INKPOT#60 CLASSICAL MUSIC REVIEWS: Dinu Lipatti plays Chopin, Liszt, Ravel, Brahms & Enescu (EMI Références)

FRYDERYK CHOPIN (1810-1849)
Piano Sonata no.3 in B minor, op.58

FRANZ LISZT (1811-1886)
Sonetto del Petrarca No.104

MAURICE RAVEL (1875-1937)
Alborada del gracioso (from "Miroirs" no.4)

JOHANNES BRAHMS (1833-1897)
Waltzes Op.39 Nos.1, 2, 5, 6, 10, 14 & 15*

GEORGES ENESCO (1881-1955)
Piano Sonata no.3 in D major, op.25

DINU LIPATTI piano - *with Nadia Boulanger

EMI Classics Références CDH 7-63038-2
[65'55"] mid-price

ADD mono recordings from 1937-1948.

Note: this disc has been reissued in the Philips Great Pianists of the 20th Century Series (Vol.65: 456 892-2), coupled with a second disc of the Schumann and Grieg Piano Concertos - both for the price of one (full-priced) disc.

In my last review, we have heard how Lipatti heroically gave his final recital while deep in the clutches of the leukaemia that was to take him three months later. In this disc, harking back to his younger days, including when he made his first recording, I discovered the other side of Lipatti: besides being lyrical, noble and heroic (in his last recital), he also had power, virtuosity and a certain cheeky youthful streak!

It was Nadia Boulanger, Lipatti's mentor and close friend, who first coaxed the young and unknown Lipatti (right) into a recording studio for the 1937 recording of Brahm's Waltzes, played as in the original version for four hands (with who else but Boulanger herself, at that time already a celebrated pianist). Brahms' Waltzes are nothing like Chopin's more full-bodied ones; rather, they are miniatures, a "series of variations based upon the ¾ meter" (quoting Dame Moura Lympany). Instead of being playing the selected waltzes in numerical sequence, the creative programming of this set allowed them to flow smoothly from one to the next.

Opening with the naively ebullient No.6, the perkishness softens to a gently lapping No.15 (the famous Brahms Waltz); the wave-like rhythm is maintained when No.2 follows immediately. Next is No.1, majestic and weighty, yet Lipatti's tempo allows the melody to dance vigorously as well. The pace quickens for Nno.14, then No.10 comes in as a brief interlude, before the beautiful No.5 enters with its ruminating bass and reflective inner melody. The set finally closes with a reprise of No.6, and in this context it becomes a playful farewell from Lipatti, much like a child skipping off happily after an enjoyable game. And indeed I enjoyed listening to the young Lipatti play the young Brahms with such splendid effect.

Chopin's Third Piano Sonata is less well-known and less often played than his Second (the "Funeral March"), but it is essentially based on a similar architecture. The strength of Lipatti's playing comes across from the first phrase of the sonata: chords resonate with power, and running passages are taken with ease. As noted in the sleeve liner, Lipatti had exceptionally-formed hands suited for playing the piano, and Walter Legge observed that Lipatti had "the shoulders of a wrestler" despite his frailty. The scherzo in his hands is fleeting and light, setting the mood for the intended contrast with the ruminative slow movement. Lipatti plays this in his characteristic cantabile voice (can one ever get enough of his lyricism?).

The final movement takes off like a whirlwind after the powerful opening octaves. Lipatti takes this movement at breathtaking speed, with the result that the listener's breath may very well be taken away as he listens to this energetic rendition! Full of youthful hot-blooded anguish, in stark contrast to the dark brooding rendition by Igor Zhukov (which I happen to like as well) at the recent Piano Festival.

Oil portrait of Franz Liszt by Henri Charles Lehmann, 1839

Liszt's Sonetto del Petrarca No.104, from the Second Book (Italy) of his "Years of Pilgrimage", is a piece set to a sonnet by Petrarch. Of all the three sonnets that Liszt set to music, this one has arguably the most appealing melody and is often played on its own. Lipatti not only sings the sonnet, he embellishes it with the brilliant sense of drama and romance, ornamental runs, and fiendishly showy cadenzas characteristic of Liszt's younger days.

The Alborada del gracioso is translated as "Aubade of the Clown". "Aubade" is a piece of early morning music; "alborada" a Spanish term with special application to a type of instrumental music with a good deal of rhythmic freedom. Indeed, one revels in Lipatti's great rhythmicity and control, even though Ravel has written a horrendously difficult piece to play in terms of both technique and interpetation (none of Ravel's piano music is easy to play anyway). We again see Lipatti's virtuosity and vision at work, combining to paint the colours and sounds of a bright Spanish morning as seen through French impressionism.

Enescu (right, otherwise spelt "Georges Enesco") may be better known for his violin works, and under normal circumstances an Enescu sonata would be the odd one out among this recital programme. Actually, not only is he Rumanian like Lipatti, Enescu happens to the pianist's godfather as well! After being introduced (in Ravel's Alborada) to Lipatti's immaculate sense of rhythm and ability to bring out the soul and purpose of a piece, it comes as no surprise that he could interpret this modern sonata as well as those of the Romantic era. The Rumanian feel of the work becomes immediately evident: naturally, home is where the heart is and Lipatti shows us beyond any doubt that he identifies with this piece.

The sound quality of this disc is recognisably poorer than the recording of Lipatti's final recital, but the playing is still very much enjoyable (though, I warn again, the sound may seem restrictive for first-timers to historical recordings). However you may be able to increase the sonority and breadth of the sound by turning up the bass on the sub-woofer - I'm still pleasantly surprised at the effect. In any case, this disc makes for an effective and comprehensive counterpoint to Lipatti's late recordings.

Naxos discs can be easily ordered from Sing Discs (Raffles City), Tower (Pacific Plaza and Suntec City), Borders (Wheelock Place) or HMV (The Heeren).