Search - Rachmaninov, Walter Gieseking :: Gieseking in Performance

One of the great piano recordings of all time

Hans U. Widmaier | Elmhurst, IL USA | 10/02/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There is a lively debate among piano aficionados about whether Vladimir Horowitz or Martha Argerich delivers the greatest performance of Rachmaninov's Third Piano Concerto. This recording, made live in the 1940's, should rightfully end that debate. Gieseking's rendition of the Third is simply beyond belief in all aspects. This is a gigantic recording of a gigantic piece. One has the impression a Titan is sitting at the instrument. Gieseking takes one ridiculous risk after the other - and almost always succeeds. The cadenza in the first movement goes from forte to fortissimo and then on and on, grander, wilder, to dimensions of richness and hugeness and sonority that I have never heard coming out of a piano before or since. Same goes for for that extremely risky octave passage at the beginning of the third movement's coda. Gieseking's speed is mind-boggling, the effect overwhelming. He sounds downright superhuman. And the ultimate miracle is that with all the hyper-virtuosity on display here, Gieseking's sound is never sharp or harsh (as it tends to become when Horowitz turns it all the way up) and at all times maintains that rich, velvety, "cantabile" quality that makes, for example, his Bach such a joy. Perhaps the secret is that Gieseking (with Mengelberg and the Concertgebouw as most competent and compatible accompanists) basically conceives of the piece in a fairly classical, treadition-bound manner. He is decidedly not looking for emotional effect, but rather for cohesion and clarity. It is plain that he is not using the piece to show off - which, if anything, makes the virtuosic display even more devastating. Somehow, in this recording, Gieseking's pianistic genius and his utterly natural, unforced approach to music combine to give a rendition of both unimagined grandeur and complete musical integrity."

My Favorite Rachmaninoff, But Maybe Not Everyone's

Timothy Dougal | Madison, Wi United States | 12/06/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"First, the facts: this CD contains recordings made from concerts in Amsterdam in 1940, which were transferred from 78's, and thus have some audience noise, applause, and some snap, crackle and pop, as well. The Third is especially the worse for wear. On a peculiar note, the timings on the back are all incorrect! That being said, once I got used to all that old surface noise, it became part of the charm of this recording, inducing an instant sense of nostaglic reverie. But feeling like I'm listening to grandpa's Victrola without the inconvenience of changing records every few minutes is hardly the whole story. On one hand, it lets the modern listener hear how this music was interpreted by the legendary Mengelberg in days gone by, and it is surprisingly less sentimental than I expected. More important is the piano work of Walter Gieseking. Often with these works, their neuroticism and difficulty are emphasized. If the "Rach 3" helped drive Helfgott into madness, it prompted Gieseking into having some high-level, virtuousic fun, especially when he made it sound like there were at least two pianos playing. The clear-mindedness and spontaneity of these performances is such that it sounds like Gieseking was just making the music up as he went along, following an idea to its ultimate elaboration with ease. I usually just put this disc on "Repeat All" while I do yoga on a dreary day!"