Information
Composer: Franz Liszt
Marc-André Hamelin, piano
Date: 2002
Label: Hyperion
https://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dc.asp?dc=D_CDA67370
- (01) Six Grandes Études de Paganini, S. 141
- (07) Franz Schubert's Marsche für das Pianoforte übertragen, S. 426
Marc-André Hamelin, piano
Date: 2002
Label: Hyperion
https://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dc.asp?dc=D_CDA67370
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ARTISTIC QUALITY: 10 / SOUND QUALITY: 10
Just as Bugs Bunny slouched in the face of Elmer Fudd's gun, Marc-André Hamelin stares down the Liszt/Paganini Etudes' fingerbusting demands and dispatches them with nonchalant proficiency at every hurdle. He molds the first etude's shakes and tremolos into cohesive, controlled paragraphs with no rattling or steel-coated loose ends. Don't expect the E-flat etude to sting like Horowitz or dig deep like Arrau. Instead, appreciate the quiet showmanship behind Hamelin's effortless octave technique and slyly filled in chords. Hamelin makes no fuss over La Campanella's right-hand leaps, but why, in the Arpeggio Etude (based on the first Paganini Caprice), does the pianist impose cutsey-poo tenutos on the top melody notes in measures 5 and 6, and similar places? True, violinists often slow down at these moments in order to play these pitches squarely in tune, but pianists don't have that problem! You could imagine a lighter, less reserved romp through La Chasse, while by contrast the concluding Theme and Variations benefit from Hamelin's unflinching bravura and cumulative drive.
Liszt's multi-movement concoction based on various rarely heard Schubert marches for piano duet is a virtual piano symphony, and it's generally ignored by pianists, probably because few can comfortably sustain the long stretches of relentless octaves and repeated chords. However, Hamelin's textural transparency, two-handed equilibrium, and sheer stamina would have delighted, perhaps even shocked Liszt. And unlike many pianists (and other instrumentalists for that matter) Hamelin does not sacrifice tone for speed: his penetrating, diamond-red sonority never splinters or loses one dab of patina. I still think that Liszt's piano duet version more cogently mirrors the music's large-scale ambition and orchestral contours. Then again, Hamelin sounds like two pianists. His interpretations, incidentally, surpass Leslie Howard's relatively sober and earthbound renditions in Hyperion's complete Liszt cycle. I may carp about details here and there, but who are we kidding? Recommended without reservation. [9/28/2002]
-- Jed Distler, ClassicsToday
More reviews:
BBC Music Magazine PERFORMANCE: ***** / SOUND: *****
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2002/oct02/Liszt_Hamelin.htm
http://www.classical.net/music/recs/reviews/h/hyp67370a.php
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Liszt-Paganini-Studies-Schubert-Transcriptions/dp/B00006B1LB
Just as Bugs Bunny slouched in the face of Elmer Fudd's gun, Marc-André Hamelin stares down the Liszt/Paganini Etudes' fingerbusting demands and dispatches them with nonchalant proficiency at every hurdle. He molds the first etude's shakes and tremolos into cohesive, controlled paragraphs with no rattling or steel-coated loose ends. Don't expect the E-flat etude to sting like Horowitz or dig deep like Arrau. Instead, appreciate the quiet showmanship behind Hamelin's effortless octave technique and slyly filled in chords. Hamelin makes no fuss over La Campanella's right-hand leaps, but why, in the Arpeggio Etude (based on the first Paganini Caprice), does the pianist impose cutsey-poo tenutos on the top melody notes in measures 5 and 6, and similar places? True, violinists often slow down at these moments in order to play these pitches squarely in tune, but pianists don't have that problem! You could imagine a lighter, less reserved romp through La Chasse, while by contrast the concluding Theme and Variations benefit from Hamelin's unflinching bravura and cumulative drive.
Liszt's multi-movement concoction based on various rarely heard Schubert marches for piano duet is a virtual piano symphony, and it's generally ignored by pianists, probably because few can comfortably sustain the long stretches of relentless octaves and repeated chords. However, Hamelin's textural transparency, two-handed equilibrium, and sheer stamina would have delighted, perhaps even shocked Liszt. And unlike many pianists (and other instrumentalists for that matter) Hamelin does not sacrifice tone for speed: his penetrating, diamond-red sonority never splinters or loses one dab of patina. I still think that Liszt's piano duet version more cogently mirrors the music's large-scale ambition and orchestral contours. Then again, Hamelin sounds like two pianists. His interpretations, incidentally, surpass Leslie Howard's relatively sober and earthbound renditions in Hyperion's complete Liszt cycle. I may carp about details here and there, but who are we kidding? Recommended without reservation. [9/28/2002]
-- Jed Distler, ClassicsToday
More reviews:
BBC Music Magazine PERFORMANCE: ***** / SOUND: *****
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2002/oct02/Liszt_Hamelin.htm
http://www.classical.net/music/recs/reviews/h/hyp67370a.php
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Liszt-Paganini-Studies-Schubert-Transcriptions/dp/B00006B1LB
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Franz Liszt (October 22, 1811 – July 31, 1886) was a prolific 19th-century Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor, and music teacher. Liszt gained renown in Europe for his virtuosic skill as a pianist and in the 1840s he was considered to be the greatest pianist of all time. As a composer, Liszt was one of the most prominent composers of the "New German School". Some of his most notable musical contributions were the invention of the symphonic poem, developing the concept of thematic transformation as part of his experiments in musical form, and making radical departures in harmony.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franz_Liszt
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franz_Liszt
***
Marc-André Hamelin (born September 5, 1961 in Montreal, Quebec) is a Canadian virtuoso pianist and composer. Hamelin is recognized worldwide for the originality and technical brilliance of his performances of the classic repertoire. He has made recordings of a wide variety of composers with the Hyperion label. He is well known for his attention to lesser-known composers especially of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century and for performing works by pianist-composers. Hamelin has also composed several works, including a set of piano études in all of the minor keys.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marc-Andr%C3%A9_Hamelin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marc-Andr%C3%A9_Hamelin
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