Tschaikowsky: Oh! Chante encore! (2006)

Lev Vinocour combines Tchaikovsky's popular suite The Seasons with a few transcriptions for this program of piano music, Oh! Chante encore! The emphatic punctuation seems to go with Vinocour's playing -- not that he plays Tchaikovsky's music with hamminess, but his enjoyment of the music saturates his performance. The Seasons begin with a lovingly thoughtful "January." Other quiet pictures from the set are similarly presented with care. "May," subtitled "White Nights," has almost a forced stillness in its outer parts, it is ... Read More

Lev Vinocour combines Tchaikovsky's popular suite The Seasons with a few transcriptions for this program of piano music, Oh! Chante encore! The emphatic punctuation seems to go with Vinocour's playing -- not that he plays Tchaikovsky's music with hamminess, but his enjoyment of the music saturates his performance. The Seasons begin with a lovingly thoughtful "January." Other quiet pictures from the set are similarly presented with care. "May," subtitled "White Nights," has almost a forced stillness in its outer parts, it is that intent. However, there is a cheerful joy in its middle section, and that buoyancy is felt in the more animated sections of the suite. In those movements, as well as in the transcription of the Polonaise from Eugene Onegin, Vinocour strives to come as close to the energetic levels of Tchaikovsky's ballets as he can within the capabilities of his single instrument. The Dumka also alternates broodiness with ostentation, and while the contrasts are extreme, Vinocour balances them... Read Less