Recording of the Month  - May 1998

Why can´t all pianorecords be as good as this ? - Stephen Plaistow
 

Yes why indeed. Murray Perahia's first journey into the baroque repertoire has certainly left an impact on it's audience, as profound as any. After a thumbinjury that fortunatly did not affect Mr. Perahia's musicianship in any other way than giving him the opportunity to devote himself to the studies of new repertoire, this remarkable pianist has come back with what has proved to be one of 1997's finest pianorecordings. For this disc he was, not surprisingly, honoured with the prestigious Gramophone award in the "Instrumental" category.

Personally, I first heard the record in a store in London in the spring of 97 while I, with some dismay, was watching the long line in front of the cash register. Quite by chance I went to the nearest listening station where this disc was among the choices. It took me, I think, only a few seconds to absolutely love Perahia's Händel suites. I still shudder at the thought of not having come across this disc, although the mediacoverage it recieved later on surely would have caught my attention.

The Händel suites have regretably been standing in the monumental shadow of Bach's more well known cousins, and have never really been given the attention and admiration they surely deserve. Not untill Richter and Gavriliov with their great performances of them, made the musicworld open it's eyes. Now it is Perahia that again have brought some well deserved attention upon them, through his brilliant recording.



Murray Perahia's approach is a lightly romantic one, which shouldn't discourage even the most ardent authentisity fan, as this isn't a reading where the music is hidden under layers of romantic verniss. Perahia has the warmth and clarity one associates with his earlier recordings, and a tone and a dynamic subtlety from which the music benefits. Perahia has chosen to play on a modern piano, and not a harpsicord like Andreas Staier (Scarlatti on Teldec), which "authentically" speaking would be correct.

I personally enjoy his Scarlatti sonatas just as much as the Händel suites, but the competition from other recordings is undoubtedly sharper, when it comes to the sonatas. One can only mention Horowitz' legendary 1964 recording on RCA, and Mikhail Pletnev's highly original and admired recording from 1996 on Virgin to see that here there are several recommendable alternatives. The good thing is of course that these recordings offer different works (at least to a certain extent) from Scarlatti's formidable bulk of sonatas; I believe he wrote more than 550 of them.

Murray Perahia has recently released his first recording of J.S. Bach's English suites nos. 1,3 and 6. I haven't heard the recording yet, but if his Händel and Scarlatti is anything to go by, his Bach will be a necessary investment. The remaining English-suites will be released in 1999.

© 1998 Arne.Mork@hum.uit.no