Reviews of Discs - - - LD005 - Etudes
d'exécution
transcendante -
Concert Review of LISZT ETUDES at Gilmore Festival
May 5, 2004 - The Kalamazoo Gazette – C.J.
Glanakaris
Christopher Taylor conquers Liszt’s fiendish ‘Etudes’
Pianist Christopher Taylor and Franz Liszt’s demanding “Twelve
Transcendental Etudes”
make a perfect match: composition presents a merciless range
of intensely difficult
music, while Taylor brings to the
task large, magical hands and shrewd musicality.
Tuesday evening at a full Dalton Center Recital Hall at
Western Michigan University,
Taylor took on – and mastered – Liszt’s
fiendish challenge.
The occasion
was Taylor’s much-anticipated return
to the Irving S. Gilmore International Keyboard Festival,
continuing through Saturday. And like his remarkable Messiaen
recital
at the last Gilmore Fest, Taylor left an indelible imprint
Tuesday on all who heard him.
Franz Liszt, arguably the greatest pianist ever, composed
the first version of these dozen
pieces when still a teenager.
His original intent was for him alone to perform them.
Twice afterward, in 1839 and 1852, he returned to these “etudes,” or
studies, to significantly
revise them. In whatever form,
they have represented music playable by only a portion
of professional pianists at any given time.
Opening was the short, fast “Preludio,” giving
a preview of the endless runs, octave
chords and rippling
arpeggios dominating the work as a whole. Taylor flawlessly
achieved
the quicksilver octave runs characterizing part
two, “Molto vivace” (very lively). The
third
etude, “Paysage” (Landscape), gave Taylor rein
to examine a dreamier, more
romantic side of Liszt’s
score, one featuring sweet legato melodies. Given the frequent
blustering passages in Liszt’s compositions, such lovely
melody was a welcome respite.
“Mazeppa” was a high point, thanks to fortissimo
octave runs, moving presto up and
down the entire keyboard. But a legato melody entered through
the left hand before
rapid arpeggio accompaniment returned
to drive the section to its conclusion. Taylor
excelled at alternating lyricism with demonic frenzy.
“Feux follets” (Will-o’-the-wisps) flitted
charmingly, displaying yet another facet of Liszt.
Taylor’s
performance of section six, “Vision,” was stellar.
The cross-over hands, staggered melodies, tremolo octave
chords and continuous octave runs together marked a pianist
in complete possession of his instrument and the score.
“Ricordanza” (remembrance) provided great interest
in its affinities with the composer’s
opera transcriptions.
Splendid left hand trills and meditative melodies hinting
of Chopin
added seasoning. But foremost was “Harmonies
du sior” (evening harmonies) in which
modulating chords,
plus masterful cross-overs, exhibited Taylor’s exceptional
technique.
Taylor impressively solved Liszt’s forbidding technical
logistics – frequent presto tempos
and double or triple forte – and never allowed Liszt’s
heavy bass scoring to obliterate
melodic line. His new recording
of this work should prove a good seller. Taylor made it
another
musical night to remember for the cheering audience, capping
it with a delightful
encore, William Bolcom’s “Graceful
Ghost.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Compact Disc Review of LISZT ETUDES
BOSTON
GLOBE, CLASSICAL
NOTES - Page
C21
By
Richard Dyer, Globe Staff,
4/4/20
Christopher Taylor - "Piano
Man"
Piano man: This has been a great season
for pianists, and we haven't heard Dubravka Tomsic, Murray
Perahia, or Robert Levin yet. Still, the blazing performance
of Messiaen's ''Vingt regards sur l'enfant Jesus'' by Christopher
Taylor in the Gardner Museum is likely to stand as a point
of reference for many seasons to come.
Taylor's latest CD has just appeared, another
colossus of the repertory, Liszt's ''Transcendental Etudes''
on a new Denver label called Liszt Digital. Taylor devours
these pieces but he also savors them; as in the Messiaen, Taylor
is as attentive to detail as he is to sweep. If he gives ''Mazeppa''
a wild ride, he is also sensitive in ''Paysage'' and ''Ricordanza.''
No pianist of past or present can claim to be uniformly effective
in all twelve of these pieces; ''Feux Follets'' (''Fireflies'')
lacks lightness and flicker. But there is genuine exaltation
in Taylor's delivery of ''Harmonies du soir.'' The recorded
sound is spectacular, and there is an endearing photo in the
booklet of Taylor toweling off after his superhuman effort
in the recording sessions. You can order the compact disc for
$16 (plus $1.60 for postage and handling) from www.lisztdigital.com.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
British Musical Society Newsletter
Paul Shoemaker
Classical
Music Web
Comparison recordings:
Lazar Berman [ADD] Melodiya 74321 25180 2
Claudio Arrau [ADD] Philips 416 458-2
I am sitting quietly at my keyboard trying
to avoid flying off into hysterical superlatives. Calmly,
I will tell you this is one of the three or four finest piano
recordings I’ve ever heard. It ranks high among the
most outstanding half dozen recorded performances of this
work and is likely to retain that position for some time.
I have never heard a pianist play with such exquisite control;
he knows where every note should go and places it just there.
In the turbulent arpeggio passages the notes are placed in
the foreground, midground, and background, and remain exactly
there throughout the phrase.
Piano students practice trills and try to get them as even
as possible. Piano virtuosi must learn to vary their trills,
because an absolutely perfect keyboard trill sounds rather
like an old fashioned telephone bell. Taylor plays some
of them like that, because that is what is appropriate.
But trills sometimes need to lean on the upper or lower
note, or move back and forth between leaning one way and
leaning the other, sometimes in a regular or irregular
or changing pattern. Finally, it is often necessary to
introduce a precise degree of unevenness into a trill to
achieve an interesting and expressive texture. Taylor does
all of these things exactly as, and when, they should be
done.
If a person does not feel this is their absolute favourite
performance, it would be in reference to an extremely high
level of criticism. Perhaps it is too ‘American’ in
feeling. Perhaps one might prefer a less precise performance
with more ‘Hungarian soul.’ Perhaps one should
not play middle period Liszt with quite so much informed
awareness of late period Liszt. These are points which
could be debated, and I expect Taylor and his musicologist
wife Denise Pilmer Taylor have debated them. Whatever,
if you should pick a single note from this performance
and ask why it was thus and not otherwise, I am sure Taylor
could tell you at as great a length as you desire.
This is wholly appropriate for a pianist who also has a summa
cum laude degree in mathematics from Harvard and who writes
not merely computer programs, but computer compiler programs.
He is currently Assistant Professor of Piano Performance
at University of Wisconsin.
The Berman recording remains a treasured document, but the
technical quality of neither his piano nor his recording
can match Taylor’s. There is also some variance in
interpretation, but Russian versus American are probably
equally distant from Hungarian, and probably equally valid.
Given a level playing field, Berman could probably take
Taylor, but the field is not level. The Arrau recording,
once held to be the finest version available ... well,
compared A/B to Taylor, Arrau sounds like Liberace. Certainly
more impulse and more heaving passion, but a rather flat
dynamic. In the final analysis, I’m happy to have
all three, and perhaps you would be also.
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