssohn 3 either.


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

& a clutch of modern era things -

Tippett - Piano Concerto (Ogdon/Philharmonia/Davis)
Berg - String Quartet Op. 3 & Lyric Suite for SQ (Alban Berg Quartet)
Hovhaness - Symphony #22 "City of Light" (Seattle SO/composer)
Schoenberg - Pierrot Lunaire (Jane Manning/Nash Ensemble/Rattle) ...


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## jalex (Aug 21, 2011)

Sid James said:


> Schoenberg - Pierrot Lunaire (Jane Manning/Nash Ensemble/Rattle) ...


Generally I don't get too hung up about recordings, but after hearing the Schafer/Boulez recording of this I cannot stand to listen to any other. Schafer's voice and delivery sound _perfect_.


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

^^I like both Manning/Rattle & Schaefer/Boulez but the former is more kind of gritty and raw, it's in your face, more like the source of the work (cabaret). I think Boulez's one is more refined and kind of "classical" or more like art-song, not cabaret. But this is a very flexible work, you can basically do it any way you want. Earlier this year I heard a performance live here with our own Fiona Campbell, who is a mezzo-soprano (not normal soprano like the other two), & her delivery was so freakin' dark & deep, it was just like another world. So I don't think there's any perfect recording of this masterpiece, but Manning/Rattle one really packs a punch for me in many ways...


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## Guest (Oct 19, 2011)

Polednice said:


> Lots of Brahms things by lots of pianists.


Haha, excellent response!! Brahms for me, too, sir, with lots of pianists.


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## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

Alexis Weissenberg's Schumann Kinderszenen are really great.


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## Taneyev (Jan 19, 2009)

...and olso is his Carnaval op.9.


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## jdavid (Oct 4, 2011)

I love Earl Wild (and Claudio Arrau).


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## kv466 (May 18, 2011)

jdavid said:


> I love Earl Wild (and Claudio Arrau).


Alas, someone speaks my language! The Masters from Chile and Pittsburg!


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