Martha Argerich plays Ravel's Ondine (LIVE Saarbrücken 1972)

[schoschdecologne]

Himmel! Bei 3:47 habe ich fast einen Nervenzusammenbruch gekriegt. Unglaublich.

[snapperv]

this version is superb! i am in particularly like the part where she actually slowed down...very melodious and interpreted very femininely. nice!

[flic71]

perfetto, meraviglioso, liquido e impalpabile e poi improvvisamente guizzante, come mai

[malit1234]

Beautiful..

[starlodear]

Sorry, but this version sounds a bit hamfisted to me. Check out Ken Sasaki's interpretation.

[pjj4hout]

@starlodear Ken Sasaki is very masculine, he cuts through Ondine like a samurai, revealing the veins of the complex body of notes, very lucid and disciplined. But Martha Argerich tells us a story with her fine female fingers, putting fantasy, imagination and the romance of the sound above all. Although one could argue about her beautiful end, the composer writes: Sans ralentir. But I like the way she takes the liberty to slow down, though, considering it is a live performance.

[HDGamingReplays]

Listening to this just put me in a profound state of disbelief and ecstasy. I doubt this piece will ever be played better than by Martha Argerich. She is a miracle in Ravel.

[pragmaticus123]

@HDGamingReplays

I don't know about that...I hear that Maurice Ravel did a pretty good job with this little diddy himself...as he was no stranger to the ivories, you know. Sometimes the one who plays it best is the one who composed it...and I hear he did just that on his NYC tour in 1928 to a LONG standing ovation. Unfortunately, I don't think there is a recording of that performance in extant.

[nipsbud]

It's orgasmic. That's all I can say.

[Moiseiwitsch]

This is the best rendition of Ondine I've ever heard.

[mmoynan]

Awesome!!! Do you have the rest of it? I really like this interpretation.