Volodos/Liszt/Vladimir Horowitz - Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2

[Rachmaninoffkid]

If you can’t get anywhere near this clarity, you can’t play it and you shouldn’t be recording it.

[DancerAndMe123]

It's different, he plays it well, but I'm not sure if I like it.

[Imxtoeknee]

holy sh** at his repeated notes!

[SigP229R]

After reading all the comments makes me glad I don't read music. I can enjoy anyones version because I can't play anything and therefore anyone that can play can do better than me. However lets not forget Alfred Brendle's rendition.

[musicioso]

This is a masterpiece..

Liszt Liszt Liszt....how can ONE man write such a piece? Damn it, i think Yan Tiersen and Yanni are great composers, but as i listen to this.. I have no words!

PS: Volodos is no Horowitz. Horowitz was Horowitz and Volodos is Volodos, why would we cpmpare them? I am glad that i can listen to them both and enjoy them both. Rachmaninoff Played this piece another way, and so i am glad i also can listen to his version. Each of them are unique, and Liszt is the GOD!

[zangdaarr]

This isn't even the Horowizt arrangement but a truly new version of this Rhapsody

[mozartman2000]

Volodos is a showman, not an artist.

[damgoodballers]

Dont forget Marc Andre Hamelin... he plays a phenominal version of this piece... I consider Hamelin and Volodos probably the best piano players alive atm

[JohnEBPiano]

I think reincarnation has to happen after you're dead, not before.

[ftballfrk]

Volodos > Horowitz, this piece doesn't sound like a jackhammer hahahahaha, so clean yet he just facerapes the piano at his will

[drwaynejohnson]

I was fortunate to hear Volodos in person a couple of years ago. Over the past 45 years, I have heard hundreds of the best pianists in the world. This guy is in a league by himself both musically and technically. Everyone, even the most jaded concert-goers, came away speechless. The newspaper reviewer, who can sometimes be rather caustic, was shaking his head in astonishment and sheer disbelief at what we'd just heard. The greatest pianism goes beyond even the highest standards we can imagine.

[ftballfrk]

in other words, you jizzed, which is what just happened to me when i listened to not even half of the piece

[ftballfrk]

i'm implying that some of the phrases which Horowitz plays loud sound too bashy, and it's not the recording, just the way he plays it, i can recording quality not being that great, but he just makes harsh sounds sometimes.

[ClassicMusicOnly]

No one really cares if Horowitz was first. This IS the Horowitz interpretation accept..not so aggresive and horrible.

[mmpianist]

nobody can play the piano like volodos. I can play Volodos' version of this (the friska section) and his arrangement of turkish march, but can't get the clarity of his playing. I've heard Lang Lang's version and was disappointed at the way he plays it - lots of wrong notes and doesn't sound musical.

[laqin007]

I totally agree with u. and whoever put thumbsdown for ur comment is fan of lang lang im sure... lang lang has loooooooong way to catch up with Volodos period.

[stevemaster247]

@mmpianist you can play volodos' turkish march??

[adrct]

I didn't know Volodos until a couple of days ago. Now I am astonished! Finally a contemporary pianist that resembles the master Horowitz!

[hjiuhfhrehui]

watch him playing stars and stripes ( pice from horowitz ) volodos plays it wayy better :)

[DonFrankos]

the best version ever. period.

[Egide0]

I now added this over my favourite videos and removed Lang Lang's funny version.

[ExVash]

Somewhere in a secluded room, Kastle is crying in enraged envy.

[laqin007]

Horowitz can't play like this clear. He just bangs the piano, on this piece.

[tpbricknw]

The recording of him is just shitty not him

[TysonMS]

Nah man, I took this audio directly from Volodos' CD of piano transcriptions. It is 100 percent Volodos plus just listen to the clarity which wasn't available in Horowitz's days.

[Kreutzersonata37]

@TysonMS man, horowitz died in 1989 and recorded his last cd 2 months before he died. The piano transcritpion cd by volodos is recorded in 1997. Only 8 years

[luke9o]

Actually i think this is NOT volodos playing, definitly horowitz..

[FreddieHowe]

impressive. by the way, if anyone's interested, I have the complete score. I mean this Horowitz transcription of HungRhap 2. The ending (from 8:54 onwards) is not as difficult as it sounds, if I can do it, you can do it too!

[matthew1722]

Your right, I'm glad someone else noticed this. For all its virtuosity, the ending is not as difficult as the original ending of Franz Liszt. Not to say Volodos couldn't pull it off if he wanted to. I just prefer the original version.

[joshtorriero9]

The horowitz ending is harder... Just not as much harder as people think. And overall the horowitz is considerably harder.

[matthew1722]

The original ending is by far the hardest, even though the Horowitz version is slightly harder overall. It features a lot of show off technique that sounds much harder than it is. He re-arranged the piece and gave it an easier ending. The ascending and descening octaves of the original ending are much harder to play correctly. Have you even seen the original ending on a score or tried playing it?

[joshtorriero9]

I actually have seen the score, and i'll admit i've never tried to play it. But what i've heard from people who have played both is that the horowitz cadenza is much much more difficult to pull off.

[matthew1722]

It's true that the cadenza is harder, but I'm referring to the ending part after the cadenza, which is only a few seconds of music. If you listen to most recording artists they fumble this original ending, which is why Horowitz made the easier version. The Horowitz verion is harder overall, but the ending of the original version with the staggered octaves is harder. I'm not referring to the cadenza, but the short segment after the cadenza (unless you consider this part of the cadenza)

[joshtorriero9]

ohhh ok man

i get you now :)

sorry

[MathijsGiltjes1993]

But the original version is almost imposible to play:S Kastle was mentioned to be the only pianist who played it allright, but even he screwed up one chord... the 9th. But besides that, it's a great piece:D

Btw, FreddieHowe, could you please send me the score?:)

[joshtorriero9]

Hey um which score is it? I have a couple and they are both the horowitz but both a little different to each olther. One has a few chords instead of single notes and seems a bit more accurate but its very hard to read. So yeah which copy do you have?

[Alexias030692]

yes, I've seen the two versions: the Pellisorus edition and the Ukraine. This one here sounds a lot more like the Ukraine version, and I know it's hard to read. But Horowitz himself does a combination of the two versions, if you really anylize it, as I've done.

[ajlee1216]

good GOD....this version sounds so difficult that it sounds like it's being played by more than 1 pianist.....

[pinky0926]

I have to agree with the comments about Lang Lang, I have no idea why they're getting so many thumbs down.

[laqin007]

This is Arcadi VOlodos, not Horowits. Shut up if anybody haven't heard the recording of Volodos's. I have the recording and this is the one. if u don't know something, dont write a comment u stupid kids

[cziffra1980]

Does this sound like 1953 sound quality to you? Horowitz only ever played it in that year.

[foxyjohnuk]

i was clearly wrong!

Whoops!

[johntle]

This is the greatest solo piece ever played recorded by anyon ever.

[alexej1987]

hmm... i prefer kissins version, but this one is also excellent. lang lang... long way to go

[laqin007]

Don't compare Lang Lang to Volodos. Lang lang is nothing infront of Volodos i tell u

[chiushing1988]

Best version I've ever heard....!!

Hopefully everyone knows who is Lang Lang, isn't?...He plays this piece everytime he has performance...(just showing off his skills)..

But actually, he has such crappy skills....

Though he is a good comedian in front of the piano....but not a 100% good pianist.

[RomanticMusikFan]

nicely said lol lol...

[chiushing1988]

Thx...

In my point of view about Lang Lang:

1.) He is respect to the stages.

2.) He is respect to the audiences

3.) He is respect to the composers

4.) However, HE IS TOTALLY DISRESPECT TO THE PIANO....I know he is entertaining/attracting the audiences...but.....for a real musician...They love the music, as well as their INSTRUMENT.....

[RomanticMusikFan]

well said once again lol....totally agree...

[oestrophilia]

finally i meet people who really understand lang lang..

[matthew1722]

???

[Spiritakis]

Amazing rendition of beautifully composed and not less beautifully arrange piece. I don't know who is better, Horowitz or Volodos, in this piece and I don't think there's any sense in arguing about this. But I know that this performance was the first one which I heard of this piece. I had listened it many times before I heard Horowitz's one I was prepared for dissapointment because I couldn't imagine more perfect playing than Volodos'. Well, Horowitz's one just blew me away... LIVE!!!, 1953...

[pinky0926]

I came into this expecting it to be rubbish, and came out undeniably gobsmacked. This is one of my favourite pieces so I was wary to hear a version that had been largely altered, but this was really great.

[romotchka]

Complete re-writing of the Friska! OMG, what inventivity in the mix of voices, and incredible pianism from golden ages. He's definitely not the deepest musician on earth, but music definitely needs such folks.

[luganskymichelangeli]

excellent job on the audio TysonMS. I really enjoyed this.

[DDRConquistador]

Can you hear his "friska"? I've NEVER heard it so clear. He surpasses Horowitz, in my opinion :)

[dorianmarkovac]

he does

[Purenicotine]

Horowitz is over-hyped.

[Peppynx01]

I totally agree, he has such control even if he plays very quiet he can emphasis the melody.

[superasian33]

This is the best performance!!!!!!

He is my favorite pianist!