Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No 2; Ravel: Piano Concerto in G Major
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Composer: ProkofievComposer: Ravel
Conductor: Seiji Ozawa
Orchestra: Berlin Philharmonic
Performer: Yundi Li
Edition: Music CD
Audio: English (Unknown)
CD Release Date: 2007-11-13
Music Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Soundtracks:
- 1 Andantino
- 2 Scherzo (Vivace)
- 3 Intermezzo (Allegro moderato)
- 4 Finale (Allegro tempestoso)
- 1 Allegramente
- 2 Adagio assai
- 3 Presto
Music reviews of Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No 2; Ravel: Piano Concerto in G Major
Music Review: A milestone in Yundi Li's recording career
Rating: 5 Stars
This album of Prokofiev piano concerto No.2 and Ravel concerto in G major is unique in the way that Li not only excels in both concertos, he also provided some fresh interpretations.
The masterpiece Prokofiev's piano concerto No.2 is not only difficult to play, it is also rather special in the way that it has got the rare wild temperament you seldom hear. This CD contains the most thrilling and fastest prokofiev concerto No.2 I have ever heard. A slow Prokofiev concerto No.2 will inevitably sound dull and uninteresting. One is impressed by Li's unique interpretation when he used sharp staccatos generously at the right places to produce some very spirited moments. One is also impressed by the enormous sound produced by his steely fingers especially during the third and the fourth movements. Li, together with Berliner Philharmoiniker, had succeeded in producing this truly unique, remarkable and thrilling Prokofiev concerto No.2. It is not only virtuosic, dramatic and colorful, it is also very expressive, spirited and thrilling. To excel in playing this concerto, being a virtuoso is not enough for a pianist, one needed to be able to catch the mood of this masterpiece more appropriately - Yundi Li is one such pianist.
Prokofiev's concerto No.2 was recorded live during the three night's sensational performances in Berlin. Yundi Li together with Seiji Ozawa and Berliner Philharmoiniker had done a marvelous job in giving the audiences in Berlin a memorable night.
All the four movements were indeed very well played by Li. Li started the first movement Andantino slowly and expressively, using more rubato than others. When it came to Allegretto, Li increased the speed significantly. For the long cadenza that lasted for 4'10", Li provided good contrast, was expressive, thoughtful and emotional. The difficult passages in the long cadenza were also superbly executed by Li. Although the piano sound was almost drowned by the full orchestra near the end of the long cadenza, you do not mind the least as you really need the full orchestra to build the music to its climax. If one insists on hearing the piano more clearly for these few bars, you will have to tone down the orchestra like what the pianist Horacio Gutierrez together with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra had done. Li had taken 11'02" for the first movement, not 11'12" as given in the booklet.
The second movement Scherzo was played with an incredible speed by Li , 2'9'' to be exact. It is not 2'17'' as stated in CD booklet. Two minutes and nine seconds is really incredibly fast when one needs to play so many notes non-stop in such a short time. That requires good concentration. Still, the piano and the orchestra were in good unison throughout the second movement.
The third movement Intermezzo which took 5' 34" by Li, was played with strong character and good variation of tone color. It was played with more staccato, more spirited and energetic playing that sounded like a march. Horacio Gutierrez had played this movement one minute slower with a rather different mood - milder and more gentle.
The fourth movement Allegro tempestoso began with passages that sounded like a cat screaming and jumping wildly on a hot tin plate. Li's steely fingers that produced steely sound, had really done a good job in bringing out the wild temperament of this movement. With more fiery passages and spirited staccato, the concerto finally ended with the piano and the orchestra playing the same fiery note. This movement took Li 10'33", not 11'03" as given in the booklet.
Ravel concerto in G major is rather interesting with its strong rhythms for the first and the third movements. Most people will enjoy its strong rhythms. Is this piece supposed to be dramatic for the first and the third movements but sad for the second movement? Ravel believed that a concerto can be lighthearted and brilliant instead of dramatic when he talked about this concerto. Hence, one should not expect this piece to be dramatic, instead, the first and the third movements are jazzy-like, simulating the rushing motor rhythms and perhaps the hustle-bustle sound of the city. You even hear the horse carriage through the sound made by the horse shoes at 0'59" into the first movement and subsequently at 1'18" etc. In fact, the first movement began with a sound of whip to start the horse carriage for an eventful ride through a busy street. Ravel had visited New York and just described what he saw in the street - an interesting concerto.
Some pianists had played the first and third movements in a more dramatic way while others less. Li began the first movement with a very lively and light-hearted allegramente to simulate that the traveller had started the journey in a high spirit. The jazzy-like passages in these two movements were very well played by Li, they are brilliant, crisp and fast with strong rhythm. With Li's virtuosic playing, there is no problem of adhering to the accurate and precise timing for these jazzy-like passages. Benedetti Michelangeli had sounded slightly slower for these passages compared with three other pianists that I had heard.
The second movement which is calm and beautiful had been thought by some to be a movement that is supposed to move one to tears. Perhaps that was how Benedetti Michelangeli had felt when he played this movement softer, slower, with more rubato and more seriousness compared with four other pianists such as Julius Katchen, Martha Argerich, Zimerman and Yundi Li. Will such a sad second movement blend well with the busy street scene described in the first and the third movements? Most probably not. Perhaps one could simulate the second movement with a calm and beautiful scenery seen by a traveller. Perhaps this is exactly how Yundi Li had perceived when he played this movement faster with less rubato and with more steady piano sound coming from his left hand to simulate that a traveller was on the move. With Li's more straight forward way of playing, the piano sound was aided by the orchestra in setting the music in such a deep tranquility that you can picture yourself as traveling slowly from a quiet wood to a more eventfull surrounding and then back to quietness again. I particularly enjoy Li's playing of this movement that had brought you through a journey of calm, beautiful and joyful ride. Very impressive playing by both Li and the Berliner Philharmoniker.
Alexander Toradze is far too slow for his interpretation of Prokofiev concerto No.2 to be acceptable. His third and fourth movements are so slow that the music is somehow distorted. His second movement is good but not his first movement - there is some obvious struggling with the massive chords in the long cadenza. Near the end of the long cadenza, in order to make it sound grand, he seemed to have added in many chords not written in the original music score. For this part of the music, you don't hear individual chords from Alexander Toradze like what you normally hear form other pianists. I have heard a few other recordings played by Ashkenazy,Horacio Gutierrez and Vladimir Feltsman. None of them played this portion in such a controversial way. Alexander Toradze seems to be the only one altering the music score by adding in many chords himself. You may think that the pianists I mentioned above are not among the best, let me quote the following from certain source:
"The Prokofiev Page (external links) unanimously recommends the 1991 recording with Neeme Järvi, Horacio Gutiérrez and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (Catalogue num.: Chandos 8889). André Previn's rendition with the London Symphony Orchestra and Vladimir Ashkenazy (Philips 452588) is also extolled."
Furthermore, soon after Alexander Toradze's controversial playing, the orchestra came in with very heavy drum. Again, you don't hear this from other recordings. This kind of controversial playing do increase the volume tremendously and may be pleasing to those who may not be familiar with the piece. Thus, those who like this kind of controversial playing may give comments such as:
`terse and wild darkness; profound and dark emotional turmoil of this eerie piece'. Yundi Li still has some lengths to go before he would fully come to grips with the profound and dark emotional turmoil of this `eerie' piece'. Yundi Li's touching, in the first place, could be said to be somewhat lacking in its depth, and too tinkling for this piece.
How very wrong! Not everyone likes to play this part of the music this way because it may not blend well with the music. Furthermore, is Prokofiev's concerto No.2 about `eerie' , 'dark emotional turmoil'? Why eerie? Although Prokofiev did go through a period of emotional turmoil during that period, one may not like to over interpret the dark side of this concerto by altering Prokofiev's original score like what Alexander Toradze had done.
Description of Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No 2; Ravel: Piano Concerto in G Major
Young piano sensation Yundi Li collaborates with Seiji Ozawa and the Berlin Philharmoniker to present two highly innovative and provocative keyboard works from the 20th-century-- Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 2 and Ravel Piano Concerto in G major. Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 2 is the most brilliant and virtuosic of his concertos for both the soloist and the orchestra--and one of the least recorded. The Ravel Piano Concerto, a perennial hit with its haunting and jazzy second movement, rounds out the program. In this album, Yundi Li is joined by one of the world's greatest orchestras, the Berliner Philharmoniker, and also by one of the most sought-after conductors of our time, Seiji Ozawa. With this recording, Yundi Li makes another significant step forward in his recording career. His first concerto album-- the Chopin/Liszt Piano Concerto No. 1--featured a repertory he is known to play well. With this second concerto album, Yundi Li discovers new ground with completely new, highly challenging works and in collaboration with a legendary orchestra and conductor.Classical CDs
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