Rachmaninov: Complete Piano Concertos/Rhapsody | Sergei Rachmaninoff, Andre Previn, ... |...

Rachmaninov: Complete Piano Concertos/Rhapsody | Sergei Rachmaninoff, Andre Previn, ... | Second Concerto worth six stars: the other are worth four.

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Rachmaninov: Compl...

	Rachmaninov: Complete Piano Concertos/Rhapsody Sergei Rachmaninoff, Andre Previn, ... Decca, 2003 average customer review:based on 2 reviews view larger image
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Rachmaninov, Ashkenazy and Previn Again?!

The playing on this CD is worthy of five stars, but Universal gets a one-star demerit for releasing these works too many times. If you want one CD of Ashkenazy & Previn playing a couple of Rachmaninov Piano Concertos, then you buy the Penguin Classics title. If you want two CDs of Ashkenazy & Previn playing all four Rachmaninov Piano Concertos, then you buy the Double Decker. If you want six CDs of Ashkenazy & Previn playing all four Rachmaninov Piano Concertos, plus the Paganini Rhapsody and other works for piano, then you buy the boxed set. And now, if you want Ashkenazy & Previn just playing all four Rachmaninov Piano Concertos and the Paganini Rhapsody, you can get this three disc set. Geez, there is less selection in the grocery store! Some of the Universal Trio releases have been phenomenal -- Dvorak Slavonic Dances/Symphonic Poems, Brahms Concertos/Overtures, Mendelssohn String Quartets, etc. -- but with the combined resources of so many labels surely they could have dug a little deeper into the vaults and found something else that was unreleased on CD. Or, just not bothered with this title at all.

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Second Concerto worth six stars: the other are worth four.

IT is always wise to stay away from complete sets if you intend to keep only one. It is always better to take an eclectic approach. for the third, horowitz and barbirolli have one of the best in the market. ashkenazy and ormandy also present a fantastic reading, but it's harder to find. stay away from the argerich... completely overrated (i personally enjoy argerich's performances, but that one was off the mark).
the fourth is a more complicated question.. michelangeli presents us with an excellent reading, full of pathos. but rachmaninoff plays rachmaninoff on RCA has a more demonic quality to it.
the second on this set is clearly one of the best performances you'll ever hear. although ashkenazy has secured his position as a somewhat ambigious pianist by recording a vast discography and accomplishing relatively little, his rachmaninoff stands at the top of my list. the second especially, is rife of triumph and melancholy. a must for all rach lovers.

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