Sunday Classics preview no. 1 -- Cortot

by Ken

Back when I made my ill-fated stab at the Chopin Preludes, I promised that even if we didn't work our way through Op. 28 we would still have more Chopin coming, and this weekend we're going to hear the four Ballades, which seem to me to offer a wonderfully wide sampling of the composer's pianistic and musical range.

Sunday we're going to hear all four ballades played by Augstiv Anievas, Arthur Rubinstein, and Sviatoslav Richter. By way of preview, tonight we're going to hear Alfred Cortot (1877-1962), whom we heard playing the first two Preludes, play the Ballade No. 1, and then tomorrow night we'll hear Vladimir Horowitz (1903-1989) play it again -- in each case along with some other Chopin just to provide a bit of context for his Chopin playing.

CHOPIN: Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23


[8:28] Alfred Cortot, piano. EMI, recorded Dec. 12, 1926

I asked my piano maven Leo for a suggestion of some other Cortot Chopin to sample, and he mentioned the pianist's late recording of the Preludes,
[plus a couple of preludes from the late Cortot recording?]


SUNDAY CLASSICS POSTS

The current list is here.

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