Search - Frederic Chopin, Jozef Antoni Franciszek Elsner, Karol Kazimierz Kurpinski :: Chopin: 1830 Warsaw Concert

Volume 3 of Opus 111's Journey Around Chopin series replicates as much as possible an orchestral concert that took place March 17, 1830, in Warsaw, an occasion that sealed Chopin's early reputation as both composer and pianist. Hearing Chopin's music in this context is revealing. His restless modulations and dazzling keyboard figurations sound downright radical next to the hackneyed, workaday musicality of the Kurpinski and Elsner overtures, to say nothing of Paër's facile but empty vocal fireworks. Playing an Erard piano dating from around that time, Olejniczak plays with relaxed fluidity, and the small period-instrument aggregation proves how viable and effective Chopin's orchestrations really are. The concerted works, however, don't match the Emanuel Ax/Sir Charles Mackerras period versions on Sony for freshness and sophistication. Still and all, an absorbing release. --Jed Distler