Beethoven Piano Concerto No.3 in C minor Op.37 1. Allegro con brio 2. Largo 3. Rondo. Allegro - Prresto Emil Gilels Piano The Cleveland Orchestra George Szell Conductor
I've never understood why the largest part of music critics have always considered this gilels cycle as underplayed, dull or restrained. To me, first of all, the accompaniment of maestro szell on beethoven concertos is the greatest gift from god any pianist of any era could ask for. Secondly, the espressivity, musicality, phrasing and sense of narration maestro gilels was able to convey is almost unparalled so far.
There are certain combinations that are perfect together - rough scrumpy cider and mature chedder cheese, dark chocolate and stilton, Uchida and Davies for Mozart, and Gilels and Szell in Beethoven. Some things are just meant to be.
This recording must be part of the 5 concerti series recorded by Gilels with the Cleveland orchestra under Szell during 1968. A glorious interpretation. I could not hear Szell who died in 1970 (I arrived for my fellowship in Cleveland Clinic during 1971). But when I heard the orchestra under a different conductor (Could have been Bernard Heitink?) I could not believe that this sixty some musicians sounded like a single, gigantic, perfect instrument. That was Szell legacy; from a small orchestra in 1946 to one of the best in the world in 1970. As to Gilels, I discovered him thanks to youtube not long ago, and there is no doubt in my mind that he was one of the greatest pianists of the XX century. Why was he little known? Just because of the cold war, being him a Russian who lived in Russia.
Gilels was never little known, his fame preceded that of Richter and has been consistently thought of as the main exponent of Beethoven since the 60s and was I think the first to sell in huge volumes Digital Recordings of Beethoven Sonatas. He travelled extensively and VERY frequently to the west, including for the numerous Deutsche Gramophon recordings.
Gilels was blessed by Rachmaninov and Rubinstein as the best pianist even before WWII, but after, during 50-60s performed extensively in the west( he and Oistrakh were allowed to do so by the Soviet powers). He was recorded many times solo and with several orchestras. You just didn’t have a chance to meet him. But welcome to the club!
@@stonefireice6058 Thanks for your kind answer. My only answer could be that during the mid XX century my country of origin was so small and peripheral that we were left out of the musical fantastic progress of the time. I am now catching up thanks to youtube and internet. A long way to go, but already feeling my progress. Nevertheless, I am proud that I got the power of Gilels since the first time I heard his playing. As it happened to me with Nikolayeva, Uchida, Sokolow, Tureck and Yuan Sheng.
@@jorgeurzuaurzua4011 Gilels, par les musiciens était plus que connu et en occident aussi. Les Français le regardaient de côté, mais par exemple, Arrau le considérait comme supérieur à tous. Pour moi, à travers 50 ans d’écoute, il n’a pas d’égal
Der Hörer spürt das Verständnis dieser beiden Musikkoryphäen von Takt zu Takt. Die Aufnahme blüht in schönem Gleichmaß vollkommener Klänge wie ein großangelegter Garten und braucht sich hinter der aus dem Concertgebouw von Rubinstein und Haitink nicht zu verstecken.
