Sergei Rachmaninov - Études-Tableaux (Steven Osborne)

Information

Composer: Sergei Rachmaninov

• (01) Études-tableaux, Op. 33
• (09) Études-tableaux, Op. 39

Steven Osborne, piano
Date: 2017
Label: Hyperion
https://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dc.asp?dc=D_CDA68188

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Review

Before his flight to Scandinavia during the Bolshevik Revolution, Rachmaninov’s last recitals in Russia included some of the Op 39 Études-tableaux. One St Petersburg critic wrote: ‘In the Études, Rachmaninov appears in a new light. The soft lyricist begins to employ a more severe, concentrated and deepened mode of expression’; while a Moscow critic concluded: ‘Who among Russian pianists is the strongest, most radiant? For me, the choice is clear: Rachmaninov.’ So from the beginning, it would seem, the new compositional directions and attitudes inherent in the Études-tableaux were apparent.

Steven Osborne’s thrilling new recording leaves no doubt of the Études’ unique position in Rachmaninov’s oeuvre. As brilliant as Osborne’s execution is throughout, it is his freshness of conception that, for me, is most striking. Naturally, every agogic, dynamic and tempo indication is scrupulously observed. On that firm foundation Osborne layers his inerrant rhythmic sense, chaste rubato, his seemingly infinite dynamic palette and, above all, his beautifully sculpted singing line.

In the more poetic Études – Op 33 Nos 2 and 7, Op 39 Nos 2 and 8 among them – melodies sing unimpeded by sentimentality or over-indulgent rubato. After establishing several planes of aural activity in Op 33 No 3, arrival at the Meno mosso occurs within a hushed ppp that is positively breathtaking in its ethereal beauty. Probably no composer was more obsessed with the sounds of bells than Rachmaninov. Their evocation here is fascinatingly varied: distant tolls in Op 33 No 4, tocsins in Op 39 No 3 and festive peals in Op 33 No 6. The desperate flights of Op 33 No 5 and Op 39 No 1 are as frantically driven as anything in Chopin. Two mini-epics stand out. The implacable force of Op 33 No 8, bordering on violence, takes no quarter and brooks no expressive compromise. And the most famous of the set, the E flat minor, Op 39 No 5, stands as a model of pacing. Its shapely melody soars mightily above (and below) thick chordal textures, evoking a vast battlefield where, for once, the pianist isn’t among the casualties.

It’s perhaps no surprise that Osborne, the past master of the French Impressionists, should bring us so singular a Rachmaninov, at once architecturally magnificent and abundant in rich detail. These interpretations, with shadows of ambiguity, foreboding akin to terror and a profound, tender regret, anchor this music incontrovertibly in its historical moment: the waning of the Russian Silver Age. Rachmaninov fans won’t want to miss this; nor will connoisseurs of intelligent, meaningful piano-playing.

-- Patrick Rucker, Gramophone

More reviews:
ClassicsToday  ARTISTIC QUALITY: 9 / SOUND QUALITY: 10
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2018/Sep/Rachmaninov_etudes_CDA68188.htm
http://www.classicalsource.com/db_control/db_cd_review.php?id=15760
https://www.limelightmagazine.com.au/reviews/rachmaninov-etudes-tableaux-opp-33-39-steven-osborne/
https://www.audaud.com/rachmaninov-etudes-tableaux-op-33-and-op-39-steven-osborne-piano-hyperion/
https://www.allmusic.com/album/rachmaninov-%C3tudes-tableaux-mw0003181819

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Sergei Rachmaninov (1 April [O.S. 20 March] 1873 – 28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. He is widely considered as one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music. Some of his works are among the most popular in the romantic repertoire. His style is notable for its song-like melodicism, expressiveness and his use of rich orchestral colors. The piano is featured prominently in Rachmaninoff's compositional output, and through his own skills as a performer he explored the expressive possibilities of the instrument.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergei_Rachmaninoff

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Steven Osborne (born 1971) is a Scottish pianist. He was taught by Richard Beauchamp at St Mary's Music School in Edinburgh before going to the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester to study under Renna Kellaway. His recording career began when he was signed to Hyperion Records in 1998, and this on-going contract has brought him two Gramophone Awards. Concerto performances take Steven Osborne to orchestras all over the world. He has returned almost annually to the BBC Prom and has also appeared both as a soloist and chamber musician at the Edinburgh Festival.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_Osborne_(pianist)

http://www.stevenosborne.co.uk/

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