Search - Frederic Chopin, Artur Rubinstein :: Rubinstein: Chopin Polonaises

Great playing--poor recording

07/23/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Most, if not all of Chopin's genius lies in his nuances. Much the same can be said of Rubinstien; his clarity of tone rests in a plane incomparable to that of all other pianists, save perhaps Horowitz. Though the recording neither jumps or is scratchy. A kind of uncomfortable bluriness smothers the brilliance of the music. It seems almost as if Rubinstein is just holding down the right pedal. This is an exaggeration, of course, but you get the idea. When it all comes down to it, no recording is incompitent enough to belie the pure ectasy of listening to music like this, but still, you might consider going with the Pollini CD."