Rachmaninov - Piano Concerto No.3; Symphonic Dances
Garrick Ohlsson; Atlanta Symphony Orchestra; Robert Spano
ASO Media CD-1003
“After America, I’ll be able to buy myself that automobile,” Rachmaninov is reported to have explained when finally deciding to embark on his voyage to America in 1909, a tour that promised handsome financial compensation. It was for this trip that he composed the great Piano Concerto No.3 in D Minor, admirably presented here on this Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Media recording with Garrick Ohlsson and the ASO conducted by Robert Spano.
Ohlsson was a gangly 22 year old when he won first prize at the International Chopin Competition in 1970. Forty-one years later, he has come to be regarded as one of the American veterans of the concert stage. Despite his eclectic discography, ranging from Bach to Gershwin, Ohlsson has never spent much time with the Russian romantics, so this recording, which not only features the concerto, but also the three Symphonic Dances, is a journey into uncharted territory. And what a satisfying voyage it is indeed! The concerto - surely one of the most demanding in the repertoire - is a plethora of contrasting moods and tempos, but Ohlsson handles them all with aplomb. Piano pyrotechnics are treated with ease, while the quieter, more lyrical sections demonstrate an introspective elegance. Spano has been director of the ASO for ten years now, and here, his competent baton achieves a warmly romantic sound from the players. Concluding the disc is the set of three Symphonic Dances from 1941, the last works ever to be penned by Rachmaninov. The ensemble delivers a polished performance and the Direct Digital Stream sound further enhances this most satisfying recording.
