| Label: RCA RED SEAL Catalog: 88697760992 Format: CD Arthur Rubinstein - PianoA 9-CD set!
In his first volume of memoirs, "My Young Years," Artur Rubinstein recounts that shortly after Brahms died he heard a performance of the C Minor Piano quartet that made an indelible impression on him: "It is impossible to describe my enthusiasm after hearing this music.... From that day on Brahms became my obsession. I had to know everything he had written; instead of working on the pieces for my piano lessons, I would read with ecstasy anything of Brahms which fell into my hands. I would buy his music on credit; I would have stolen money to get it." The evidence of this passion, and the wisdom accumulated over many decades of playing Brahms, is reflected throughout this rewarding box set.
Rubinstein was a master of the many moods that are found in Brahms, from the heroic gestures of the trios and violin sonatas to the intimate quietude of the intermezzi, and while his concerto recordings are not by any means unsuccessful, it is in the chamber and solo works that his preeminence as a Brahmsian is most keenly felt. The cello sonatas made with Piatigorsky, the trios with Szeryng and Fournier, and the piano quartets and quintet with the young Guarneri Quartet are, for the most part, first rate efforts. This should be no surprise - Rubinstein's great skill as a chamber musician can be traced to his relationship with Joachim, one of the great chamber musicians of his (or any) day. And, as it turns out, Rubinstein was one of the relatively few great pianists who, after achieving international fame, didn't feel that his career as a soloist was compromised by sharing the stage with other musicians to make music together.
Rubinstein brought special insight and a gorgeous tone to his solo recordings, the highlight of which was a beautiful album including the op. 10 ballades, rhapsodies and several other pieces recorded in 1970 and originally released under the title, "The Brahms I Love." These sessions, which had been scattered across several volumes of the "Rubinstein Edition," are finally available in this set; however, it's a shame that the producers didn't restore the recordings as they were originally programmed instead of using them as fillers on various discs. This doesn't respect the thematic flow of the music as planned by Rubinstein, a real pity as I always cherished this as one of his finest albums.
The concertos are interesting on a different level: I remember when RCA issued the stereo 1954 Rubinstein/Reiner recording of the D Minor concerto in the 1970's, which I believe was the first stereo recording ever made of this work, and the critical acclaim it received. But even after more than thirty years of familiarity, I still don't hear the revelations that others do in this reading. Rubinstein's Brahm's First to some degree shares Claudio Arrau's ultra-expansive approach, although he doesn't take things nearly to Arrau's extremes. It has a certain nobility to it, yet it lacks a degree of tension and drama. The majesty and excitement that Serkin and Fleisher deliver in their classic recordings with Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra remain unsurpassed for me.
Rubinstein was to have recorded the B Flat concerto, along with a number of other works, with Fritz Reiner, however, the troubled relationship between pianist and conductor collapsed when the two were recording the Tchaikovsky concerto. Rubinstein biographer Harvey Sachs writes that "At the end of the first movement, one of the orchestra's solo wind players had asked Reiner if a certain passage could be rerecorded, because he felt he hadn't played it as well as he could. Reiner grumbled but acceded to the request. When another player asked to record the previous passage as well, for a similar reason, Rubinstein spoke up: 'If we are going back that far, let's go back a bit further still, because I played a few wrong notes just before that.' 'Well, said the notoriously sarcastic Reiner, 'If we're going to correct all of YOUR wrong notes, we'll be here all day!' Rubinstein stood up and walked off the stage, without saying a word. The recording session ended abruptly, and so did Rubinstein's relationship with Reiner."
Rubinstein recorded the Brahms B Flat concerto six times of which the 1958 run-through in this set with Josef Krips, in lieu of Reiner, was the third. Although this recording was probably a big seller in its time given that it was an early stereo release and bore Rubinstein's name, an inconsistent first movement overshadows what is an otherwise fine performance. Rubinstein speeds up here and there, and there are a number of places where details are blurred, not by sloppy fingers but by the pace that he sets. This is a shame because the other three movements are prime Rubinstein: the second movement has an epic sweep with an especially effective finale, and the gorgeous third movement is Rubinstein at his best. The fourth movement proves to be a rousing conclusion to a gargantuan work.
All told, this is an outstanding collection, really a "must have" not just for Rubinstein fans, but for those who love Brahms, chamber music, and great piano playing. Five stars. |