Reviews (15)

Beautiful!
This is a beautifully played collection of Chopin's work. It was a birthday gift,
Well worth the money.Wonderful!Wonderful!
I am not a classical music expert but I am an expert when it comes to a great product.I have listened to the works of rubenstein and Horowitz, but nothing is comparable to this great collection of polands favorite son.The nocturnes are dreamy and romantic.The other pieces though not as mesmerizing have plenty of depth and feeling.This is a collection that you will listen to over and over again.Although this music is great anytime, it's especially meaningful during a light rainfall.Go ahead and make this investment.It's only $100.00.For the next 100 days save a dollar and you will have it paid for.I promise you won't be sorry.Excellent!Excellent!

Best investment to make
In my opinion, this is the apex of classical music. You will not find a better CD for Chopin or any piano recordings. There may be plenty of comparable CDs, but nothing can claim to surpass this.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Allegro for Keyboard    2. Balladefor Keyboard    3. Barcarollefor Keyboard    4. Berceuse for Keyboard    5. Character/Single-Movement/Miscellaneous Work for Keyboard    6. Classical    7. Classical Composers    8. Classical Music    9. Coll. of Character/Single-Movement/Misc. Works for Keyb.    10. Collection of Dance-Based Music for Keyboard    11. Collection of Etudes, Studies, or Exercises for Keyboard    12. Collection of Preludes for Keyboard    13. Contradance for Keyboard    14. Ecosse/Ecossaise for Keyboard    15. Etude for Keyboard    16. Fantasy/Fantasia for Keyboard    17. Fugue for Keyboard    18. Galop for Keyboard    19. Impromptu for Keyboard    20. Individual Dance for Keyboard   

Reviews (8)

Shock treatment
There are plenty of other pianists who have played Gottschalk's music.These include Eugene List, Alan Mandel, John Arpin, Alan Marks, Philip Martin, and my favorite, Michael Lewin.
Doesn't quite make it
Cecile Licad is a fine pianist, but she's not right for this. Maybe she's trying to put too much "Artistry" into these instead of virtuosic fire, although perversely she plays some pieces too fast. This is still quite nice, considering the low price, but don't throw away your old Leonard Pennario LP's.

An exuberant blazing Gottchalk interpretation
Ms. Licad's Gottchalk interpretations on her latest CD is a pioneering effort in presenting the essential Gottchalk.She could have opted for the "safe andtraditional " moldedfrom other previous interpretations. But on this CD, she has opened a whole new world about the possibilities of Gottchalk's music who typifies the wondrous cultural influences here in the United States.Her performance is riveting, exuberant, blazing,virtuosic and always with a keenindividual musicality thatmanages to always pay homage to what is essentially Gottchalk's. That is a feat in itself. I highly recommend this CD which should be CD of the Year.Read more

Subjects:  1. Balladefor Keyboard    2. Capriccio/Caprice for Keyboard    3. Chamber Music & Recitals    4. Classical    5. Classical Composers    6. Classical Music    7. Contradance for Keyboard    8. Dance-Based Keyboard Music    9. Etude for Keyboard    10. Fantasy/Fantasia for Keyboard    11. Galop for Keyboard    12. Keyboard    13. March for Keyboard    14. Mazurka for Keyboard    15. Romance for Keyboard    16. Suite/Partita for Keyboard   

Reviews (8)

A worthwhile contribution to musical history
The reviewers who complain of "naive" and "weak" orchestration should read the liner notes. The orchestrations are not Gottschalk's, mostly, but those of Richard Rosenberg, artistic director of the Hot Springs Music Festival. And while it may seem easy to blast Rosenberg, Gottschalk was no master of orchestration himself. I played in the Hot Springs Music Festival Orchestra this summer, including recording more Gottschalk (as well as Nazareth and Bares) for Naxos, and I promise that Gottschalk's treatment of Mehul's "Grande Chasse de Jeune Henri," which will soon be released on Naxos, will leave no doubt in your mind that Gottschalk was right to restrict most of his activity to the piano. (More proof that Gottschalk was indeed the the "Chopin of the Creoles")
Just plain fun
I'm not sure how other reviewers could have found this music weak and naive--too much Sch�nberg, maybe?Or maybe they were trying to delve its musical profundity, when in fact this music isn't profound and doesn't claim to be.It's just energetic, fun music from a composer who wasn't content to color within the Classical-era lines.If you can imagine "Creole Classical," in fact, that's a good description of this CD.Although the bulk of the album consists of rollicking showtunes (most of which feature the piano as the dominant instrument, since most of the songs are orchestral arrangements of piano pieces), there are some surprisingly tender, lyrical moments as well.The whole album is imbued with an intriguingly pre-Jazz flavor that combines with the classical structure to create some of the best moments in American music:catchy, energetic and always entertaining.For those moments when Beethoven (or Sch�nberg) is too much depth for one day, this CD is the perfect alternative... particularly at this price.

Enjoyable and Fun Taste of America!
Every once in a while, I like to buy a CD of a composer I'm not familiar with (and with NAXOS's low prices, why not?). When I got home and listened to this one, once wasn't enough. I listened twice through. This CD is real fun!!Read more

Subjects:  1. Art Song (General)    2. Chamber    3. Classical    4. Classical Composers    5. Classical Music    6. Contradance for Keyboard    7. Dance-Based Keyboard Music    8. Etude for Keyboard    9. Galop for Keyboard    10. Keyboard    11. March for Keyboard    12. Music for Two Keyboards    13. Orchestral & Symphonic    14. Romance for Keyboard    15. Romantic Symphony    16. Strings and Keyboard    17. Symphonic    18. Vocal   

Editorial Review

This 15-disc set, recorded from 1990 to 1992, is a truly complete survey of Chopin's piano music, including juvenilia and the works for piano and orchestra. It may not be quite the triumph of Biret's Brahms set, in which the performances are competitive with the best to be heard anywhere. But all of this playing is thoroughly worthy of the music, and Biret's technique is strong enough to deal with such hurdles as the Études and Scherzi without flinching. Her style is a bit more straightforward than that of the most famous Chopin poets (such as Rubinstein and Cortot), making these recordings a particularly good bet for students and listeners who are first learning to love Chopin. One can often come up with a (more expensive) recording that expresses even more of the poetry of the music than Biret does:Moravec's Nocturnes,Rubinstein's Mazurkas,Zayas's Études, and so on. And occasionally some of the lesser-known music (such as the First Sonata) might be better skipped except by scholars and curious listeners who want to know why these pieces Read more

Features

• Box set

Reviews (6)

5 stars for performance, 3 stars for packaging and mastering
I got this box set because I wanted to have all of Chopin's piano music without investing in the redundancies of various artists' recordings. Much has been said about Idil Biret's playing and I find it splendid.
Worth the price, but you get what you pay for
Ms. Gerber sums it up very well above: the playing is not what you'd find from Rubinstein, Cortot, or Ashkenazy, but it is still better than many recordings out there, and is a tremendous bargain.
Great!
I really enjoyed listening to Biret's approach of chopin on these 15 discs. I have heard other pianists play and i personally find every one of them comparable and each have their own pros and cons. The price of this influenced me over the grammophon's boxset. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Allegro for Keyboard    2. Balladefor Keyboard    3. Barcarollefor Keyboard    4. Berceuse for Keyboard    5. Box Sets (Audio Only)    6. Character/Single-Movement/Miscellaneous Work for Keyboard    7. Classical    8. Classical Composers    9. Classical Music    10. Coll. of Character/Single-Movement/Misc. Works for Keyb.    11. Collection of Dance-Based Music for Keyboard    12. Collection of Etudes, Studies, or Exercises for Keyboard    13. Collection of Preludes for Keyboard    14. Concerto    15. Contradance for Keyboard    16. Ecosse/Ecossaise for Keyboard    17. Fantasy/Fantasia for Keyboard    18. Fugue for Keyboard    19. Galop for Keyboard    20. Impromptu for Keyboard   

Features

• Box set

Reviews (4)

Ethereal LIszt in Superb Sound
Piano playing of extraordinary romantic depth and breadth. Bolet is inside Liszt's mind, as Liszt's romantic self unfolds on the keyboard. It is as if Bolet is the master himself. Superlative recordings to boot!

A great collection of Liszt treasures
The booklet of this set has an interesting explanation of why Jorge Bolet stayed out of the spotlights for so long before taking up his -glorious- career. It was his devotion to Liszt. By then, in the 1950s, Liszt was still regarded as a B-composer (There are still people who tend to think so: I read someone who called Liszt `the father of all bar pianists'. Now, if you know a worse offence...). Only after Liszt's reputation had increased, Bolet could enter his `Indian summer', which lasted from about 1975 until his passing away in 1990. During this period, he was finally able to perform his favourite music as much as possible. This fine 9-disc set may indeed be Bolet's most important testament. Additionally, it's one of the most important Liszt collections on the market. But beware: there's much more than just Bolet, considering Liszt's piano works. I can't say this is the perfect set or near it. Still five stars, for some astonishing piano playing that we don't come across very often nowadays.
An excellent collection of Liszt interpretations.
I was very impressed with Bolet's playing.His rendition of La Campanella is the best I've ever heard. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Balladefor Keyboard    2. Box Sets (Audio Only)    3. Character/Single-Movement/Miscellaneous Work for Keyboard    4. Classical    5. Classical Composers    6. Classical Music    7. Concerto    8. Etude for Keyboard    9. Galop for Keyboard    10. Keyboard    11. Nocturne for Keyboard    12. Orchestral    13. Orchestral & Symphonic    14. Piano Concerto    15. Rhapsody for Keyboard    16. Romantic Orchestral Music    17. Romantic Sonata/Sonatina for Keyboard    18. Suite/Partita for Keyboard    19. Transcription for Keyboard    20. Waltz for Keyboard   

Reviews (4)

A superb artist!
Andras Schiff shows once more why he is on the top of the ten best pianist in the world. His impressive phrasing, his superb expressiveness and supreme panache have deserved to him the most outstanding comments all around the world.
Splendid Performances of Schubert by Schiff but....
I concur with an earlier reviewer who wasn't impressed with the sound quality of these early 1990s digital recording of some of Schubert's most familiar shorter works for the piano. However, I still highly recommend it based solely on Andras Schiff's beautiful playing. I've had this compilation sitting on my shelves for over a year and finally had a chance to listen to it a few days ago; despite the recording's flaws, Schiff's playing is majestic, poetic, demonstrating his empathy for Schubert's music. Both sets of Impromptus are played with ample dignity and grace; the same holds true for the Landler (waltzes) and Moments Musicaux. It's a pity that Decca's usually high fidelity standards weren't in evidence here, or else I would say that this two CD set would deserve recognition as among the finest recordings of these Schubert pieces currently available.

Peaceful....
Here, Andras Schiff performs Schubert like he performs Bach, neither brashly nor flamboyantly. It is relaxed and easy to listen to, even on more tense pieces. But the slower, softer pieces are slightly better performances (on a CD of near perfection!) The addition of several lesser known, delightful pieces makes this album a must-have. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Allegro for Keyboard    2. Classical    3. Classical Composers    4. Classical Music    5. Folk Dance for Keyboard    6. Galop for Keyboard    7. Impromptu for Keyboard    8. Keyboard    9. Keyboard Work with Descriptive or Unclassified Title    10. Moment Musical for Keyboard    11. Orchestral & Symphonic   

Reviews (1)

Double Your Pleasure
This is a delightful excursion into early-American "kitsch," and these recordings, despite having been around for half a century, have held up remarkably well. If you like to hear music which makes no demands on you, these largely piano pieces are tuneful and charming, even if superficial.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Balladefor Keyboard    2. Capriccio/Caprice for Keyboard    3. Classical    4. Classical Artists    5. Concerto    6. Contradance for Keyboard    7. Dance-Based Keyboard Music    8. Etude for Keyboard    9. Galop for Keyboard    10. Keyboard    11. March for Keyboard    12. Music for Four Hands at One Keyboard    13. Orchestral & Symphonic    14. Piano Concerto    15. Romance for Keyboard    16. Romantic Symphony    17. Symphonic    18. Waltz for Keyboard   

Reviews (4)

Spectacular Polonaises and fine miscellaneous pieces
Nearly everything Ashkenazy recorded of Chopin is of great quality, and these discs are no exception. Ashkenazy always uses a rather no-nonsense style - not too much rubato and hysteria - that works well with Chopin's music. It's not the only way to get through it, but certainly a good one. So is this two-fer. If you're looking for just one good set of all Polonaises - here it is. For a more complete picture however, it's good to hear some other takes on the music as well. Ashkenazy is a joy to hear
Like every other Chopin CD that he's done, Ashkenazy is againmarvelous.There is none better. It's that simple.

Not a Good Choice for Polonaises
The only value I see in this cd is that it contains some posthumous polonaises which were written by Chopin in his teens, along with other miscellaneous pieces which are hard to find.But these minor pieces are really of interest for the collector.For the mature polonaises, I will not return to listen to these recordings.Ashkenazy plays the enthusiastic fortes with insensitivity and lack of emotion.For example if you compare his rendition of the "Military" polonaise with the recording by Rubinstein on RCA, you will stop listening.Also, for some strange reason he omits the Andante spianato and Grande polonaise, Op. 22.Ashkenazy includes the famous Berceuse and Barcarolle, which gives the illusion of being a great bargain.But outside of the miscellaneous pieces, the mature Polonaises and famous pieces could fit on one disk.So this is really not a bargain.I recommend any recording by Rubinstein over the present cd, particularly the one on RCA or the 1930s EMI recording.I don't particularly care much for Pollini's recording of the Polonaises, but it is better than Ashkenazy.For the Barcarolle I recommend Dinu Lipatti, and for the Berceuse, Solomon.Ashkenazy in general has a mixed bag of recordings.Some of them, e.g. the Rachmaninov Preludes and the Chopin Ballades and Scherzi, are outstanding and near definitive.But if someone were to ask me for an example of a poor Ashkenazy recording, the present cd is the first example I would give. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Allegro for Keyboard    2. Barcarollefor Keyboard    3. Berceuse for Keyboard    4. Classical    5. Classical Composers    6. Classical Music    7. Collection of Dance-Based Music for Keyboard    8. Collection of Etudes, Studies, or Exercises for Keyboard    9. Fugue for Keyboard    10. Galop for Keyboard    11. Individual Dance for Keyboard    12. Keyboard    13. Keyboard Work with Descriptive or Unclassified Title    14. Polonaise for Keyboard    15. Romantic Music for Voice and Keyboard    16. Vocal   

Features

• Box set
• Import

Reviews (3)

PORTRAIT OF AN ARTIST
The eight discs making up this set are invaluable to anyone interested in this extraordinary musician and pianist. His career was cut tragically short, and while it lasted he was most in demand to display his astounding technique in Liszt. He did it because he could. Not being enormously attracted to Liszt I was slow in coming to know Cziffra, but when I did what struck me forcibly was that the picture I had been given of him was seriously misleading. Any suggestion that he was a wilful virtuoso who turned the standard classics into something of his own is 180 degrees wide of the mark, and this selection enables us to hear what his playing was really like in music ranging from Lully and Couperin to the late 19th century, taking in on the way Rameau, Scarlatti, C P E Bach, Beethoven, Hummel, Chopin, Mendelssohn and Schumann. Liszt is here in the shape of the two concertos, the Totentanz and the Hungarian Fantasy plus some solos, my collection of least favourite romantic concertos is enhanced with his renderings of the Grieg and Tchaikovsky, but relief from these is provided with Franck's symphonic variations. Among the non-Liszt solo pieces we are given a number usually thought to call for exceptional virtuosity, namely Schumann's toccata, Mendelssohn's rondo capriccioso and Brahms's Paganini variations. Balakirev's Islamey is here too, but in a version of Cziffra's own, and so are some of his own virtuoso arrangements including one of the Flight of the Bumblebee as well as four similar efforts from Liszt.
A world-changing musician
I've not a lot to add to Alan Thorpe's review except to say that to be young when Cziffra burst upon the world in 1956 after he left Hungary & started playing in western Europe was sheer intoxication--and it wasn't all Liszt either! Like Richter, who appeared at the same time, he played Schumann in away that opened up entire new fields of tonal & interpretive possibility. I must say, too, that from the start, I admired his Beethoven--I like lyrically played Beethoven! Why shouldn't Beethoven sing as well as growl? He did write some lovely songs, after all. Cziffra's versions of Op.13, Op.14/2 & Op.26 on this set are very satisfying--I just wish they had managed to include a recording of his version of the Waldstein, too.

CZIFFRA - A Keyboard Phenomenon
Issued in 1991 by EMI France to celebrate Cziffra's 70th birthday this 8 CDboxed set is a bargain. The first CD is all Liszt and contains some of the most spellbinding playing you are ever likely to hear.Fire and brimstone reign as Cziffra tears up the keyboard in the Dante Sonata's demonic moments; surely a whiff of sulphur as he spontaneously combusts during the Mephisto-Valse; the Rhapsodie espagnole and Grand Galop chromatique {see him sweat playing this on Philip's `Great Pianists of the 20th Century video.}.As a contrast, be seduced by his heart-melting rendering of the third Liebestraume;the caprice of the Valse-Impromptu; and have the waters of `Les Jeux d'eau a la Villa d'Este' ever cascaded so onomatopoeically and with such a transcendental variety of touch and nuance.More diableriefollows on disc 2 with transcriptions by Liszt and those {in} famous ones by Cziffra himself.I have never heard a more demonic Gounod/Liszt ` Valse de Faust'; Auber/Liszt `Tarantelle de bravura'; or Tchaikovsky/Liszt Polonaise from `Eugene Onegin'; as for Cziffra's playing of his own transcriptions and paraphrases, especially the Strauss `Tritsch-tratsch polka' andRimsky-Korsakov `Flight of the Bumble-bee; well, they are in a class of their own. Both Katsaris and Volodos recordedthe latter pieces but I'm afraid they cannot compare with Cziffra's sheer electricity and panache.You will now need an ice pack as disc 3 opens with Balakirev's Islamey which starts steadily enough compared to say Simon Barere's famous account {now on APR} but increases in excitement as Cziffra adds all kind of gypsy embellishments as he builds to afiery conclusion.Excitement is also the key to the next piece;Schumann's Toccata, which Cziffra plays with effortless abandonment and joie de vivre as he also does Mendelssohn's Rondo Capriccioso. Cziffra loved to play Baroque music and the rest of this disc is taken up by mainly short but characterful pieces by Couperin, Lully, Rameau and Krebs.Many were recorded in the 1980s and sound better if played back at a reduced volume level as they were obviously too closely miked.Cziffra once said that he couldn't play Beethoven so preferred to leave it to others who could. He did record a number of sonatas and this selection includes very fine accounts of the `Pathetique'; No. 13 in E flat Op27/1 {companion to the `Moonlight'};and Op. 26 in A flat.He brings a full cantabile to the latter works opening movt. and to the Adagio of the `Pathetique'.Elsewhere he plays with refinement and elegance; everything is in the best possible taste andthere is nothing to offend,but those who like their Beethoven a bit more rough and gruff could be a bit disappointed as they might also be with Cziffra's Brahm's Paganini Variations which are technically stunning but find Cziffra musically out of sorts. The Schumann disc finds him on top form. Like many great artists Cziffra loved to play Schumann and he was equally at home with Eusebius { the dreamer} as he was with Florestan { the impetuous side of his character} and this is self evident in his brilliantly characterful accounts of Carnaval, Fantasiest�cke, and Carnaval de Vienne- the latter piece highly praised by Cortot after he heard Cziffra during a Parisradio broadcast in the late 1950s.Discs 7 and 8 are all concertante works and show Cziffra at the very height of his stupendous powers.Again Cziffra has his demon up in the most astounding Liszt Totentanz ever recorded; a Hungarian Fantasy with all the improvisational colours of a band of gypsy fiddlers and an ideally recreativeperformance of the second concerto to make all others sound four-square . To cap this there is a fabulous Grieg concerto in which Cziffra dares to improvise the end of the Lisztian style cadenza; a meltingly beautiful slow movt with an excitingly brilliant finale.Last but certainly not the least, a very poetic reading of Franck's Symphonic Variations and a Tchaikovsky first concerto which combines thrilling virtuosity with all those individual touches that only a genuinely recreative artist can bring to such a familiar masterpiece.This collection is a splendid tribute to one of histories greatest pianists- an artist who knew the authentic meaning of ` bravura'. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Baroque Sonata/Sonatina for Keyboard    2. Bourrée for Keyboard    3. Character/Single-Movement/Miscellaneous Work for Keyboard    4. Classical    5. Classical Composers    6. Classical Period Variations for Keyboard    7. Classical Sonata/Sonatina for Keyboard    8. Concerto    9. Etude for Keyboard    10. Fantasy/Fantasia for Keyboard    11. Galop for Keyboard    12. Impromptu for Keyboard    13. Keyboard    14. Keyboard Music    15. Keyboard Work with Descriptive or Unclassified Title    16. Miscellaneous    17. Miscellaneous Music    18. Nocturne for Keyboard    19. Piano Concerto    20. Polonaise for Keyboard   

Reviews (1)

Charming Music with a Light Touch
Having played some of these melodies as a student, I know them well.However, I have never heard such a marvelous rendition because the artist's hands seemed to fly over the keyboard, scarcely touching the keys but not missing a note.The rhythms are lively, and the contrasts wonderful.The music is light and undemanding, but if you listen carefully there's a lot to hear! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Berceuse for Keyboard    2. Capriccio/Caprice for Keyboard    3. Classical    4. Dance-Based Keyboard Music    5. Galop for Keyboard    6. Jazz Music    7. Keyboard    8. March for Keyboard    9. Music for Four Hands at One Keyboard    10. Romance for Keyboard    11. Scherzo for Keyboard   

Reviews (2)

Bargain-priced invitation into Liszt's Musical World
Leslie Howard's complete recording of Liszt's Piano Music is surely one of the great musical feats of all time, but not many people would have the desire or time to listen to the whole set. So it is a great thrill that Hyperion has made a 2 disk sampler set available for the rest of us! The best of Howard's Liszt
This CD, while fulfilling the intent of covering every aspect of Liszt's piano music, also covers all of Leslie Howard's Liszt interpretations and pianistic style. Howard is one of my favorite pianists, and his best playing by far is on his recordings of the Liszt transcriptions of the Beethoven symphonies, which are not included here. However, anyone who wants to get into Liszt should buy this CD before they do anything else. It really is all-encompassing. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Albumblatt for Keyboard    2. Bagatelle for Keyboard    3. Chamber Music & Recitals    4. Character/Single-Movement/Miscellaneous Work for Keyboard    5. Classical    6. Classical Composers    7. Classical Music    8. Concerto    9. Etude for Keyboard    10. Folk Dance for Keyboard    11. Galop for Keyboard    12. Impromptu for Keyboard    13. Keyboard    14. Nocturne for Keyboard    15. Piano Concerto    16. Rhapsody for Keyboard    17. Suite/Partita for Keyboard    18. Transcription for Keyboard    19. Waltz for Keyboard   

Subjects:  1. Balladefor Keyboard    2. Berceuse for Keyboard    3. Capriccio/Caprice for Keyboard    4. Character/Single-Movement/Miscellaneous Work for Keyboard    5. Classical    6. Classical Composers    7. Classical Music    8. Contradance for Keyboard    9. Dance-Based Keyboard Music    10. Galop for Keyboard    11. Keyboard    12. March for Keyboard    13. Mazurka for Keyboard    14. Music for Four Hands at One Keyboard    15. Romance for Keyboard    16. Serenade for Keyboard    17. Suite/Partita for Keyboard   

Subjects:  1. Balladefor Keyboard    2. Capriccio/Caprice for Keyboard    3. Chamber Music & Recitals    4. Character/Single-Movement/Miscellaneous Work for Keyboard    5. Classical    6. Classical Composers    7. Dance-Based Keyboard Music    8. Etude for Keyboard    9. Galop for Keyboard    10. Keyboard    11. Mazurka for Keyboard    12. Morceau for Keyboard    13. Polka for Keyboard    14. Romance for Keyboard    15. Suite/Partita for Keyboard    16. Waltz for Keyboard   

Reviews (1)

Charming, delicate, virtuosic...Cziffra at his best!
I was so glad to receive this album.It contains many of the greatest works of Liszt, played by virtuosic genious Gyorgy Cziffra.I recommend it to any one who enjoys great music of the 19th century.It also contains a memorable recording of the "Grand Galop Chromatique", a popular show piece in Liszt's day, but forgotten about and marred with false virtuosity.Favorites "Islamey" by Balakirev and Cziffra's own arrangement of Vecsey's "Valse Triste" are also included.I love this album dearly, and was ecstatic to find it on Amazon. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Chamber    2. Chamber Music & Recitals    3. Character/Single-Movement/Miscellaneous Work for Keyboard    4. Classical    5. Classical Artists    6. Classical Music    7. Etude for Keyboard    8. Fantasy/Fantasia for Keyboard    9. Galop for Keyboard    10. Impromptu for Keyboard    11. Keyboard    12. Keyboard Work with Descriptive or Unclassified Title    13. Opera    14. Orchestral    15. Romance for Keyboard    16. Rondo for Keyboard    17. Russian Romantic Opera    18. Suite for Orchestra    19. Transcription for Keyboard    20. Waltz for Keyboard   

Reviews (3)

The last American Romantic pianist!
Earl Wild is a true icon in the story of the American pianism. His excel virtues and broad gusto for an impressive of composers and tendencies have become him in obligated reference at the moment of rethink and establish a definitive valuation of the most intrepid and virtuosi pianist of several generations.
Sorcerer's Apprentice
It's almost comical, the embarrassment of riches one finds on this 2-CD set. Each performance here stands as its own jewel. Each interpretation is carefully mapped out and flawlessly executed. One gets the feeling with Wild that seldom does he walk away after a performance not having done at least 99% of what he set out to do.
Sensational pianistic fireworks
Ivory Classics are now releasing a series of the veteran American piano virtuoso Earl Wild's recordings, upon which his reputation as a super-virtuoso rests. These superbly refurbished recordings date from the1960s to 1980s and mostly capture Wild at his technical and interpretativebest. Take the fiendish Liszt Mephisto Waltz No. 1 for example. Even in thelight of Wild's three other recordings of this piece, and other famous onesfrom Kapell, Horowitz, and Cziffra, this version is a spine-tinglingdiabolic ride at a staggering basic tempo. Other high-lights includeLiszt's Grand Galop Chromatique (better balanced and controlled thanCziffra's), Gnomenreigen, and a stunning Dohnanyi pairing. Many otheradventures await the listener - snap these discs up, a bargain at theprice. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Ballet    2. Capriccio/Caprice for Keyboard    3. Chamber Music & Recitals    4. Classical    5. Classical Artists    6. Classical Music    7. Coll. of Character/Single-Movement/Misc. Works for Keyb.    8. Etude for Keyboard    9. Galop for Keyboard    10. Keyboard    11. Keyboard Music    12. Music for Four Hands at One Keyboard    13. Polonaise for Keyboard    14. Rhapsody for Keyboard    15. Romantic Ballet    16. Scherzo for Keyboard    17. Song Without Words for Keyboard    18. Transcription for Keyboard    19. Waltz for Keyboard   

Reviews (1)

Liszt childhood pieces brought to life
This is probably the most interesting of the 57 volumes in the "Complete Piano Music" series by Leslie Howard.Read more

Subjects:  1. Albumblatt for Keyboard    2. Allegro for Keyboard    3. Berceuse for Keyboard    4. Chamber Music & Recitals    5. Classical    6. Classical Composers    7. Etude for Keyboard    8. Folk Dance for Keyboard    9. Galop for Keyboard    10. Impromptu for Keyboard    11. Keyboard    12. Keyboard Work Entitled "Piece" or "Stück"    13. March for Keyboard    14. Nocturne for Keyboard    15. Romantic Variations for Keyboard    16. Rondo for Keyboard    17. Scherzo for Keyboard    18. Suite/Partita for Keyboard    19. Waltz for Keyboard   

Subjects:  1. 20th/21st Century Symphony    2. American 20th/21st Century Opera    3. Band    4. Chamber    5. Chamber Music    6. Character/Single-Movement/Miscellaneous Work for Keyboard    7. Classical    8. Classical Collections-Composer Desc.    9. Concerto    10. Galop for Keyboard    11. Keyboard    12. Keyboard Music    13. March for Band    14. Modern Composition    15. Opera    16. Orchestral    17. Orchestral & Symphonic    18. Orchestral Music    19. Romantic    20. Suite for Orchestra   

Features

• Box set

Reviews (1)

AWESOME MUSIC!!
I got this title to help me with my piano playing, and so far it reallyhas really helped.Most of this music is fast and breathtaking, at leastin my opinion.The first CD has alot of cool songs, like Polonaise Op. 26#2, Op. 44, Op. 53, and Op.61.But I don't like the piano player's style. The 2nd CD has alot of really cool songs in the beginning, like PolonaiseGrande Op. 22, and Op. 71 #1.But the 2nd half of the 2nd CD is mainlyboring songs.Overall this is an awesome CD set. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Character/Single-Movement/Miscellaneous Work for Keyboard    2. Classical    3. Classical Composers    4. Classical Music    5. Collection of Dance-Based Music for Keyboard    6. Concerto    7. Fugue for Keyboard    8. Galop for Keyboard    9. Keyboard    10. Keyboard Work with Descriptive or Unclassified Title    11. Orchestral & Symphonic    12. Piano Concerto    13. Polonaise for Keyboard   

Editorial Review

Disc 2 of this new collection, the solo piano pieces, has been doing good service for well over a decade. Marks plays a good variety of Gottschalk music, sparkles in the virtuoso pieces, and even manages to keep a straight face when he plays sentimental tripe like "The Last Hope" and "The Dying Poet." As the only important composer produced by the U.S. in the 19th century, Gottschalk still deserves our attention, and his folk-influenced pieces are still fun to hear. Oddly, the four-hand piano recording is inferior to the solo piano disc; it sounds thin and shrill, evidently not the pianists' fault since Marks plays with beautiful tone in his solo disc. Also, more of this music comes from Gottschalk's sentimental salon style, making the program a bit less attractive. But there is still a lot of fun to be had, especially in the concluding "Grande Tarantelle." So, if you regard disc 1 as a free bonus and disc 2 as the real matter, you're definitely getting your money's worth here. Read more

Subjects:  1. Berceuse for Keyboard    2. Capriccio/Caprice for Keyboard    3. Chamber Music & Recitals    4. Classical    5. Classical Composers    6. Classical Music    7. Fantasy/Fantasia for Keyboard    8. Galop for Keyboard    9. Keyboard    10. March for Keyboard    11. Mazurka for Keyboard    12. Music for Four Hands at One Keyboard    13. Polka for Keyboard    14. Romance for Keyboard    15. Scherzo for Keyboard    16. Serenade for Keyboard   

Reviews (1)

Reccomende