Disc Number:
Chesky Records CD 2, ADD
Contents:
Rachmaninov:
Artists:
Earl Wild piano
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra*
Jascha Horenstein conductor*
Recorded Date:
Originally released in 1965, reissued 1986
Producer:
Charles Gerhardt
Engineer:
Kenneth Wilkinson
The clear winner here in our Rachmaninov 2nd Piano Concerto sweepstakes is Chesky’s reissue of a 1966 performance originated by Reader’s Digest. Earl Wild is a stupendous virtuoso who knows the difference between technique used for technique’s sake and technique at the service of music. The present performance is possibly the finest recording of the many this popular concerto has received. Superbly played, it is the result of what sounds like both extensive rehearsal and a complete rapport between soloist and conductor. The sonics are outstanding, excelling in warmth, depth, instrumental and side-to-side separation, and most important, with a piano tone that brings out every subtlety in Wild’s conception.
Justin R. Herman, The New Records, July 1986.