Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2.(Sound recording review)

Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2. Leif Ove Andsnes, piano; Antonio Pappano, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. EMI 7243 4 74813 2.

Even today when his name is one of the cornerstones of classical music, Sergei Rachmaninov gets slammed by his detractors for being too old-fashioned, too romantic, too overtly bombastic. Fortunately, the negative criticism has abated quite a lot since Rachmaninov's early days, and recordings like this one from pianist Leif Ove Andsnes continue to help the composer achieve musical respectability.

I confess the First Piano Concerto has always left me rather in the negative camp myself, filled as it is with an overabundance of youthful enthusiasm and outright pomposity. Fortunately, Andsnes doesn't grandstand it too much, and the piece comes off more eloquently than usual. EMI's sound is clearly focused and extremely dynamic, the piano appearing a touch bright at times but never distracting, and the stereo image favoring the left side of the stage just a tad.

The Piano Concerto No. 2 came into being as the result of Rachmaninov's consultations with a pioneer in the field of autosuggestion, hypnotism, after the initial failure of his First Symphony. The composer was told again and again that he would succeed, and succeed he did. His Piano Concerto No. 2 was an instant hit, with the composer himself as soloist in the work's official premiere. Because each of the three movements contains an ardent, warmhearted, and memorable tune, audiences are still bewitched by it today. The music's emotional appeal is undeniable, and Andsnes plays it in a full-throated performance that is sure to win it even more friends, the melodies rising higher as the piece goes on.

Although the First Concerto was recorded in 2005 ...