Shura Cherkassky - 1982 San Francisco Recital

...the great Romantic Virtuoso pianist, Shura Cherkassky. It showcases him at his best in a recital covering a wide range of repertoire. He is known for being wayward in some of his performances, but there is very little of that in this recital.

His performances vary considerably, depending on his moods, the audience and other external factors. He was in top form at this 1982 recital and was very happy with his performance afterwards.
...Pieces by Lully, one of the most well-known early French Baroque composers. Lully was one of the first conductors, hitting the ground with a stick. Unfortunately he died after he hit his toe by accident with the stick.

This music was obviously written for the harpsichord (or one of its close relatives) and is not often played on the piano, if at all. It is actually a selection of five pieces by Lully, not originally published as a ... more

This is one of the best recordings of the great Romantic Virtuoso pianist, Shura Cherkassky. It showcases him at his best in a recital covering a wide range of repertoire. He is known for being wayward in some of his performances, but there is very little of that in this recital.

His performances vary considerably, depending on his moods, the audience and other external factors. He was in top form at this 1982 recital and was very happy with his performance afterwards.

He starts the recital with Suite de Pieces by Lully, one of the most well-known early French Baroque composers. Lully was one of the first conductors, hitting the ground with a stick. Unfortunately he died after he hit his toe by accident with the stick.

This music was obviously written for the harpsichord (or one of its close relatives) and is not often played on the piano, if at all. It is actually a selection of five pieces by Lully, not originally published as a suite, but subsequently assembled into a suite, and reordered by Cherkassky.

Cherkassky articulates these early pieces beautifully, bringing out the various voices of the counterpoint with great delicacy and beautiful phrasing. His playing of the ornaments (trills, mordents etc) is especially captivating.

He then plays a short piece by Mendelssohn with the light fantasy touch which is required. Here is Mendelssohn back in the same world as the fairies in his famous Midsummer Night's Dream.

The centrepiece of this recital is Tchaikovsky's rarely performed Grand Sonata. Cherkassky is one of a small number of pianists who bring this sonata to life (Pletnev is another) and make it sound like a masterpiece. This piece has often been derided by critics for its size and other supposed weaknesses, resulting in its unfair neglect. Cherkassky makes the whole listening experience enjoyable, presenting it like a symphony for piano as one organic whole. I have heard the opening of the first movement made to sound trite by another pianist who played it staccato. It is marked staccato in the score, but Cherkassky gives it a staccato feel, while skillfully using the pedal to make it sound grandiose rather than trite.

There is also the work Kaleidoskop by Josef Hofmann, Cherkassky' s teacher. This is a musical portrayal of the kaleidoscope, a popular toy (more popular in the nineteenth century, but still seen around today) which consists of a cylinder in which colours tumble as it is turned making ever changing patterns. Cherkassky expresses these multi-colours musically, in the piece that is regarded as his signature tune.

There are also two works by Chopin, which Cherkassky plays with authority, even if his interpretation of the waltz is a little unusual. The waltz was played as an encore, and Cherkassky seems to have been, understandably, exhausted by the time he played it.

The accompanying notes are excellent, describing in good detail the composers and works, with pictures of the composers as well as of the pianist.

The only disappointment is that there is no Godowsky on this recording. Cherkassky is famous for his performances of Godowsky's virtuoso paraphrases of Strauss waltzes, and some other transcriptions and original works by Godowsky.
However, this CD is full of profound music, played with authority, and a display of virtuosity might have seemed inconsistent with the programme as a whole.

An excellent CD, I would definitely recommend it to anyone interested in listening to outstanding lesser known piano works played by one of the last great Romantic pianists. 

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