Catalogue | Solo Concerto

Shura Cherkassky was one of the most unconventional pianists of the 20th century, with an eventful biography and an impressively long career. A Wunderkind from Odessa, he emigrated to the USA together with his parents in 1922 where he achieved his breakthrough shortly after becoming the pupil of Josef Hofmann. Cherkassky’s concept of playing the piano harks back to the ideals of the 19th century, according to which the personality of the interpreter should always be found within the work. Infamous for his unpredictable modifications of tempi and dynamics when performing together with orchestras and conductors, Cherkassky was able to communicate surprising insights even into seemingly popular programmes by virtue of his technique of changing perspective. It would therefore be wrong to attach to him the cliché of the romantic piano virtuoso; his great interest in contemporary piano music also contradicts this notion.

These recordings of Liszt’s First Piano Concerto and Tchaikovsky’s rarely performed Second Piano Concerto (in the version by Alexander Siloti), conducted by Ferenc Fricsay, convey – thanks to the successful partnership between two great musicians – the sense of noblesse of the “golden age of the piano” whose ideals Cherkassky valued during his entire lifetime.

The historical publications at audite are based, without exception, on the original tapes from broadcasting archives. In general these are the original analogue tapes, which attain an astonishingly high quality, even measured by today‘s standards, with their tape speed of up to 76 cm/sec. The remastering – professionally competent and sensitively applied – also uncovers previously hidden details of the interpretations. Thus, a sound of superior quality results. CD publications based on private recordings from broadcasts cannot be compared with these.

• Audiophile Audition | Gary Lemco | December 21, 2008

  A truly happy discovery for the connoisseur, these inscriptions, one live (the Liszt, from the Titania Palast, Berlin, 11 February 1952) and one...

• CD Compact | Emili Blasco | January 3, 2009

  Audite Edición Ferenc Fricsay
  A cabamos de recibir etos dos compactos de la colección que Audite dedica al celebrado Ferenc Fricsay, ambos de gran interés. El primero, o segundo...

• Fanfare | Lynn René Bayley | January 5, 2009

  Pairing Romantic pianist Cherkassky and post-modern conductor Fricsay doesn’t even seem, on paper, like a good idea, let alone a recipe for success....

• Fono Forum | Peter T. Köster | January 12, 2008

  Historische Schätze im Sammelpack
  Verschiedene CD-Boxen mit wertvollen historischen Orchesteraufnahmen bieten derzeit dem Sammler eine reiche Ausbeute. Aber auch interessante Einzelveröffentlichungen verdienen besondere Beachtung – noch zumal, wenn sie zu vergleichsweise erschwinglichen Preisen erschienen sind
  […] Das "amerikanischste" Orchester im Europa der Nachkriegszeit war ohne Frage das des RIAS (Rundfunk im amerikanischen Sektor) in Berlin, von...

• L'éducation musicale | January 9, 2008

  Dans sa collection « Deutschlandradio Kultur », la firme allemande Audite nous livre quelques trésors jusqu’à présent conservés sur bandes...

• Thüringische Landeszeitung | Dr. Wolfgang Hirsch | December 7, 2008

  Klang-Welt
  Ein eigenwilliger Konzertlöwe
  Einen famosen Exzentriker und stupenden Virtuosen des Klavierspiels wie Shura Cherkassky (1909-1995) wiederentdecken zu dürfen, bereitet besonderes...

• Universitas | Adelbert Reif | April 9, 2008

  Der Dirigent Ferenc Fricsay ist heute eine Legende. Im europäischen Schicksalsjahr 1914 in Budapest geboren, gehörte Fricsay zu den letzten...

• www.classicstodayfrance.com | Christophe Huss | July 15, 2008

  Même si la technique date (1951 et 1952) et que le piano n'est pas l'instrument du siècle, cette parution rend hommage avec justesse au talent de...

• www.musicweb-international.com | Rob Maynard | November 20, 2008

  There a few things about this disc that might well strike you as a little strange. - Firstly, its positioning within this Edition Ferenc Fricsay...