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Frederick CHOPIN (1810-1849)
Piano Concerto No 1 in E minor, Op.11 [39.44]
Piano Concerto No 2 in F minor, Op.21 [33.22]
Ingrid Fliter (piano)
Scottish Chamber Orchestra/Jun Märkl
rec. Usher Hall, Edinburgh, 7-9 June 2013
Hybrid SACD, stereo & multi-channel
LINN CKD 455 SACD [73.21]
As it so happened, this CD arrived for review the day after I had
encountered this pianist in a performance of the Beethoven Fourth
Piano Concerto in Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff – a concert that
was also broadcast live on Radio 3. At that concert I had been impressed
by Fliter’s strength of tone as well as her subtlety. These
are two virtues that stand her in good stead in the music of Chopin.
What we hear are big-boned performances of the two piano concertos,
supported by an orchestra that sounds far from ‘chamber’
in scale – all in the resonant acoustic of Usher Hall. I have
also been impressed by the developing career of Jun Märkl, an
interpreter who pays real attention to a composer’s scores,
and often finds unexpected nuggets of interest even in those which
the listener thought they knew well.
Fliter and Märkl make an excellent and responsive partnership
in this standard coupling of the two Chopin piano concertos. The orchestra,
as I have indicated, sounds more substantial than one would expect
from the sheer number of players involved; but this means that there
is plenty of give-and-take. Given Linn’s excellent engineering,
the realism of the sound is tangible with a gorgeous bloom on all
the instruments; I listened in stereo rather than the multi-channel
option. To cite just two moments of sheer enchantment, the sense of
inner rapture that Fliter captures at 11.22 in the first movement
of the Second Concerto (track 4) is magic indeed. The orchestral
playing at the start of the slow movement in the same concerto (track
5) has an atmosphere of stillness that sets the scene ideally for
the dreamy initial entrance of the soloist.
The coupling of these two concertos is a staple of the CD repertoire,
and preference for one or another individual pianist will govern the
choice of potential Chopinophile purchasers. Those who are looking
for an excellent performance in modern sound will find this disc admirably
fits the bill. The value of the issue is enhanced by substantial and
informative notes (ten pages) by Michael Quinn.
Paul Corfield Godfrey
Previous review: Brian
Wilson
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