Louis Kaufman、Kurt Reher、Theodore Seidenberg、Willem van den Berg、Rudolf Firkušný - Tchaikovsky : Tchaikovsky Piano Trio, Smetana Piano Trio - Import CD

Credits:

Ruisu Kaufuman、Kaato Reehaa、Teodooru Zaidemberugu、Uiremu Fuan Den Baagu、Rudolf Firkušný

Description:

[Rare chamber music recordings by Louis Kaufman: Tchaikovsky without sentimentality, and Smetana featuring the virtuoso Filksny] After a film director heard him perform on the radio and pleaded with him to join, Kaufman contributed to the soundtracks of films such as *Gone with the Wind*, *Wuthering Heights*, *Casablanca*, and *The Sound of Music*. It is said he participated in as many as 400 or 500 soundtracks. In the realm of classical music, he took on Baroque music, which was relatively unknown at the time, and from the late 1940s to the early 1950s, he recorded all 24 movements of Vivaldi’s Op. 8 and Op. 9 (his 1949 release of “The Four Seasons” won the French ACC Disc Grand Prix and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2002). At the same time, he recorded a succession of works from the same era. According to the website Discogs, the Tchaikovsky and Smetana recordings included on this CD have never been reissued or re-released since their initial release, making this a rare CD release. As described in the Japanese edition of Harald Eggebrecht’s *Masters of the Violin* (Alphabeta) as having a “passionate and finely nuanced tone,” the performances here convey both a resolute quality and a sense of fervor in both pieces. The playing times for Tchaikovsky’s piece are approximately 16 minutes for the first movement and 22 minutes for the second—a surprisingly fast pace compared to today’s average performance times. Tempo markings for this piece are most commonly Moderato assai or Allegro moderato; slower markings such as Andante are by no means common. It is likely that Kaufman and his colleagues interpret “Moderato” with a tempo that feels faster than today’s standards. Their performance contains almost no atmosphere of being crushed by grief; instead, the sense of pathos is portrayed with passion and a dignified structure. While it possesses a live-performance energy that draws the listener in, it is not solely driven by speed; the tender, lyrical phrasing in the sections marked “Andante” creates a beautiful contrast. This is a performance that anyone who loves this piece should definitely hear. Cellist Reher was born in Hamburg, emigrated to the United States, and served as principal cellist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. His recordings include Metha’s *A Hero’s Life* and Schubert’s String Quintet with the Hollywood String Quartet. Pianist Seidenberg was born in Baltimore, USA. Known as a master of chamber music, he performed with Heifetz and Morini. In 1932, he visited Japan with Zimbalist. Smetana’s work is in a three-movement form without a slow movement; like Tchaikovsky, it combines passion with elegance, resulting in a performance well worth listening to. Rudolf Filksny was a pianist born in Brno, Czech Republic, who later emigrated to the United States. He studied directly under Janáček and was a leading authority on the interpretation of Czech music, while also earning an outstanding reputation as a chamber musician. Cellist Van den Berg was born in The Hague, Netherlands. He moved to the United States and served as principal cellist of the San Francisco Symphony, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Naxos Japan