I will say this, though -— for sheer sensuality, the Feinberg is hard to top. I had not heard the Feinberg until today, and was completely blown away!
Zhukov's strengths & weaknesses together. Fine clarity and voicing for the (very) slow 1st part, and blazing animal force for the final climax. But odd mannerisms and rythmic inconsistency undermine the "prestissimo..." The recording seems mercilessly close.
This is a great pianist performing under less than ideal conditions, especially in terms of the recording quality. Whether the piano is also at fault is difficult to judge, because the microphone seems to be mercilessly close to the instrument.
As for the performance itself, there is much to admire here, as one would expect from a pianist like Zhukov.
The piano pictured on the LP cover was a Bechstein, but I'm affraid the piano used for this recordings wasn't...
pianotreasures 3 months ago
I will say this, though -— for sheer sensuality, the Feinberg is hard to top. I had not heard the Feinberg until today, and was completely blown away!
CH3CH2OCH2CH3net 7 months ago
The placement of the microphone really detracts from what would be an astonishing performance.
Seriously - whomever was responsible for placing the microphone ought to be slapped for ruining this recording!
An ex-boyfriend of mine absolutely worshiped Zhukov's performance of Scriabin. I can see why he did.
CH3CH2OCH2CH3net 7 months ago
@CH3CH2OCH2CH3net it's my bad actually, i've put too much gain in the sound while trying to "master" it...
pkarkivist 7 months ago
Zhukov's strengths & weaknesses together. Fine clarity and voicing for the (very) slow 1st part, and blazing animal force for the final climax. But odd mannerisms and rythmic inconsistency undermine the "prestissimo..." The recording seems mercilessly close.
NOSEhow2LIV 1 year ago
This is a great pianist performing under less than ideal conditions, especially in terms of the recording quality. Whether the piano is also at fault is difficult to judge, because the microphone seems to be mercilessly close to the instrument.
As for the performance itself, there is much to admire here, as one would expect from a pianist like Zhukov.
UWSResident 2 years ago
@UWSResident Recording quality : i realized that i put too much gain on the audio files, that's why everything is loud averall.
sorry, that was my first time transfering vinyl to YT. My bad.
pkarkivist 1 year ago
This is so much worse than Feinberg that it's really sad.
weikko79 3 years ago