On Wednesday, January 17, 2018 at 8:18:44 AM UTC-5, sfr...@nycap.rr.com wrote:
> I have Moravec and Wasowski and I like them a lot. Just ordered Freire. The article below is from American Record Guide from several years ago. What are your favorites?
>
> MIFrost
>
> Nocturnes
>
> These are naturally the most atmospheric Chopin pieces--and the most intimate and romantic. We only know about 33 recordings, including partial ones.. They are not virtuoso fodder, so many pianists avoid them. Many others do them poorly.
>
> Ivan Moravec's tonal depth, infinite degrees of nuance, rapt concentration, and unerring evocation of mood add up. All our critics endorse Moravec, and the recording is great.
>
> Earl Wild makes them flow beautifully with a natural pace and tone. Nothing sounds artificial or pasted on. This is the most beautiful, most satisfying recording of the Nocturnes.
>
> Nelson Freire is on the same high artistic level (Wild admired him very much), and his readings have tenderness, melancholy, ravishing tone, and great depth.
>
> Andrzey Wasowski takes almost half an hour longer for the set and lets us smell the flowers. His nocturnes are very intense and personal, with lots of poignant expression.
>
> If you want a one-disc selection, all the best nocturnes (14 of them) are (or were) on the Naxos disc, and they are beautifully played.
>
> Wild Ivory 70701
> Freire Decca 14053
> Moravec Nonesuch 79233
> Wasowski Concord 42044
> Falvay Naxos 550257
>
> ALSO LIKED
>
> Arrau's readings are sensitive, elegant, and expressive.
>
> Hewitt: excellent but a little calculated & controlled.
>
> James Mertanen: beautiful playing & sound; incomplete.
>
> We found Ricardo Castro's recording quite hypnotic.
>
> Perlemuter has suave urbanity and melancholy ambiance.
>
> Ciccolini is joyous & extraverted, with plenty of big moments.
>
> Abbey Simon: naturalness, inevitability, grace, beauty
>
> Peter Katin is English, and he can be stiff and starched. He has not the natural flow of Moravec or Wild, but he has a strong feel for the mood of each piece. His Nocturnes are as sensitive as Arrau's but much more delicate.. The stiffness is only noticeable in certain pieces, when comparing.
>
> MIXED VERDICT
>
> Jean Alexis Smith: some miscalculations, some good ideas.
>
> Sergio Fiorentino is delicate and aristocratic but understated.
>
> Some of us like Pires for her tone; others are bored by her playing.
>
> Bialk can be nice but seems too controlled and matter-of-fact.
>
> Lympany (1960) is sensitive & eloquent but paired with boring waltzes.
>
> Rev: perfumed tone, poetic phrasing, but too much like Rubinstein.
>
> Michele Boegner is on a period instrument, which has pros & cons.
>
> David Allen Wehr: the big virtuoso treatment & rather fast.
>
> NOT LIKED
>
> Amoyel: dreamy, but often too quiet, never virtuosic.
>
> Engerer: elegant & polished, but not satisfying emotionally.
>
> Katz: overplayed; often too fast.
>
> Feltsman is too aggressive & his touch too hard.
>
> Pollini is also too forceful and stormy.
>
> "Nocturnes for cello" is not a good idea.
>
> Rubinstein is arid and drab--no magic.
>
> Harasiewicz: not atmospheric; some are too fast.
>
> Garrick Ohlsson seems too slow and contrived (unnatural).
>
> Maria Tipo also breaks the natural flow to "make points".
>
> Leonskaya: some interesting points, but halting and eccentric.
>
> Kupiec: pretty, but uneventful & noncommittal & shallow

None of the complete sets are
consistently satisfactory to my
ears. One must pick individual
performances.

Except for Freire, I disagree
with MIFrost's choices.

If I were forced to pick just one
complete set, I would probably
go for Claire Huangci, with the
caveat some of them sound a
little overwrought.

https://www.amazon.com/Chopin-Diary-Complete-Nocturnes/dp/B06XYS39YF

Mix and match for only $1.29
per nocturne. Quite the deal!

With a Premium YT account,
one can sample for free:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mVEZpCroqch2AnSFHQjVVl705_68m8ym8

dk

On Tuesday, December 14, 2021 at 3:51:59 PM UTC-5, Dan Koren wrote:
>
> If I were forced to pick just one
> complete set, I would probably
> go for Claire Huangci, with the
> caveat some of them sound a
> little overwrought.
>
> https://www.amazon.com/Chopin-Diary-Complete-Nocturnes/dp/B06XYS39YF
>
> Mix and match for only $1.29
> per nocturne. Quite the deal!
>
> With a Premium YT account,
> one can sample for free:
>
> https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mVEZpCroqch2AnSFHQjVVl705_68m8ym8
>

I am retracting the above
recommendation for Claire
Huagnci. Not because of
how she plays, but rather
because the Stoneway
she uses has a glassy
steely treble, which I
cannot really stand
for much time.

I wish someone gave
her a Fazioli or a well
preserved Pleyel with
a Yamaha CFX action.

dk

Op dinsdag 14 december 2021 om 22:39:35 UTC+1 schreef dan....@gmail.com:
> On Tuesday, December 14, 2021 at 3:51:59 PM UTC-5, Dan Koren wrote:
> >
> > If I were forced to pick just one
> > complete set, I would probably
> > go for Claire Huangci, with the
> > caveat some of them sound a
> > little overwrought.
> >
> > https://www.amazon.com/Chopin-Diary-Complete-Nocturnes/dp/B06XYS39YF
> >
> > Mix and match for only $1.29
> > per nocturne. Quite the deal!
> >
> > With a Premium YT account,
> > one can sample for free:
> >
> > https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mVEZpCroqch2AnSFHQjVVl705_68m8ym8
> >
> I am retracting the above
> recommendation for Claire
> Huagnci. Not because of
> how she plays, but rather
> because the Stoneway
> she uses has a glassy
> steely treble, which I
> cannot really stand
> for much time.
>
> I wish someone gave
> her a Fazioli or a well
> preserved Pleyel with
> a Yamaha CFX action.
>
> dk

The choice of instrument kept me from buying the set. The same goes for her Rachmaninoff CD. Her Bach, on the other hand, is great.

Henk

On Tuesday, December 14, 2021 at 5:31:56 PM UTC-5, hvt...@xs4all.nl wrote:
> Op dinsdag 14 december 2021 om 22:39:35 UTC+1 schreef dan....@gmail.com:
> > On Tuesday, December 14, 2021 at 3:51:59 PM UTC-5, Dan Koren wrote:
> > >
> > > If I were forced to pick just one
> > > complete set, I would probably
> > > go for Claire Huangci, with the
> > > caveat some of them sound a
> > > little overwrought.
> > >
> > > https://www.amazon.com/Chopin-Diary-Complete-Nocturnes/dp/B06XYS39YF
> > >
> > > Mix and match for only $1.29
> > > per nocturne. Quite the deal!
> > >
> > > With a Premium YT account,
> > > one can sample for free:
> > >
> > > https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mVEZpCroqch2AnSFHQjVVl705_68m8ym8
> > >
> > I am retracting the above
> > recommendation for Claire
> > Huagnci. Not because of
> > how she plays, but rather
> > because the Stoneway
> > she uses has a glassy
> > steely treble, which I
> > cannot really stand
> > for much time.
> >
> > I wish someone gave
> > her a Fazioli or a well
> > preserved Pleyel with
> > a Yamaha CFX action.
>
> The choice of instrument kept me from
> buying the set. The same goes for her
> Rachmaninoff CD. Her Bach, on the
> other hand, is great.

She definitely deserves something better
than a Stoneway. OTOH she studied and
practices on Stooneways, and might not
feel comfortable with a different kind of
sound and a different kind of action.

dk