Comparison Recordings:
Deux
Légendes, Ballade No. 2, Ervin Nyiregyházi. Telefunken LP
Fantasie
and Fugue B-A-C-H, György Cziffra, Philips LP
Thanks to his enormous experience performing for
widely varied audiences, Liszt developed abilities virtually
no other musician has ever possessed. He could contrast,
in the same piece, sentimentality with true feeling, and
banality with true grandeur. These are boundaries even Bach
and Mozart rarely explored, and Berlioz approached them
at his peril. Those who misunderstand Liszt condemn him
for being unable to avoid banality and sentimentality, when
the truth is he made effective expressive tools of these
qualities. A hundred and twenty years after his death we
are only now encompassing the totality of his artistic legacy,
and now there are many performing artists who can effectively
present his compositions.
Lilya Zilberstein (or, to use the Russian transliterated
spelling, Liliya Zilberstayn) was born in Moscow in 1965,
studied at the Moscow Conservatory under Alexander Satz who in turn
had studied in Moscow with Leonid Brumberg, a pupil of the
legendary Heinrich Neuhaus. She won
first prize at the 39th Busoni International Piano Competition,
1987 and has, from the beginning of her career, distinguished
herself in the large and dynamic piano repertoire. Her recordings
have been made with Deutsche Grammophon and include the
Second and Third Piano Concertos by Rachmaninov with the
Berlin Philharmonic conducted by Claudio Abbado and the
Grieg concerto with Järvi and the Gothenburg Symphony.
In a recent review of another pianist playing Liszt,
I pointed out that one really good performance on a Liszt
piano disk is a really good show, two is exceptional, and
three is astounding. By that standard, this disk is astounding.
The Consolations, particularly 3 and 6, are very
fine. Zilberstein’s large tone is here coupled with persuasive
musicianship and excellent recording. The result is galvanising,
as in the Fantasie and Fugue on B-A-C-H - one of
the best versions I’ve ever heard. Her Ballade No 2
and Deux Légendes can’t compare with Nyiregyhazi,
but those old recordings are probably impossible to get
now. Zilberstein is awfully good and receives magnificent
recorded sound; absolutely essential in this repertoire.
Paul
Shoemaker
