If ever there was a
"pianists’ pianist" it must
surely have been Vladimir Horowitz (1904-1989).
Born in Kiev, he originally wanted to
be a composer but supported himself
with increasingly successful concerts
of piano playing, first in Russia then
abroad, finally settling in the US following
his marriage to Toscanini’s daughter
Wanda. He was a dynamo from an early
age and in 1924, when still only 20,
he played no less than 25 separate recitals
in Leningrad alone, without repeating
a single work! Once abroad the legend
was truly born and he could command
audiences of 3,000; in Paris the police
had to be called, such was the hysteria
his concerts could give rise to.
Whilst Horowitz was
one of the last remaining representatives
of romanticism, sharing equal billing
with the composer, he also liked to
present himself as a simple, even humble,
servant of his art. He was very unusual
in that there was nothing he would not
play in private, though his programmes
generally featured his core repertoire
of Chopin, Schumann, Scriabin and Liszt.
In addition he liked to play Rachmaninov,
Prokofiev and Barber. Scarlatti was
another to whose music Horowitz brought
an illuminating clarity that was almost
breathtaking. It may strike one as surprising,
therefore, that Beethoven in not amongst
this pantheon of greats. It seems that
during sabbaticals he took as respite
from his punishing schedule he explored
repertoire that, according to the liner
notes, "may have lacked dazzling
crowd-pleasing qualities but offered
artistic substance that nourished his
most profound musical instincts".
It was during one such period that he
immersed himself in the music of Beethoven
from which sessions these recordings
emerged. Incidentally, how strange that
Beethoven’s piano sonatas could ever
have been considered to have lacked
anything!
These versions of the
Appassionata, Moonlight and Waldstein
sonatas were recorded in 1956 and 1959.
They are extremely sensitive performances
that were evidently meticulously planned.
Even the pauses are telling. There is
no doubt that of the three sonatas the
"Appassionata" particularly
suited Horowitz’s temperament. Whilst
Rudolf Serkin described his performance
of Chopin’s C Minor Ballade as being
"like a fireball exploding",
one critic describing his American debut
called him "that unleashed tornado
from the steppes". Many of his
performances saw him play other pianists
"under the table" and his
huge energy is especially evident in
this performance of the "Appassionata"
– just listen to the final, closing
bars to appreciate his interpretation
of the frenzy Beethoven was depicting.
It is all perfectly fitting for this
sonata and will repay countless listenings.
However, I did not
feel the same way about his playing
of the "Moonlight" which I
regard as one of his mannered performances
in which, for me at least, he seems
to lose sight of the overall structure
and the result is a rendition of a work
that is so familiar yet played in a
such a way as to be at odds with what
you’re expecting to hear. The opening
movement appears rather ponderous, even
leaden whilst the second loses the fluidity
I enjoy, each note separated with no
feeling of flowing that makes this movement
so attractive to me. The final movement
Horowitz takes at breakneck speed, the
notes tumbling into each other in a
welter that loses their individual value
and instead become a barrage that I
found both unattractive and annoying.
Perhaps I will change my mind over time,
but like most people I’m sure, I have
a benchmark performance in my mind when
I listen to something as familiar as
this work (I have been listening to
it for nigh on sixty years) and this
fell short of that.
The opening of the
"Waldstein" is once again
taken too fast for my liking though
he does slow down somewhat later in
the movement. Horowitz’s energy and
relentless drive are shown to good effect
from around five minutes into the first
movement - when power is required he
can certainly deliver it but it’s knowing
when to control rather unleash it that
I sometimes feel lets him down. Another
example of rushing the music comes in
the closing seconds of the final movement
– it’s almost as if he were aware that
he had to catch a bus! Generally speaking,
however, I enjoyed the performance of
this great work and shall listen to
it again and again.
I’m sure it would be
a rewarding experience to hear all of
Horowitz’s performances of Beethoven
sonatas and I look forward to doing
so as there is no doubt he was a supreme
master of pianism and I certainly don’t
hold with the opinion of some critics
that said he played everything as if
it were Liszt!
Steve Arloff
Vladimir Horowitz (piano) 
