Search - Rachmaninoff, Ruth Laredo :: Solo Piano Music 1

A marginal offering in all respects

05/19/2002

(2 out of 5 stars)

"As a big fan of Rachmaninov (and an enthusiastic listener of other discs in the Ruth Laredo series of Rachmaninov piano works on Sony) I must sadly report that this disc ranks poorly on many dimensions. The recording quality of this disc is not good. For a recording made in the 1970s, it sounds like a poorly done recording from two decades earlier. The sound is shallow and very flat. The poor recording quality only aggravates the playing of the artist, Ruth Laredo, who leaves much to be desired in her playing. Ruth Laredo has offered reliable interpretations of other Rachmaninov piano works in the other discs in the Sony series. Here, she makes few worthy accomplishments. Finally, what one can most charitably say about these works is that for the most part they only depict how far Rachmaninov progressed afterwards as a composer. These works (with the exception of a couple of the Moments Musicaux, the Famous Prelude, and the Eligie) could be of any obscure late 19th century composer.If you have a great curiosity to hear these early works then I would direct the listener to the disc made by EMI and Andrei Gavrilov. On that disc you will at least hear the best works on this disc (though not the Prelude, which at any rate one can obtain on any number of other discs), played with more inspiration, at lower cost, and on a far better recording."

This CD brings You the Personal Side of Rachmaninov

11/11/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The morceaux Fantaisie, Salon and Musicaux, are a very Rich and Personal View of the worls of Sergie Rachmaninov, from the Dark mood that envelopes us in 1st E flat minor piec, the Famous 3 Note Fall in cut #2,a Child like vision in E major remaniscent of Debussy, to the Great & Talented Romp into the Fantastic of piece #4, it all unfolds logically and Laredo is our Story Teller Extrodinaire, and later in cuts #13 and #14 you will experience the Passion , and ever increasing cresendos in the Classic A-B-A form exceptioanlly well developed and Loveling played as only Ruth laredo could bring to the listener."