I read some time ago that for concerts given by Franz Liszt always one, usually 2 spare pianos were kept ready, because he broke them so often with his play.
Toughest Rach prelude at the end of his concert, I presume. No other pianist for sound like Gilels,My favorite pianist all time. Cortot and Horowitz get silver and bronze. Thx Vadim!
+Angel Chiriboga After Rachmaninoff heard Gilels play, he sent him a bronze plaque with Anton Rubinsteins profile engraved on it.He also mailed to Gilels a diploma that he (Rachmaninoff) had received as a successor to Anton Rubinstein.Rachmaninoff added Gilels name to the diploma and then sent it to him.
In this music of Rach, Gilels is peerless!!! The golden tone is absolutely stupendous! We miss this titan of the keyboard, so many thanks for the post, KlassikFan. sd goh (malaysia)
I listened to that Lang Lang guy. I'm still nauseus. Gilels or nothing! This guy is amazing. Listening to him feels almost like a religious experience, and though that phrase is overused, I don't know how else to describe it.
I think Gilels would say - 'that was pretty good but not my best.' For the rest of us, Gilels' pretty good is just fine. The melody in the 'b' section has a lot of poetry - so many fellows do not let it speak but get too involved in the 16ths.
I LOVE these famous Rachmaninoff ' s pieces played by GILELS..:-) Always so PASSIONATE..:-) You don't simply listen,BUT are TAKEN..SWEPT AWAY ! Thanks for posting !
Gilels is in the house... this is an orchestral sound for the piano and Giles commands that piano like no-one else... at 2:58 it gets spine chillingly sublime and then ends in an almighty firework display of virtuosity... thank you for bringing Gilels to the Tube :) p.s. I think the piano was booked in for a 2 week break in the Seychelles afterwards (!)
A wonderful performance of this piece. So much better than both Berezovky's and Kissin's version on youtube. Gilels plays this espansively, with majesty and expressiveness, whereas both of the other two play it as a crass, mechanical, prestissimo technical exercise.
Эмиль открыл мне Рахманинова!. Сколько переслушала исполнителей так и не понимала Рахманинова. Вот как так, нужна связка двоих, а иначе время на ветер.
Мощное, гениальное исполнение гениальной Музыки!! Здесь истинное явление подлинного духа Рахманинова!! Выпукло, образно!! Выражение эмоционального подъёма через образ природного явления! Я вижу ,как ранней весной ,на реке ломается лёд и мощное течение вод сталкивает с шумом льдины! В пассажах слышно журчание водяных струй, освобождённых от ледяного плена. Грандиозное звучание полностью передаёт атмосферу описанного звуками явления!!!
@Mazzel Tov Thanks for confirming. I read recently that Michelangeli placed 7th in the Queen Elizabeth Competition in Brussels in 1937, coming behind the likes of Gilels and Moura Lympany. Perhaps a friendship of sorts developed then and was deepened later whenever the two met on concert tours. In his fascinating book, "Notes of a Moscow Pianist", Dmitry Paperno reports that the Russian players in attendance were spellbound by Michelangeli's 1955 concert in Warsaw, where he was also serving as juror of the Chopin Competition. AMB picked the young Vladimir Ashkenazy for the prize.
@Mazzel Tov Wow, that's an impressive connection! I have virtually all of his recordings, and only wish he had recorded more extensively, and given us more Beethoven, Brahms, Schubert ... I've read that his playing repertoire was actually far more diverse and encompassing than his concertizing. Would love to hear from you on that! All best wishes!
@mattcabideinchrist totally. I was shocked to see that someone can actually dislike Gilels. There are lots of talented musicians, lots of those who won this, that and the other and still play with no taste, but Gilels, well, he was a genius in true sense.
What always infuriated me - the coldness and indifference of Moscow music buffs. Every time I was lucky to be on Gilels’ life performance in Moscow concert hall, I obviously could feel that “brush off” given to him by Moscovites. They couldn’t swallow, that a Jew from Odessa became equal to Richter, or even better in some cases, and who presided over the Jury at Tchaikovsky competitions. The endless, nauseating arguments in concert halls and the Conservatory over Gilels’ inferiority to Richter! Unfortunately this bias can be clearly seen on all RUclips Gilels’ records.
@youququq russian classical music audiences understand better than any when it is appropriate to applaud and when not to. they seemed unimpressed (almost yawning) so he refused to stand because of his anger at the poor applause he received. so he sat on the bench and pouted like a 6 year old girl.
So many performances of this piece are ruined because they play it far too fast to the point where it's a muddy blur of pitches. I like the fact that this performance and that of Richter’s for example give the sonorities time to develop and resonate.
lol at bang bang haha. Actually the question is whether excessive 'banging', or as you so put it, really contributes to the piece. I felt he might have been a bit heavy handed here; along with the excessive pedal it was really magnified to a large extent. But overall, it was a bang-good job. No pun intended XD
i think i have heard better interpretations of the piece (or at least one's that i prefer...gavrilov, richter, etc.), but i've never heard anybody with gilel's tone - so powerful and clear. i bet even the ushers outside of the recital hall could feel it.
Does anyone know where I could find an mp3 of this performance? I'm using this piece for my college audition and I need something I can compare myself too... This is the best interpretation I've heard.
Gilels was a phenomenal pianist who had the fortune (good? bad?) of debuting in the US before Richter, who was equally phenomenal. It could have easily been the other way around, but the Soviet Union had no compunction about throwing two talents of this magnitude at the West in relatively short intervals. Richter remains a legend, but Gilels left a profound legacy, whose Rachmaninov is arguably superior to Richter’s in its breadth and phrasing.
this souds VERY difficult for him. WAY TO GO GILELS!! YOU ROCK!!! well, off to learn chopin ballade no 1, my fave, this is my second fave Chopin ballade, he plays it with finese! he has it made, he should try the ballade.
In this video he looks like michelangeli, but if you watch the video of the prelude op 3 n.2 of the same concert you can see him well and he's not michelangeli.
this is so much better than lang lang and berezovsky in my opinion. his phrasing and expression just make it that much more interesting to listen to. the slight amount of rubato in the right places is such a refreshment from the other two robotic interpretations
@Bret6464 Ah ha someone who knows music. Personally I prefer Richter, not sure if the auditorium dynamics but seems like his foot is glued to the sustain pedal lol. Angree with you though
Kissin plays it too fast losing the Maestoso,powerful and regal character.Maybe Kissin version is more spectacular for the people,more pyrotecnic but i think THIS is the best performance of this prelude.Unfortunately i didn't found Rachmaninoff version,i'm very curious to know how he played his prelude.For example Rachmaninoff was playing his op23 n5 slower than all the other pianists i heard ,more mysterious and really "alla marcia" and not allegro and too fast like many pianists play it.
+Paul Turner I wonder what he was thinking... Probably something like "What a mess! I could never live with myself if I played like this in public. What's even more distressing is that the people seem to love it... "
+Paul Mayer No, really? You're kidding, right? I'd say that Arturo was more likely thinking: Well, I must be satisfied with having practised a lot to make my big hands produce a clean sound and a control of tone that people seem to like. I won't think too much about being like this Gilels: a pianist of a wholly different order, gifted with a palette of oils to my generous watercolours - who played as a youth with a power and freedom that my controlled Lipatti-like cleanliness cannot match. Bravo!
Paul Turner I'm totally kidding! I'm not sure who Michelangeli admired or what he thought his contemporaries. I was just thinking of what a puzzlement this performance might present to someone who took such pains to make sure his work was perfect. I love Gilels (that tone!!) but this performance is not perfect, especially by Michelangeli's crazy humanoid standards. Seriously, if the man ever played a wrong note or over-pedaled, I have yet to hear it. He's a freak.
@busylifemeto yeah, you are right, age has nothing to do with and you are right about the clown thing. I think he tries too hard to be something he is not. But if you did read my comment carefully you'd see i was saying the same thing pretty much just in a different way. My mother used to be a concert pianist, did 2 years of master classes with P. Serebryakov, was very professional and Gilels once commented on how well she played Patetique, but it stops there. She never had the divine touch.
Kissin's youtube video version is better in than this youtube video; particularly since he performs it after performing the "full" third concerto; Gilels is fantastic, though.
Sorry, if this is called banging, I would love to hear some of today's living pianists do lots of more banging. Even watching video, I just cann't figure out how he does his bangings. And the banging got more bangbang-like the older he got. Just incredible. How about for example Pollini? He never had ability to bangbang of course, but used to be super anyway. Where is Pollini now? He is only half the pianist he was in his thirties. Sorry, wrong English, but perhaps not wrong view.
hmmmm maybe, i dont know... i rekon its because the audience has been sitting through his concert for a long time (look at all the other vids of Gilels playing rach) and they probably got used to his amazing playing. plus i dont think it would be practical for him to do a standing bow after every piece in a concert such as this :)
This prelude, even though played on piano, has all the shade, colour and texture of an orchestral work. Incredible.
A Great Monumental Building Work.!!
I like how they have a spare piano at the side of the stage in case Gilels breaks the first one ;)
you make me laugh ,friend.
hugs from Barcelona!
Great comment, great.
Oh...that's NO Joke,but Reality!!!!!!! This said by a former anonymous maintenance man.
And augience on the scene - in case the hall will become empty?
I read some time ago that for concerts given by Franz Liszt always one, usually 2 spare pianos were kept ready, because he broke them so often with his play.
Toughest Rach prelude at the end of his concert, I presume. No other pianist for sound like Gilels,My favorite pianist all time. Cortot and Horowitz get silver and bronze. Thx Vadim!
Wow. Brilliantly played Gilels! This is why he is one of my favorite pianists of all-time
Рахманинов и Гилельс! Блестяще! Грандиозно! Спасибо!
"Rachmaninov and Gilels! Brilliantly! Grandiose! Thank you!"
Гениальное исполнение. Очень мощно, глубоко! Просто великолепно!
A great artist, totally identified with every note.Gilels Rachmaninoff is 2nd to no one.
+Angel Chiriboga After Rachmaninoff heard Gilels play, he sent him a bronze plaque with Anton Rubinsteins profile engraved on it.He also mailed to Gilels a diploma that he (Rachmaninoff) had received as a successor to Anton Rubinstein.Rachmaninoff added Gilels name to the diploma and then sent it to him.
In this music of Rach, Gilels is peerless!!! The golden tone is absolutely stupendous! We miss this titan of the keyboard, so many thanks for the post, KlassikFan. sd goh (malaysia)
I listened to that Lang Lang guy. I'm still nauseus.
Gilels or nothing! This guy is amazing. Listening to him feels almost like a religious experience, and though that phrase is overused, I don't know how else to describe it.
Damn, I can immediately feel the power and energy just right at the beginning of this performance! Awesome! Gilels!
grandissima tecnica di un grande interprete. al limite della perfezione
I think Gilels would say - 'that was pretty good but not my best.' For the rest of us, Gilels' pretty good is just fine. The melody in the 'b' section has a lot of poetry - so many fellows do not let it speak but get too involved in the 16ths.
I LOVE these famous Rachmaninoff ' s pieces played by GILELS..:-)
Always so PASSIONATE..:-)
You don't simply listen,BUT are TAKEN..SWEPT AWAY !
Thanks for posting !
He demonstrated clearly at the end of the video how to produce the greatest volume in a very relaxed way. Bravo
Gilels is in the house... this is an orchestral sound for the piano and Giles commands that piano like no-one else... at 2:58 it gets spine chillingly sublime and then ends in an almighty firework display of virtuosity... thank you for bringing Gilels to the Tube :) p.s. I think the piano was booked in for a 2 week break in the Seychelles afterwards (!)
A wonderful performance of this piece. So much better than both Berezovky's and Kissin's version on youtube. Gilels plays this espansively, with majesty and expressiveness, whereas both of the other two play it as a crass, mechanical, prestissimo technical exercise.
Эмиль открыл мне Рахманинова!. Сколько переслушала исполнителей так и не понимала Рахманинова. Вот как так, нужна связка двоих, а иначе время на ветер.
Мощное, гениальное исполнение гениальной Музыки!! Здесь истинное явление подлинного духа Рахманинова!! Выпукло, образно!! Выражение эмоционального подъёма через образ природного явления! Я вижу ,как ранней весной ,на реке ломается лёд и мощное течение вод сталкивает с шумом льдины! В пассажах слышно журчание водяных струй, освобождённых от ледяного плена. Грандиозное звучание полностью передаёт атмосферу описанного звуками явления!!!
what a f*cking rock star
3:10 The man in the front row to the right of the audience seats looks similar to the arturo benedetti micelangelli.
I think you are right ... well spotted! Were you able to confirm this possibility?
@Mazzel Tov Thanks for confirming. I read recently that Michelangeli placed 7th in the Queen Elizabeth Competition in Brussels in 1937, coming behind the likes of Gilels and Moura Lympany. Perhaps a friendship of sorts developed then and was deepened later whenever the two met on concert tours. In his fascinating book, "Notes of a Moscow Pianist", Dmitry Paperno reports that the Russian players in attendance were spellbound by Michelangeli's 1955 concert in Warsaw, where he was also serving as juror of the Chopin Competition. AMB picked the young Vladimir Ashkenazy for the prize.
@Mazzel Tov Wow, that's an impressive connection! I have virtually all of his recordings, and only wish he had recorded more extensively, and given us more Beethoven, Brahms, Schubert ... I've read that his playing repertoire was actually far more diverse and encompassing than his concertizing. Would love to hear from you on that! All best wishes!
@Mazzel Tov mind sharing with us Michelangeli’s “practicing procedures”, please?
@Mazzel Tov what book?
Whenever I listen to Lang Lang first, I still always find the great performers better.
Because Lang Lang is just disgusting
To me Richter made better!
@@SeigneurReefShark I am totally agree!!! Rs.
Unbelievable! In the top 3 known performances of this piece.
So colourful and shaded even in ff. Incredible phenomenal power by Gilels!
Could'nt expect any better from Gilels, Best version I have heard on RUclips!
The bass is just out of this world. So loud and large
Simplemente Supremo. Yo diría, absolutamente insuperable!!!!!!!!
Come si fa a farlo...grandissimo Gilels, ottima tecnica.
Qué maravillosa manera de tocar. Muy enérgico. Es excelente. Tengo que reconocer que no lo conocía.
Emil is the best....Simply THE BEST.
Eh, Sokolov!
@mattcabideinchrist totally. I was shocked to see that someone can actually dislike Gilels. There are lots of talented musicians, lots of those who won this, that and the other and still play with no taste, but Gilels, well, he was a genius in true sense.
Ejecutada la obra con un sentido comprensivo, debo decir que atrapó mis sentidos y desató mis sentimientos. Magnífica ejecución. Bravo!
i will have to check that out. ty phemt.
Wonderful version,powerful,regal,real Maestoso time.
신이다 신
I really like this piece.
Among some of the best of Rachmaninoff.
Truly Maestoso and full of power and not Allegro like many pianists play it.
Amazing. I hope i will be able to perform this one day.
Here's a fun fact for everyone. The background noise at the beginning is a B!
Gilels在此曲表達上是極為"宏觀"的！
氣勢猶如開天闢地，
且不馬虎地抓出弦律線！
是為粗中有細的高超演出。
效果驚人~
Magnificent!!!
ГЕНІАЛЬНО!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
if I had to choose a good piano player I would choose him. he's the best one i've ever seen in my live ;)
@ElAurian its all very difficult and perfectly played!
What always infuriated me - the coldness and indifference of Moscow music buffs. Every time I was lucky to be on Gilels’ life performance in Moscow concert hall, I obviously could feel that “brush off” given to him by Moscovites. They couldn’t swallow, that a Jew from Odessa became equal to Richter, or even better in some cases, and who presided over the Jury at Tchaikovsky competitions. The endless, nauseating arguments in concert halls and the Conservatory over Gilels’ inferiority to Richter! Unfortunately this bias can be clearly seen on all RUclips Gilels’ records.
@youququq russian classical music audiences understand better than any when it is appropriate to applaud and when not to. they seemed unimpressed (almost yawning) so he refused to stand because of his anger at the poor applause he received. so he sat on the bench and pouted like a 6 year old girl.
the piano's tone was solid and nice
This is superb
Bravissimo!
wow!
I couldn't agree more!!
JUST AWESOME
Rachmaninoff was *obsessed* with bells; you'll hear them in many of his compositions.
@ElAurian Listen to Richters playing from 2:40 of this, AMAZING
So many performances of this piece are ruined because they play it far too fast to the point where it's a muddy blur of pitches. I like the fact that this performance and that of Richter’s for example give the sonorities time to develop and resonate.
lol at bang bang haha.
Actually the question is whether excessive 'banging', or as you so put it, really contributes to the piece. I felt he might have been a bit heavy handed here; along with the excessive pedal it was really magnified to a large extent.
But overall, it was a bang-good job. No pun intended XD
i think i have heard better interpretations of the piece (or at least one's that i prefer...gavrilov, richter, etc.), but i've never heard anybody with gilel's tone - so powerful and clear. i bet even the ushers outside of the recital hall could feel it.
Does anyone know where I could find an mp3 of this performance? I'm using this piece for my college audition and I need something I can compare myself too... This is the best interpretation I've heard.
perfection
Bravo!
Omg best classic piano player ever!
Gilels was a phenomenal pianist who had the fortune (good? bad?) of debuting in the US before Richter, who was equally phenomenal. It could have easily been the other way around, but the Soviet Union had no compunction about throwing two talents of this magnitude at the West in relatively short intervals. Richter remains a legend, but Gilels left a profound legacy, whose Rachmaninov is arguably superior to Richter’s in its breadth and phrasing.
Stupendous!!!!!
BRAVO!!!!!!!! one of my favorite ;))))) Rachmaninoff was genius.
There is a young pianist that plays this piece on a great style.. Francisco Fierro.
You can see him on youtube.
200% spot on :)
True- the prelude is in B flat.. and the noise is a semitone higher so..
Compositor, peça e intérprete...de um outro mundo.
this souds VERY difficult for him. WAY TO GO GILELS!! YOU ROCK!!! well, off to learn chopin ballade no 1, my fave, this is my second fave Chopin ballade, he plays it with finese! he has it made, he should try the ballade.
Well, each one has each one's own beliefs.
Sure persistance and work is needed, and much, but he's like a 'chosen one'm he's iluminated.
In this video he looks like michelangeli, but if you watch the video of the prelude op 3 n.2 of the same concert you can see him well and he's not michelangeli.
He is just too damn good lol.
this is so much better than lang lang and berezovsky in my opinion. his phrasing and expression just make it that much more interesting to listen to. the slight amount of rubato in the right places is such a refreshment from the other two robotic interpretations
3:07 is that michelangeli in the front row?
indeed, this is a bit heavy..
but, u should check out: Op. 23 No. 5:-)
is very great, sounds complicated, but is not so heavy:)
Апогей свободной души.
You don't want to play this prelude too fast; we are supposed to hear bells, and they never ring very fast.
This is so f*cking epic
Hij had hiermee zijn recital moeten beëindigen, i.p.v. met opus 23 nr. 5.
@Bret6464 Ah ha someone who knows music. Personally I prefer Richter, not sure if the auditorium dynamics but seems like his foot is glued to the sustain pedal lol. Angree with you though
Kissin plays it too fast losing the Maestoso,powerful and regal character.Maybe Kissin version is more spectacular for the people,more pyrotecnic but i think THIS is the best performance of this prelude.Unfortunately i didn't found Rachmaninoff version,i'm very curious to know how he played his prelude.For example Rachmaninoff was playing his op23 n5 slower than all the other pianists i heard ,more mysterious and really "alla marcia" and not allegro and too fast like many pianists play it.
wunderschön!!!!!
Выдающееся работа руками.
Gilels is the Bomb.
3:28, Gilel was like saying: ''Thank~~YOU!".
Agree with earlier comment. Towards the end of the piece, an audience member comes into view who surely Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli!
+Paul Turner I wonder what he was thinking... Probably something like "What a mess! I could never live with myself if I played like this in public. What's even more distressing is that the people seem to love it... "
+Paul Mayer No, really? You're kidding, right? I'd say that Arturo was more likely thinking: Well, I must be satisfied with having practised a lot to make my big hands produce a clean sound and a control of tone that people seem to like. I won't think too much about being like this Gilels: a pianist of a wholly different order, gifted with a palette of oils to my generous watercolours - who played as a youth with a power and freedom that my controlled Lipatti-like cleanliness cannot match. Bravo!
Paul Turner
I'm totally kidding! I'm not sure who Michelangeli admired or what he thought his contemporaries. I was just thinking of what a puzzlement this performance might present to someone who took such pains to make sure his work was perfect. I love Gilels (that tone!!) but this performance is not perfect, especially by Michelangeli's crazy humanoid standards.
Seriously, if the man ever played a wrong note or over-pedaled, I have yet to hear it. He's a freak.
i think i can see arturo benedeti michelangeli in the crowd!!!....notice the head near the chair....
Seven people were in such ecstasy they missed the like button - understandable but unforgivable.
go gilels!
that boy snapped
holy shit. i think it is. i don't think i could play "mary has a little lamb" with him sitting there, lol.
@busylifemeto yeah, you are right, age has nothing to do with and you are right about the clown thing. I think he tries too hard to be something he is not. But if you did read my comment carefully you'd see i was saying the same thing pretty much just in a different way. My mother used to be a concert pianist, did 2 years of master classes with P. Serebryakov, was very professional and Gilels once commented on how well she played Patetique, but it stops there. She never had the divine touch.
7 people forgot to turn the sound on
❤️🕊️
Kissin's youtube video version is better in than this youtube video; particularly since he performs it after performing the "full" third concerto; Gilels is fantastic, though.
I think this interpretation is...ok. But I really like at 1:37-1:39 in the left hand what he brings out. those 2 notes.
Yep
Sorry, if this is called banging, I would love to hear some of today's living pianists do lots of more banging.
Even watching video, I just cann't figure out how he does his bangings.
And the banging got more bangbang-like the older he got. Just incredible.
How about for example Pollini? He never had ability to bangbang of course, but used to be super anyway. Where is Pollini now? He is only half the pianist he was in his thirties.
Sorry, wrong English, but perhaps not wrong view.
Why no standing ovation????
hmmmm maybe, i dont know... i rekon its because the audience has been sitting through his concert for a long time (look at all the other vids of Gilels playing rach) and they probably got used to his amazing playing. plus i dont think it would be practical for him to do a standing bow after every piece in a concert such as this :)
3:10 sounds a little bit like the Rach 2 :)
stretto part 2:50 is very difficult and perfectly played.
What is year of the performance?