Michelangeli Plays Beethoven

Introduction

A series of performances by Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli made by RAI in the early 1960s. The programme consists of one live performance (not sure in which theatre it was recorded, but even in black & white, you can tell there was a lot of red) of the later Beethoven, and studio recordings of the other works. The programme consists of :

Beethoven - Sonata No.32 in C minor Op.111 & Sonata in C Op.2 No.iii

Galuppi - Sonata No. 5 in C

Scarlatti - Sonata in C minor K.11
Sonata in C K.159
Sonata in A K.322
Sonata in B minor K.27

Video

Being a TV recording from the sixties, everything is of course in black & white, and despite (I`m sure) some remastering, much of the recorded stock shows its age rather too well. However, the NTSC 4/3 picture quality is never unwatchable. There are some commendably jerky camera close-ups (on the hands, never the face - being one of the stipulations Michelangeli made), but again this doesn`t detract from the performance.

Audio

The sound, rather predictably, is presented in LPCM mono, but there is no reason to despair despite the fact that we do not, obviously, have the availability of a more immediate digital recording. The music sounds wonderfully clear and there is a surprising depth to the timbre of the pianos (moreso in the studio recordings).

Features

Absolutely none!..apart from some introductory spiel by Misha Donat within the booklet. Generally, I`m quite happy to let the music speak for itself, but for such an important DVD release even some form of documentary on Michelangeli himself would have been nice (perhaps in the forthcoming Chopin recital?).

Conclusion

Michelangeli was one of those musicians I had heard a lot about, but had rarely heard, except on one occasion in London 20 or more years ago (possibly the same one Misha Donat mentions in his blurb, but to be honest, I`ve lost the programme and have completely forgotten what he played, but not how he played it), and so it`s an absolute delight to be able to see him again (albeit a much younger version).

He was always assumed to be an arrogant and highly unreliable performer, cancelling concerts on a whim (something Martha Agerich is apt to do as well, but as she was one of his students, perhaps not that surprising), and as Donat mentions, appeared to treat audiences as if they were an unwelcome guest. This certainly seems to be true in the live performance we have on this disc, as he gives a perfunctory nod to the packed house (poor dabs were obviously warm as there`s a lot of programme fanning going on) before the Beethoven, and we have the briefest of reappearances afterwards to curtly ackowledge the deserved applause.

But having whinged about the lack of Michelangelo documentary, perhaps the performances speak as much about him as anything else.

The man was obviously a perfectionist, something I felt all those years ago, but it came rushing back watching this DVD. Note-perfect recitals are few and far between, but we should not expect them as performers are only human, as are (or were) composers - we all make mistakes, even Mozart made notes and alterations (don`t believe everything you saw in `Amadeus`).

These performances though are as as near as perfection as you would want, but not just because all the notes are there, and generally in the right places. Donat mentions Michelangeli`s penchant for subtly, or otherwise, changing certain aspects of the pieces to suit how he felt about them at the time. Apparently, this includes changing the whole feel of a piece by ending in the minor (again, I`m going by the booklet, as I don`t know the Scarlatti in question), but it didn`t feel strange in any way, and knowing what we know about Michelangeli, he would have played it straight next time.

Every work on this disc could, I`m sure, be played in different ways, and be equally as successful, but to have performances as these captured on film is fantastic. Michelangeli appears to be of `the old school` of pianists (if there is such a thing). He doesn`t fawn and make love to the keyboard, replacing musical expression with over-expressive gesticulations and pained expressions, but just sits there (almost) rigid with the sort of posture my old piano teachers spent years trying to instil into me.

The late Beethoven is the major work on this disc, and Michelangeli does everything he needs to bring out the almost schizophrenic quality of the first movement, a piece which is full of stops and starts, but somehow this never gets in the way of the natual flow of the music.

The second, and final, movement is a complete contrast and here, Michelangeli produces some unbelievably quiet passagework, and quite staggeringly precise trills.

The short Galuppi sonata is a very sweet piece, firmly entrenched in the early Classical school (melody in the right hand, accompaniemt in the left, and never the twain shall meet), and reminded me of something that would be studied for higher grade piano exams, although the last movement takes off like a rocket and contains some fiendish little figures that are perfectly executed here.

The four Scarlatti sonatas are fascinating little pieces which show this composer to be a highly advanced keyboard writer. Of course, these pieces weren`t written for a piano but the sheer artistry on display is a compelling argument for modern-day interpretations.

Opus-Arte are certainly doing well with their latest releases. Even with no extras, this disc cannot really be faulted.