Search - Chopin, Gavrilov :: Etudes & Ballades

Etudes & Ballades
Chopin, Gavrilov
Etudes & Ballades
Genre: Classical
 
  •  Track Listings (26) - Disc #1

In Chopin, Andrei Gavrilov appears to be a pianistic Billy the Kid. His high-octane, well-greased fingers tend to shoot first before asking the musical question. Piano fanciers might get their jollies hearing the "Black ...  more »

     
?

Larger Image

CD Details

All Artists: Chopin, Gavrilov
Title: Etudes & Ballades
Members Wishing: 0
Total Copies: 0
Label: Angel Records
Release Date: 10/14/1997
Genre: Classical
Styles: Forms & Genres, Ballads, Etudes
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
UPC: 724356979925

Synopsis

Amazon.com
In Chopin, Andrei Gavrilov appears to be a pianistic Billy the Kid. His high-octane, well-greased fingers tend to shoot first before asking the musical question. Piano fanciers might get their jollies hearing the "Black Key" or "Winter Wind" études dispatched with no effort, but the surface is still glassy and glib. Conversely, Gavrilov handles the slower, lyrical études and the opening sections of the ballades with "Kid" gloves (all puns intended), to prosaic results. If you want a young pair of hands in the Chopin études, you'll get more musical satisfaction (and sturdier technique) from Vladimir Ashkenazy in his early 20s on Melodya. --Jed Distler
 

CD Reviews

Worth it for the Etudes alone!
07/20/1999
(4 out of 5 stars)

"To my mind, Gavrilov plays the Etudes beautifully. He treats the more powerful studies, e.g. Op.10 Nos. 1, 4, 12 and Op.25 Nos. 10, 11 & 12, with a dazzling technique, as if driven by some supernatural force. In the more lyrical pieces, e.g. Op.10 Nos. 3 & 8, and Op.25 Nos. 1, 2 & 7, he surprised me with a very understated and introspective approach. I was not as impressed by his performance of the Ballades, but they are still an excellent addition to what is one of the best recordings of the Etudes I have heard, and that includes Pollini and Ashkenazy!"