Yes I agree with you totally - his lyrical playing and quality of tone were exceptional. His recital programmes were adventurous and contained something for everyone - baroque, classical, romantic and modern. He was simply unique.
'Adventurous'- the very word-in the finest spirit of rebelliousness, not being confined by any kind of convention, but in exploring, digging for the soul of any work, once found exposed with such dash, subtlety and celebration, exuberant thankfulness.
A truly epic and fascinating account of this extraordinary work. I listen to this whilst remembering Cherkasskys wonderful mid - 1950s recording, remarkably the same poetry, passion and pianistic sorcery remains in tact. The passing of the years never dimmed the communicative magic of this iconic virtuoso.
I totally agree with you. He played everything from Baroque to Boulez and beyond. In his eighties he was still performing Prokofiev's second concerto, Tchaikovsky's first and second concertos and he even recorded Rachmaninoff's third concerto. A luxurious singing tone was always important to Cherkassky and he never lost the ability to produce a massive sound. Non of your thin toned trebly tinkling that we hear from many of today's young pianists.
A wonderful interpretation! Thank you for this post; Shura's on fine form and his sound quality comes thru very well. I missed a few of his last concerts, such a regret as he seemed indestructible, timeless, ever-present... when i heard news that he wouldn't play at St John's Smith Square - i had planned to go, (Stephen Bashup-Kovacevich reploce him), i knew something was badly wrong as he NEVER cancelled. The news of his death sent a numb shiver down my spine, lost forever now that extraordinary improvisory narrative, absolutely unpredictable... But you have done a great job in providing some of the best possible memories.
Yes, I remember being shocked at the time. I realised there was something wrong because as you so rightly say that Shura never cancelled concerts. At the time, I even phoned The White House Hotel where he lived only to be told that 'he was away.' I thought maybe he had missed a flight or something like that not realising he was in hospital. Had I known, I would surely have gone to visit him there. One of my all time favourite pianists and as you suggest he always had something of his own to say in his spontaneous and improvisatory performances.
A rare and magnificent Force of Nature! Like Mount Everest or The Grand Canyon Shura Cherkassky was just THERE -- to be admired, enjoyed, wondered at, and like Mount Parnassus, itself, lure and ever present challenge those who would achieve excellence. To remain at the top of one's form and the peak of one's powers all the way through a very long and distinguished career, as he obviously did, is given to few. Was it entirely the result of dedicated effort, or was it simply a Gift from God? We may never know, but wasn't it wonderful to behold while we had it?
Yes, each performance was slightly different - different shadings, dynamics and balancing of parts - sometimes bringing out inner voicings or harmonies that interested him at that moment. Great artist and much missed.
Шедевр !Так понятно стало содержание и эта идея добра и зла,никогда такого не слышала,и притом это без суб,ективизма,и какие краски!!!🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹
я знаю только одного гениального пианиста_Ш.Ч.!!👋
Yes I agree with you totally - his lyrical playing and quality of tone were exceptional. His recital programmes were adventurous and contained something for everyone - baroque, classical, romantic and modern. He was simply unique.
'Adventurous'- the very word-in the finest spirit of rebelliousness, not being confined by any kind of convention, but in exploring, digging for the soul of any work, once found exposed with such dash, subtlety and celebration, exuberant thankfulness.
Yes - every performance different. A recreative genius.
A truly epic and fascinating account of this extraordinary work. I listen to this whilst remembering Cherkasskys wonderful mid - 1950s recording, remarkably the same poetry, passion and pianistic sorcery remains in tact. The passing of the years never dimmed the communicative magic of this iconic virtuoso.
I totally agree with you. He played everything from Baroque to Boulez and beyond. In his eighties he was still performing Prokofiev's second concerto, Tchaikovsky's first and second concertos and he even recorded Rachmaninoff's third concerto. A luxurious singing tone was always important to Cherkassky and he never lost the ability to produce a massive sound. Non of your thin toned trebly tinkling that we hear from many of today's young pianists.
A wonderful interpretation! Thank you for this post; Shura's on fine form and his sound quality comes thru very well. I missed a few of his last concerts, such a regret as he seemed indestructible, timeless, ever-present... when i heard news that he wouldn't play at St John's Smith Square - i had planned to go, (Stephen Bashup-Kovacevich reploce him), i knew something was badly wrong as he NEVER cancelled. The news of his death sent a numb shiver down my spine, lost forever now that extraordinary improvisory narrative, absolutely unpredictable... But you have done a great job in providing some of the best possible memories.
Yes, I remember being shocked at the time. I realised there was something wrong because as you so rightly say that Shura never cancelled concerts. At the time, I even phoned The White House Hotel where he lived only to be told that 'he was away.' I thought maybe he had missed a flight or something like that not realising he was in hospital. Had I known, I would surely have gone to visit him there. One of my all time favourite pianists and as you suggest he always had something of his own to say in his spontaneous and improvisatory performances.
A rare and magnificent Force of Nature! Like Mount Everest or The Grand Canyon Shura Cherkassky was just THERE -- to be admired, enjoyed, wondered at, and like Mount Parnassus, itself, lure and ever present challenge those who would achieve excellence. To remain at the top of one's form and the peak of one's powers all the way through a very long and distinguished career, as he obviously did, is given to few. Was it entirely the result of dedicated effort, or was it simply a Gift from God? We may never know, but wasn't it wonderful to behold while we had it?
I agree with our atavist who doesn't seem atavistic to me. "A gilded magnificence", what a brilliant tribute!
Thanks for the info - I don't know why it stopped working but glad the re-upload is fine.
Piano345,
thanks for the re-upload, it works fine!
Good
do you have dates and locations for your cherkassky uploads?
Sorry, I only have the year but not the dates for all of them. I will try and find the dates.
This version is just amazing, and just shows how different he can play it: th-cam.com/video/-sKznZpIhO4/w-d-xo.html
Yes, each performance was slightly different - different shadings, dynamics and balancing of parts - sometimes bringing out inner voicings or harmonies that interested him at that moment. Great artist and much missed.