The Russian Piano Tradition (2007)

When 17-year-old Ukrainian pianist Emil Gilels won the USSR's All-Union Contest of Musicians and Performers in Moscow in 1933, the jury praised the "striking force of rhythm and sense of form in his playing, his unbending willpower, exuberant energy, emotional freshness and spontaneity." These qualities are manifestly present in these performances from only a bit later in Gilels' career issued here in Appian Publications & Recordings' The Russian Piano Tradition series. Recorded in Moscow between 1935 and 1952 -- the period ... Read More

When 17-year-old Ukrainian pianist Emil Gilels won the USSR's All-Union Contest of Musicians and Performers in Moscow in 1933, the jury praised the "striking force of rhythm and sense of form in his playing, his unbending willpower, exuberant energy, emotional freshness and spontaneity." These qualities are manifestly present in these performances from only a bit later in Gilels' career issued here in Appian Publications & Recordings' The Russian Piano Tradition series. Recorded in Moscow between 1935 and 1952 -- the period during which Gilels went from studying at the Moscow Conservatory under pedagogue Heinrich Neuhaus to winning international fame -- these 14 performances show the pianist at his most recklessly virtuosic. The earliest three -- the amazing Loeillet/Godowsky Gigue, the astonishing Schumann/Tausig Der Kontrabandiste, and especially the astounding Schumann Toccata -- were made in 1935, and one can only gasp at the young Gilels' impetus tempos and imperious technique. A giddy... Read Less