Arthur Rubinstein - Chopin 19 Nocturnes (Vol. 49)

Despite Arthur Rubinstein's extroverted personality and open-hearted interpretive approach, his performances of Chopin's introspective, half-lit Nocturnes inspired him to some of his greatest recordings, as this, the last of his three traversals of the 19, amply demonstrates. His earlier recordings, from 1936-37 and 1949-50, have their admirers, but this set dating from 1965 and 1967 is superior for its interpretive depth and realistic stereo sound. It's a touch slower than the earlier versions, and Rubinstein's glorious tone color, mastery of shadings, and unerring sense of rubato help make these among his greatest recordings. He makes the music breathe as few others have; the melodies go straight to the heart thanks to subtle phrasing that wrings worlds of emotion without wallowing. That sense of naturalness and inevitability in his playing can be heard in every one of these 19 works. It makes the start of Op. 27, No. 1 deeply moving and inspires awe at the way he brings structural clarity to Op. 48, No. 1 without compromising its mood. Others may have equaled his achievement in one or another of these works, but as a set, this is inspired pianism. --Dan Davis Amazon.com

Epitome: Rubinstein plays Chopin Nocturnes

No matter how many versions I hear of the magical Nocturnes of Chopin, none has equaled the readings of Arthur Rubinstein. Certainly there are individual performances of some nocturnes that eclipse Rubinstein's. But as a complete set, his is the epitome.
Take the three nocturnes of Op 9. Rubinstein is unsurpassed in the first in B-Flat Minor. His direct approach in the opening is brilliantly contrasted with a muted blurriness in the middle section. The melody seems to grow more and more distant before the transition back to the recapitulation. In the reprise passion is controlled, yet powerful.
The famous E-flat Major Nocturne, an evocation of purity and innocence, is played with an unparalleled grace. The last nocturne of Op 9 in B Major, a structurally complicated work, is rendered with an ease that allows the music to flow from carefree to agitated and finally to ecstasy in the coda.
The nocturnes of Op 27, two of Chopin's great masterpieces, display Rubinstein at his best. The first in C-Sharp Minor has a unique feature. Its main theme never reaches a resolution. Rubinstein savors this unrequited inclination to resolution and heightens the tension of the piece. The forceful, agitated middle section is played with fire and conviction. The recapitulation, where the tension to resolve melts into a coda of beautiful warmth and serenity, is executed infallibly. The second nocturne of Op 27, in D-Flat Major, is rendered over an original ostinato bass. It possesses one of the most glorious melodies ever composed. The two codas that end this work transport the listener to an empyreal place that exists only in the mind of the composer. Rubinstein is magnificent as our conveyance.
In the Nocturnes of Op 37, Rubinstein projects the noble lament of the G Minor Nocturne in a very unaffected manner. The middle section, marked religioso, is taken at a perfect pace. The final bar, where Chopin surprises us by ending the work in G Major, is delivered superbly. The second Nocturne of Op 37 in G Major is often taken too quickly. This foils the delicious harmonic nuances inherent in the unique mixture of thirds, fourths and sixths in the right hand. Rubinstein attacks the piece with a sobriety that allows the listener to enjoy the journey. The middle section, which rocks and sways, is well presented also.
Rubinstein shines in the two Nocturnes of Op 48. The first in C Minor is one of Chopin's most compelling and extroverted works. The exposition is flawless. The great sweep of broken chords in the middle section is brought to a stunning climax. In the recapitulation Rubinstein seems somewhat less impassioned than Arrau, Vasary or Engerer. Yet, it still works. The Nocturne Op 48 n 2 in F-Sharp minor is hypnotic in Rubinstein's hands.
The Nocturne Op 62 n 1 in B Major is one of Chopin's most sublime. Rubinstein's interpretation represents the apogee of recorded performances. If there is such a place as an aural paradise, then the seven bars that provide the transition from the middle section to the recapitulation, would define it. No other pianist approaches Rubinstein here.
Finally, the posthumous E Minor Nocturne, which was probably Chopin's first foray into the form, is a beautiful work. Why he chose to withhold it from publication is baffling.
Although the mystery of the opening section is alluring, the crux of the piece is the aspiring middle section, which is reprised in the tonic major to close the work. Rubinstein's refined reading is absolutely captivating.
If you want to explore Chopin's Nocturnes as a complete set, let Rubinstein be your guide.
November 2, 2008

Improved Sound Quality

After more than 40 years, Rubinstein's classic account of Nocturnes still sounds so fresh and affecting. This 1999 new remastering with 20 bit / Super CD Encoding has added more body and brilliance to the original, beautifully capturing subtlety and intricacy of his playing. March 7, 2008

Comparison of Rubinstein, Moravec, Arrau, Pires on Chopin nocturnes

With my large collection of CDs (downloaded in WAVE to iTunes and a 160GB iPod), I realized that one of my all-time favorite collections for late nightime is Chopin's nocturnes. The pianist I had was Maria Joao Pires, selected years ago for no apparent reason. Recently I looked within Amazon at the various comments and listened to several other versions. To my surprised there seemed to be others that sounded superior. I wasn't sure, though, because how accurate is a 1 minute sound-bit though the internet. To test it out, I ordered 3 new sets that had high reviews: Rubinstein, Moravec, and Arrau. (By way of background, I seat on the Board of Directors of a regional symphony, but I have never heard of any of these pianists, except for Rubinstein.) After the CDs arrived, I have carefully comparing various nocturnes for all four pianists. First, my preference for nocturnes is sleepy/dreary as though right before going to bed. No Beethoven's Fifth if I want to go to sleep anytime soon. To my surprise there were real differences. I don't know if it is the piano, recording, or what. My favorites are Moravec and Rubinstein. They are both very musical, restful and peaceful. I expected Rubinstein to be poorly recorded, but not so. Between the two, I generally prefer Moravec. For No. 13 (Op. 48, No. 1 in c), however, I like Rubinstein better. The other two seem a far distance 3th and 4th place. Arrau seems more mechanical, and it sounds as though the recording was right next to the piano sound board - too shrill for my tastes. Pires is more similar to Arrau than to Moravec or Rubinstein. As to all of them, I have no prior allegiance, instead simply tried to compare them for my tastes. Hope this helps others. November 19, 2007

Food for your Spirit

I love, love, love this moving collection! It is divinely inspired, celestial, heavenly, stirring, emotionally filling and guaranteed to transport you to a higher dimension... February 28, 2007

An Antti Keisala Comment: Chopin Divine, Saddest Music In The World

Sometimes we feel we're unspeakably down: nights when you're exhausted by your daily routines and the dreamer in you wakes up in vain. Some people read romantic short stories. Some go to have long walks on the beach. When I'm blue, I either go running or watch Wong's "Chunking Express", some Tarkovsky or listen to the saddest music. To music most divine. That's this Rubinstein's interpretations of Chopin are high on that list, as they are on every other best-of list I've yet compiled.

Simply put, this is a masterly artist interpreting the most masterly artist of our time.

Chopin is, to me, the epitome of an artist who invests his whole soul to his music. A poet whose own poems start to shape his heart. Others can comment (and have already done so) on the technical aspects of either Chopin or Rubinstein's skill, but I merely wish to articulate how shocking his music is in how it bares the soul, how naked it is. In modern rock music, I've found Peter Gabriel to work this way, at least the Peter Gabriel of the untitled era, up to the album "Us". This is the greatest of commitment, almost a secret made between the composer and listener. The music approaches the listener in such a direct way not from the outside but from within. And this has nothing to do with who's playing the piano. There are simply passages that are larger than either the player or our comprehension. The silences, the rubatos, the relation of the notes to the mood of the thing, to the heart of the matter. Rubinstein just happens the most open-hearted, as one of the editorial reviews points out.

About Chopin. He's not like Bach in my books, whom I've found to appear emotionally majestic yet who's more like the Peter Greenaway of classical music; more showy and mathematical, calculating. Adhering to a certain cosmology rather than inventing and investing straight from and to the soul. Whereas Bach relies on framework in which he fills his music (this is, of course, the Zeitgeist of his time and style of music and in itself nothing remarkably revealing) with the finest of contrapuncts, Chopin's method is to create a free flow of melody, harmony, tempo and dynamics. It's organic and it's fluid. I don't think I should even mention Mozart's badinage. Rubinstein uses the rubato of Chopin to a great extent, which makes for some of the most breathtaking passages ever played on a piano. I play piano so badly I'll never have the possibility to play Chopin properly, but I've done the 'next best thing', that is, I've played him as transcribed for the guitar by Franscisco Tárrega. Those transcriptions, in my mind, contain that bittersweet chance of rubato, and that nakedness translates to the guitar quite well. But that's not the real thing.

This is. Of course, the best thing is to get all of Rubinstein's recordings, but if I was to make the hardest decision and choose only one, this would be it. Very close would be the Preludes as well as the Mazurkas, but this is perhaps the most heavenly music. Only Pärt's "Alina" continually reaches me on such a personal level. These songs made me believe that music can change your life.

Now I'm going to try and sell this item to you. Thus I'll have to ask that particular question: what is it about Rubinstein? We know him as the mastermind, the giant interpreter, who revolutionized how we listen to Chopin. But this isn't just merits, or otherwise he wouldn't be celebrated today for anything else than just showing a different path at the time. And this is a sad destiny some other artists share. Where Rubinstein triumphs is that his playing is much like what Chopin's music is like: it's a rare gift for us to find two artists with the same soul. This is why I think Rubinstein continues to be important and these records even life-altering. That's not in his technical skill, per se, it's in his ability to channel something from within, lift up something from the notes that can only be read between the lines. He's intimate, much like the music, and that's why I let him come close and do his best. Most beautiful music, most uplifting music; the saddest music in the world.

With best regards,
AK February 9, 2007

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