REVIEW EXCERPT OF NEW DAVID RUBINSTEIN RECORDING
OF BUSONI ELEGIES
FROM MUSICWEB INTERNATIONAL

Ferruccio BUSONI (1866-1924)
Elegien, Sieben neue Klavierstücke (1907/1909) [44:06]
Johann Sebastian BACH (1685–1750) Chaconne in D minor, BWV 1004 (arr. for piano (1897) by Busoni) [16:07]

David Rubinstein (piano) MUSICUS 1001 [60:30]
Available from:
DavidRubinstein.net
http://cdbaby.com/cd/davidrubinstein2

"What an astonishingly varied set of pieces the Elegien is! And what a challenge it sets for the pianist. The concentration needed to understand the music is matched only by the immense virtuosity required to play it. But despite the quite often dense, almost orchestral textures Busoni employs, the music is laid out quite clearly for the two hands – even if, at times, it sounds as if four hands are at work. A lesser pianist could find the music to be bass heavy and thus obscure the argument with the thick accompaniment, Rubinstein rises to the occasion, throws himself into the music and gives an excellent performance – with a subtle and judicious use of rubato – by turns virtuosic and extrovert, delicate, melancholic and regretful. The transcription of Bach’s great Chaconne in D minor is well known so all I need to say is that Rubinstein essays it with the aplomb and rubato he employs for the Elegien. A fine disk of, possibly, Busoni’s most approachable piano work in the modern style, in performances worthy of the music." -Bob Briggs in MusicWeb International (February 2008)

Read the full review at: http://www.musicwebinternational.com/classrev/2008/Feb08/Busoni_Rubinstein_m1001.htm

Sorry to take so long to see this! A new recording of the Elegies is long overdue. Do you also play the Busoni transcriptions of the Bach and Brahms chorale preludes?