There is no doubting
the oomph of the recording here, particularly where the piano
is concerned. Pentatone Classics has taken Philips recordings
of the 1970s and issued them in their original quadraphonic
layout, calling the result RQR (‘Remastered Quadro Recordings’).
In the Concerto, Mischa Dichter’s chords land with a Brahmsian
weight that is entirely laudable. The crystal-clear sound
- are these really mid-late seventies recordings? You will
ask - adds a measure of enjoyment to the whole. The orchestra
plays with real affection for Masur, now such a major figure
in London.
Dichter is a confident,
intelligent pianist. Any doubts that he begins in too literal
a fashion are soon dispelled. Chording and voice-leading are
very carefully considered and technical challenges seem not
to exist. The hurdles that just about everyone seems to struggle
with pose him no problems. The darkness of the second movement
is more pronounced here than in most, yet it is here also
that doubts begin to set in – Dichter seems rather clumsy,
rather leaden, leaving Masur and his Leipzig players to reinject
the energy. If only the third movement drew the listener more
into this crepuscular side of Brahms. The promising beginning
- lovely cello solo! - is not carried through, alas,
and the finale, despite some nice rhythmic pointing, is generally
uninvolving.
There is no way
this could dispel the greats. Pollini and Gilels top the list
with Rubinstein/Reiner not far behind. The latter, incidentally,
is also available on RCA Red Seal Living Stereo SACD – see
Jonathan Woolf’s excellently written review.
The Beethoven
Sonata feels rather tagged on, a neatly-played space-filler
with an upfront recording. Whatever the strengths of Dichter’s
finger articulation, there is no doubting this does not even
approach great Beethoven playing. Beethoven the dynamo has
largely lost his charge in the first movement, so the return
of the slow introduction seems of little interest here, amazingly.
The slow movement is a clear song without words, and its lyricism
seems to appeal to Dichter. It is the most successful part
of the sonata by far. The finale exudes only fair excitement,
no more.
Musically disappointing
overall.
Colin Clarke
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Misha Dichter (piano)
[66:23]
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