Re: an obscure Gould quote and Welte

[neil@thump.org (Neil)]

On Wed, 7 Jul 1999 05:35:39 EDT, you wrote:

><< 
> Listening to Rosalyn Turecks latest Goldberg on DG as I write this. Dare
> I say that?
>  >>
>
>  I haven't heard it yet. Is it good?

I found it slow, pedantic and boring. Compared to her sensational partitas on
the Phillips "great pianists" series this disc is a major disappointment. This
was echoed by a freind who leant it to me and several people on the classical
music newsgroups. Typically Gramophone gave it a rave. 

Performances like this do beg questions: how an earth should you play the
goldbergs ? Do you treat them as the holy sacrament or do is it ok to inject
some fun and humour into them ? I see no point in making the listener sit
through 80+ minuted of wooden playing however correct, accurate or devout it may
be. Mind you Tureck does at least fulfil Mr Goldberg's brief ! 

I'd suggest everyone tries to hear Yudina's performance which answers some of
these questions. She wouldn't play them until her last years such was the awe in
which she held the work. 

Also as someone mentioned, Konstantin Lifshitz is superb (at only 18 !!)
capturing Gouldian joy and elan, sounding a little like the later GG style in
terms of articulation, voicing and pedal but still remaining very individual.
Some feat. The recital he gave last year at the Wigmore Hall confirmed his
status as one of the finest pianists of his generation.

Neil
----------------------------------
Neil 
ICQ  11875525 - AOL IM "imheifetz"