Mozart Piano Concerto No. 20 Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2 - LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA ALDO CICCOLINI CD

Taken from the LPOs final concerts with the late Aldo Ciccolini (1925-2015), when he was in his mid-eighties, these performances were much praised at the time. Most notably for Ciccolinis soulful and sensitive interpretation that was illuminated from within and sounded fresh, spontaneous and heartfelt (Classical Source, May 2009). Aldo Ciccolini was a musical legend. Through his teachers he inherited the musical influences of Busoni and Liszt, and he was himself a teacher of many world-famous pianists including Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Artur Pizarro and Nicholas Angelich. These live recordings were conducted by Yannick Nezet-Seguin while he was Principal Guest Conductor (2008-14) and his close relationship with the Orchestra is apparent. Mozarts Piano Concerto marked a shift in tone towards a new, more mature style for the composer. He helped to redefine the piano concerto as a sophisticated and expressive artform, rather than a form of polite public entertainment. Rachmaninoff poured his heart and soul into his Second Piano Concerto, and with it created one of the most beloved works of all time.Additional Info: Having performed with the Boats, Chris Stewart veers into a solo tack with Need More Sources, a contemplative instrumental act that creates a delicate series of songs on the debut album Shed. Nearly everything about the release emphasizes calm understatement -- even the dramatic imagery of what appears to be angels fighting on the front cover is partially obscured by layers of paper and color -- and from the start, with the lengthy, slowly unfolding "Morning," tones and a basic core melody added to later by further textures and what sounds like a violin, that atmosphere is established and maintained. Though on his own, Stewart does a very good job at making a one-man-band; songs like "Storm," with its steady, subtle drumming, and the equally striking "Valley," where the beats build up into a near wallop as keyboards and strings interweave and rise, feel like full live performances done very well indeed. A good majority of the tracks are piano-led, and comparisons to a variety of modern classical and ambient performers are understandable, given Stewart's embrace of the style if not always of the particular songwriting approach -- if anything some pieces suggest the experiments on the instrument that Vini Reilly has occasionally recorded, while others, such as "Autumn," parallel some of the work of Piano Magic at their most serene and elegiac. Certainly "Rain" seems to define that latter term, at once a beautiful celebration and a mournful reflection in its combination of bowed and plucked strings (or samples thereof). Touches from more recent developments are subtle but present -- the jittery, shifting crackle of percussion on "Snow" and toward the end of "Spring" isn't necessarily glitch but isn't too far removed, either. ~ Ned Raggett

Specifics

  • Album: Mozart Piano Concerto No. 20 Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2
  • Artist: LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA ALDO CICCOLINI
  • Label: LPO
SKU CD-5060096760146
Barcode # 5060096760146
Brand LPO
Shipping Weight 0.0960kg
Shipping Width 0.130m
Shipping Height 0.010m
Shipping Length 0.140m

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