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Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 5, Ravel: Piano Concerto - Schlimé, Pletnev

Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 5, Ravel: Piano Concerto - Schlimé, Pletnev

PentaTone Classics  PTC 5186080

Stereo/Multichannel Hybrid

Classical - Orchestral


Ravel: Piano Concerto in G, Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 5 in G Op. 55, Schlimé: 3 Improvisations

Francesco Tristano Schlimé (piano)
Russian National Orchestra
Mikhail Pletnev (conductor)

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Review by Graham Williams - March 31, 2006

Francesco Tristano Schlimé is a 25-year-old pianist whose work has been praised for its extraordinary depth and maturity. He was born in Luxembourg in 1981 and attended conservatories in Brussels, Paris and Luxembourg before entering Juilliard. He is a protégé of Mikhail Pletnev with whom he continues to study. Schlimé has been composing since childhood and has written jazz works for solo piano and jazz ensembles. He also explores his interest in improvisation. The imaginative programme on this SACD has been well chosen to showcase all these aspects of his undoubted talent.

The whip crack that begins the Ravel at once establishes the wide dynamic range of the recording, but it is quickly evident that the overall balance is in favour of the pianist. Throughout this movement I found that some orchestral detail heard on other recordings was lost, and that the playing of the Russian National Orchestra did not quite match the virtuosity of some of its competitors, notably the Cleveland Orchestra on the Zimerman/ Boulez (CD) version on DGG. Schlimé, however, plays with a relaxed confidence that makes light of the formidable difficulties of the piece.

The second movement (Adagio assai) is the highlight of the performance. Schlime’s tempo is quite measured, but the long melody that opens the movement never drags or loses its shape. The entry of the flute, then oboe and clarinet is truly magical and Schlimé weaves his filigree accompaniment most sensitively. Later in this movement I would have liked the cor anglais to be slightly less reticent, but overall it is a mesmerizing account.

The jazzy finale is brilliantly despatched by both pianist and orchestra and while the performance of the work as a whole does not quite match the mercurial sparkle of Zimerman or the poise of Michelangeli, it certainly does not disappoint.

I have no reservations whatsoever about the Prokofiev 5th Concerto, which is one of the finest versions I have ever heard. Schlimé plays it with both rhythmic bite and complete technical assurance in the outer movements, and sustained power and tenderness in the Larghetto. The Russian National Orchestra sound much more at home in this work and the balance between orchestra and piano is superb. Pletnev sensibly divides his violins left and right and the recording captures every detail of Prokofiev’s quirky orchestration with crystal clarity, including a formidable bass drum.

The disc is completed by Schlimé’s own ‘3 Improvisations’ that are loosely based on the preceding concertos and make a fitting and entertaining postlude to the main works.
The first improvisation, wittily entitled ‘Reveal’, is a reflective piece that has echoes of the slow movement of the Ravel concerto, but is quite original and haunting in its own right. The second, ‘Progression’, is short, staccato and jazzy, while the last, ‘Return’, begins with massive sustained chords, recalling the opening of the Prokofiev concerto Larghetto. These gradually give way to more reflective music that eventually fades to silence.

I found all three novel and worthy of repeated hearing.

The DSD recording is up to PentaTone’s usual high standard and captures the acoustic of the Grand Hall of the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatoire admirably, particularly in the surround sound layer.

Copyright © 2006 Graham Williams and HRAudio.net

Performance:

Sonics (Multichannel):

stars stars

Review by John Broggio - February 15, 2007

I have to edge towards Edvin in his criticism of this disc. The Ravel is strange - every note is perfectly played yet it is without even a whiff of the exoticism that most manage (both from the keyboard and the podium) and it is so stilted in delivery that it becomes sleep inducing.

The Prokofiev is in altogether a different league of performance; not that it is difficult in this case! It is still far from being first class however despite all performers sounding far more engaged and at home in this repertoire. The performance is too manicured for my tastes and the caustic sounds have been polished to attempt to transform this concerto into a missing ballet.

The 3 Improvisations from Francesco Schlimé are anodyne in the extreme, highly derivative - a dash of one jazz great here, another there - never can muzak have been given such beautiful sound.

After all this, the sonic properties are quite frankly irrelevant but the solo piano is well captured; the piano is more forward than one would normally expect to hear in concert (unless just in front of the instrument) which is unusual for Pentatone.

Not recommended.

Copyright © 2007 John Broggio and HRAudio.net

Performance:

Sonics (Multichannel):

stars stars