# Best Pianists for Chopin



## MichaelNahari (Feb 3, 2019)

Of Chopin performances, I'm only familiarized with Cherkassky, Richter, Zimmerman, Arrau, Pires, Horowitz and Rubinstein.

Of the ones mentioned above, I pretty much prefer Cherkassky, unpopular as it may be. I really enjoy his colouring and refined tone, also tempo and gestures are never exagerated, e.g. this rendition of the 3rd sonata (



). Richter, although perfectly poised can have a little of a heavy sound, and Horowitz I tend to find most of his available performances as lacking interest on his part (with some exceptions is as if he was tired most of the time).

I'm interested in your recommendations of pianists for Chopin. What about the golden era pianists? I'll be glad to take listen to your references.


----------



## Phil loves classical (Feb 8, 2017)

William Kapell is my favourite. Ashkenazy also works for me.


----------



## Brahmsianhorn (Feb 17, 2017)

Ignaz Friedman
Alfred Cortot
Josef Hofmann
Wilhelm Backhaus (etudes)


----------



## D Smith (Sep 13, 2014)

Murray Perahia and Ingrid Fliter are two I listen to frequently.


----------



## BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist (Jan 13, 2019)

Rubinstein is the correct answer. You're welcome.


----------



## Vronsky (Jan 5, 2015)

Maurizio Pollini or Claudio Arrau for me.


----------



## WildThing (Feb 21, 2017)

Dino Lipatti in the waltzes and 3rd piano concerto.


----------



## Highwayman (Jul 16, 2018)

Rubinstein - All the stuff
Arrau - Pretty much everything but mostly Nocturnes
Horowitz - For the flashy stuff like Ballades&Scherzi and for some not so flashy little pieces
Cortot - The Wildcard
Cherkassky - Everything he plays
Gilels - Everything he plays
Bolet - Most of the things he play
Lipatti - Waltzes
Cziffra - Etudes
Moravec - Nocturnes
Biret - Especially for the unknown things
Argerich - Concerti&Scherzi
Zimerman - Concerti, Ballades and some others
Fialkowska - Mazurkas
Kissin - Polonaises and stuff
Ott - Waltzes
Seong-Jin Cho - Most of his stuff


----------



## Mifek (Jul 28, 2018)

Zimerman (Ballades, Concerti, Scherzi, Barcarolle, Fantaisie)
Rubinstein (Mazurkas, Waltzes, Polonaises, Nocturnes)
Pollini (Etudes, Scherzi)
Argerich (Preludes, Sonatas)
Arrau (Nocturnes)
---------------------------
Entremont
Blechacz
Pogorelich
Olejniczak
Hough
Kissin


----------



## Larkenfield (Jun 5, 2017)

There has been no mention of the Polish Alexander Brailowsky who was famous for giving all-Chopin recitals around the world-a true Chopin performer. I have loved his Chopin Polonaise for more years than I can remember-rousing, spirited, dynamic, virile, and often thrilling. It sounds like some of his recordings have been remastered. I consider most of the Chopin Polonaise as masterworks and He was far more than a "miniaturist" when the heroic spirit behind such works can be _epic_:


----------



## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

Rubinstein would have to be my favorite overall, I know that's the obvious answer, but he has a beautiful touch to everything he plays (everything Chopin that is). My favorite of his is the Nocturnes, he plays them like no one else. That being said, I also really like Ivan Moravec on the Nocturnes.

For the 24 Préludes, which as far as I'm concerned is his greatest work, my favorite is Martha Argerich. She is amazing on them.

My other favorite is the Études, Op. 10 and 25, and Maurizio Pollini is my favorite of those I've heard. My girlfriend is a Chopin pianist of some renown however and has remarked that she thinks his dynamics are lacking slightly, but he does a perfectly good job with them in my book. (Unfortunately, she is not a recording artist or I would have to suggest her. She plays the waltzes and mazurkas really well, with a lot of feeling.) His last few Op. 25 Études are earth shattering. I'm referring to his set on Deutsche Gramophon. I'm unsure if he has recorded them elsewhere.


----------



## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

MichaelNahari said:


> Of Chopin performances, I'm only familiarized with Cherkassky, Richter, Zimmerman, Arrau, Pires, Horowitz and Rubinstein.
> 
> Of the ones mentioned above, I pretty much prefer Cherkassky,


There's a Chopin recording by Cherkassky which is very special, I think, the preludes, here


----------



## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

Vronsky said:


> Maurizio Pollini


Have you heard his new recording?


----------



## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

MichaelNahari said:


> What about the golden era pianists?


Some of those guys played very well, but you have to cut through the historical sound. If I were you I'd just dabble around randomly on youtube, there's not much to be gained from having a CD really.

Here's a few examples


----------



## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

MichaelNahari said:


> Arrau


There's a Chopin recording by Arrau which is very special, I think, the preludes, here






Worth buying IMO, it's here


----------



## aleazk (Sep 30, 2011)

When I was a teenager, I used to listen and like this cd:










Argerich is nice, too.

Btw, you don't want to miss this rendition of the 2nd Piano Concerto by Samson François:


----------



## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

MichaelNahari said:


> Richter,


If you like this guy, then you really should try his mate, Sofronitsky. Bad historical sound unfortunately.


----------



## Vronsky (Jan 5, 2015)

Mandryka said:


> Have you heard his new recording?
> 
> View attachment 112691


No, but thank you for the info. I follow DG on Facebook and their new material, but this slipped. I recommend these two recordings, plus Pollini's performance of Chopin's Nocturnes from 2005 (DG).


----------



## Xisten267 (Sep 2, 2018)

BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist said:


> Rubinstein is the correct answer. You're welcome.


I second this recommendation. I really like Rubinstein for Chopin.

I also love Ohlsson for the Krakowiak and Guiomar Novaes for the piano sonata No. 2, they are my favorite choices for these works.

*Rondo à la Krakowiak - Ohlsson, Maksymiuk:*





*Piano Sonata No. 2 - Guiomar Novaes:*


----------



## bharbeke (Mar 4, 2013)

Here are pianists who I've heard play at least one Chopin tune to the highest level:

Ax
Pires
Argerich
Rubinstein
Zaritzkaya
Biret
Ohlsson
Perahia
Pollini
RAngell
Ott
Pletnev
Pogorelich
Yundi Li
Moravec
Ashkenazy
Kenner
Tomsic
Ezaki
Magaloff
Ugorski
Trifonov
Hagiwara

Your preferences determine who interprets Chopin best, but the world-class players are all going to do at least a little justice to these works.


----------



## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

WildThing said:


> Dino Lipatti in the waltzes and *3rd piano concerto.*


He only wrote two!


----------



## WildThing (Feb 21, 2017)

DavidA said:


> He only wrote two!


I meant his 3rd sonata of course!


----------



## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

Most good pianists play Chopin well as his music is made for the piano. I remember when there were so few Choping discs but now we have abundance. Special artists include:
Richter
Horowitz
Michelangeli
Ashkenazy
Gilels
Graffman
Argerich
Pollini
Perahia


----------



## Kiki (Aug 15, 2018)

In general while I enjoy the brilliance of Pogorelich and Cherkassky, I feel more affinity with the more subtle Rubinstein and Pollini. 

My favourite is Tamás Vásáry. Not everybody's cup of tea, but his deeply heartfelt 1993 BBC recording of the Ballades absolutely got me smitten. His earlier DG recordings are nice but do not blow me away.

My dark horse is Dmitri Alexeev's crystalline and sentimentality-free Waltzes on Seraphim Classics.


----------



## Pat Fairlea (Dec 9, 2015)

I would have to nominate Arrau and Pollini. Moravec is very good, too, and Demidenko.

Oddly, I don't share the enthusiasm for Rubinstein's Chopin playing. Yes, each note, each phrase is beautifully addressed, but I find a lack of 'flow' or shaping to the whole work. Maybe I just need to listen to more Rubinstein.


----------



## RedRaider (Jan 16, 2021)

She's not on everyone's list. But Sylvia Capova does a very nice presentation of several of his works on Vienna Masters Series. One CD in particular she does several pieces I believe with Libor Pesek conducting... with Piano Concerto No. 1 as the opening number. Very nice intro... and my first impression of one of his complete works back in the mid 1990's. I found a copy and still keep it around to this very day.


----------



## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

RedRaider said:


> She's not on everyone's list. But Sylvia Capova does a very nice presentation of several of his works on Vienna Masters Series. One CD in particular she does several pieces I believe with Libor Pesek conducting... with Piano Concerto No. 1 as the opening number. Very nice intro... and my first impression of one of his complete works back in the mid 1990's. I found a copy and still keep it around to this very day.


Best and beauty are always in the eyes/ ears of the beholder.


----------



## haziz (Sep 15, 2017)

1. Rubinstein
2. Pollini
3. Pires
4. Horowitz


----------



## Allegro Con Brio (Jan 3, 2020)

Historical recording age: Lipatti, Backhaus, Friedman, Godowsky, Hoffman, Cortot. Don’t miss them; IMO no one has matched them.

Modern recording age: Pires, Moravec, Ohlsson, Argerich, Arrau.


----------



## Strange Magic (Sep 14, 2015)

.....................................


----------



## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

After almost finishing Alexis Weissenberg certainly not .


----------



## mparta (Sep 29, 2020)

Please don't miss this!!! This young man has made a Preludes recording that i prefer to all others.

of course, Moravec in the Nocturnes, nothing like it.

And prowl around, I don't know if they're on YouTube and the complete set is expensive although I think there are two or three remasterings, but Ignaz Friedman, especially mazurkas that just "explain" what the mazurkas are all about.

I think Marc-Andre Hamelin's sonatas are superb.

And a live Cortot Preludes from Munich in the 50's, intoxicated or intoxicating. Vile person, great pianist.


----------

