# Shostakovich 2nd Piano Concerto



## eothen (Sep 5, 2010)

hi,

Does anyone know of any really good recordings of this? Am completely in love with the cheesy 2nd movement.


cheers.


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## Edward Elgar (Mar 22, 2006)

My first choice would be the composer's interpretation with the French National Radio Orchestra. The whole thing's on youtube and is worth a listen to hear how Shostakovich plays his own music.






You are right, the second movement is quite beautiful. Brings home the sadness of living in such a repressive state. I always think of a lonely child wandering through a war torn city in the snow.


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## LindenLea (Feb 4, 2007)

Hi

The 'go-to' recording for me for very many years was the one given by Dmitri Alexeev, here...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Shostakovic...4N/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1290335601&sr=8-16

In fact my recollection was that for a long time it was almost the only recording available!! The current profusion of digital CD recordings of Shostakovich only really took off about 10-15 years ago, there's probably dozens now of the 2nd PC, but this one has stood the test of time, it's a very romantic reading if that's what you're after, very beautiful.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

Hey, thanks for introducing the topic. I have his second concerto as part of a recording I just bought which featured the 15th symphony, and I wasn't going to pay much attention to the concerto. Now I'm looking forward to hearing that "cheesy" second movement.


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## eothen (Sep 5, 2010)

Thanks for the recommendations, everyone. 

EdwardElgar, that image of the lonely child walking through the snow in a war-torn city - have you seen 'Richter - The Enigma'? Wonderful documentary video with interviews, recordings, etc. The opening of the documentary features almost the exact same image - only it's a grown man, not a child, walking through the snow in the Soviet Union. The music - one of Schubert's later piano sonatas (can't remember which one offhand) - is bleak, desolate in its beauty. Lovelovelove.


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## Vaneyes (May 11, 2010)

eothen said:


> hi,
> 
> Does anyone know of any really good recordings of this? Am completely in love with the cheesy 2nd movement.
> 
> cheers.


Eugene List/VSOO/L. Jochum (Millennium Classics).


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

eothen said:


> Have you seen 'Richter - The Enigma'? Wonderful documentary video with interviews, recordings, etc. The opening of the documentary features almost the exact same image - only it's a grown man, not a child, walking through the snow in the Soviet Union. The music - one of Schubert's later piano sonatas (can't remember which one offhand) - is bleak, desolate in its beauty. Lovelovelove.


Thanks for the clip! I'm supposed to do a music appreciation presentation for some high school students, and I'm looking for film clips like this. That's an effective image for Schubert's 21st sonata.


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## eothen (Sep 5, 2010)

Manxfeeder, you're very welcome! Hope you'll win some converts to Richter / Schubert / classical music with your presentation. 
The rest of the documentary is amazing as well. Richter had a wonderful sense of humour. 

Vaneyes, thanks for the rec.


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