horowitz plays brahms piano concerto #1 - mvt1, pt1 - 1935

vladimir horowitz plays brahms piano concerto #1, mvt1, pt1 - 1935, amsterdam, bruno walter cond., live recording from radio. no official recording of this performance was ever issued.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• vladimir
• horowitz
• brahms
• piano
• concerto
• bruno
• walter
• amsterdam

[Ray0X0]

For sure Arrau is King and Emperor in this concerto!... there's no doubt about... at least the great Emil Gilels recognized that after hearing Arrau playing both Brahms' piano concerts (Moscow, May 1968)... he just cried on Arrau's shoulder promising never play Brahms' piano concertos in public again... recognizing tacitly this fact..

[kasyapa]

Ray0X0 - those artists are so dramatic. :)

[Nijmegen1955]

BRILLIANT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[kasyapa]

Nijmegen1955 - i love how schonberg said that v.h. made this into a lithe, athletic virtuoso piece. absolutely true.

[Simson616]

That's indeed how it has to be done *_*

[kasyapa]

Simson616 - i agree.

[piesseesse]

A great Brahms, various and living! Horowitz at his best and Toscanini too a giant.

[neveka]

peccato che a 8:18 c'è un taglio del pezzo!!!

[surirach]

Live recording from the radio.... wish the sound were better. Great Horowitz performance.

[CaptainBluebear08]

gruesome.

[AJNorth]

@paulostroff99 Thank you for your kind words; perhaps it was a typo, but the version referred to was by Rudolf Serkin with George Szell & the Cleveland Orchestra (not Bruno Walter). The story goes that after they had finished recording the first movement, the piano had to be re-tuned due to the thrashing it had received.

For what it's worth, IMHO, another worthy recording of this great work is that by Artur Rubinstein with Erich Leinsdorf & the Boston Symphony (originally RCA).

[paulostroff99]

@AJNorth -Thank you for confirming my opinion that Brahms piano concerto #1 with Serkin/Walter was indeed the very best version of them all. Serkin also did a monumental version with Leinsdorf or Reiner way back in the 50's or 60's.These are both even better than this gem.

[bigmouthfrog2009]

The interesting thing is that Rachmaninoff did not like the Brahms D Minor Concerto, and could not understand why Horowitz would "play something like that" (or words to that effect). Horowitz's powerful playing and tremendous tempo make this a transcendent performance. Compared to this Horowitz interpretation, Arrau's playing is stodgy and uninspired.No wonder, since he had made this his signature concerto for years, and finally ran out of steam and inspiration. GO HOROWITZ!!!

[Raggedy9]

@arturon111 Actually there is more than one live H. performance of L'isle joyeuse posted. The one timed at 5:53 is the clearest. And no, I'm not a Horowitz groupie by any means (prefer Richter, Schnabel, Rubinstein, Fleisher) but i think we should give him his due.