WILHELM BACKHAUS GIBT ENCORES IN DER CARNEGIE HALL - 1956

Wilhelm Backhaus in New York

Drei Encores nach seinem Konzert in der Carnegie Hall

1956

______________________________________________________

Wilhelm Backhaus Live at Carnegie Hall Review

by James Leonard

This nearly all-Beethoven disc features the great German pianist Wilhelm Backhaus performing live at Carnegie Hall in 1956. For many, perhaps most, listeners, the instant reaction will be "Wilhelm who?" No such question troubled the New York audience at the time: after the end of every piece, they go audibly insane cheering and applauding the pianist. And it's easy to understand why. Though neither a super virtuoso like Horowitz nor a super romantic like Rubinstein, Backhaus had the integrity, insight, and sheer strength of character to dig deep into his chosen repertoire and turn in performances that radiate what for want of a better word could be called genius.

The Moonlight Sonata that opens the recital is quick but evocative in the opening Adagio sostenuto, poised and charming in the central Allegretto, and wild and wooly in the closing Presto agitato. Even better is the Hammerklavier, a massive and monumental account, that struggles and triumphs in a blazing Fugue as magnificent as the best ever recorded. As encores, Backhaus offers brilliant performances of Schubert's B flat major Impromptu from Opus 142, Chopin's F minor Étude from Opus 25, Schumann's "Vogel als Prophet" from his Waldszenen, and Mozart's Rondo all turca from his A major Sonata K. 331 -- and offers them with the addition of improvised transitions between pieces. Though the sound is faded and distant, and though some long-time listeners may prefer Backhaus' studio recordings of the two sonatas, fans of top-notch German piano playing need look no further.

by berlinzerberus

Видео WILHELM BACKHAUS GIBT ENCORES IN DER CARNEGIE HALL - 1956 канала berlinzerberus