Vladimir Horowitz - Horowitz in Hamburg: The Last Concert

First-ever release in any format of this momentous musical event! In 1987, Vladimir Horowitz, the last of the keyboard titans of the 20th century, made a triumphant European tour, giving what turned out to be his final series of performances before an adoring public. The very last of these concerts, on June 21 in Hamburg, was recorded by the North German Radio. Apart from a single encore, no part of this valedictory concert has ever been issued before. This recording constitutes a unique souvenir of Horowitz's final public appearance, where the sense of occasion and immediacy is palpable. Horowitz included three signature works on his final program: Schumann's enchanting Scenes from Childhood (source of one of his favorite encores, the immortal Träumerei), Chopin's monumental "Heroic" Polonaise, and one of his most glittering encores, Moszkowski's Étincelles. Over a career lasting nearly seven decades, Horowitz's recordings have sold over three million units and won 25 Grammy® Awards (six for his Deutsche Grammophon titles) Album Description

An Important Memento

Vladimir Horowitz is one of the greatest pianists to ever live. For pianists who embrace things pianistic in the repertoire, he is immortal. For those whose credo is different, he often is still a huge force to be reckoned with. Therefore, listening to his last public performance is an act practically required of a musician who finds it important to follow this fascinating career and life completely to the end. Horowitz's musical ideas, his inspirations, and the tone he brings from the piano are present, full-force, in this recital, and much of his playing is less mannered and more to-the-point than his other renditions of these same works. In addition to that, he is more tired, weaker, stiffer, and less accurate than other late performances I have heard. Whether you are new to Horowitz, or have eagerly sought out every note he has played for many years, buy this disc as an hommage to an immortal, and become acquainted with his other recordings of the same repertoire. This great pianist has had an effect on virtually every artist who has heard him. September 30, 2008

Excellent recording!

The last performance of Horowitz in Hamburg is great!

Thank you!

WL August 1, 2008

Not to be missed

A wonderful coda to a wonderful life. Given his sense of humour, Horowitz would have found hysterical the fact that Amazon is advertising it alongside a recording by the let's just say musically and technically disadvantaged Lang Lang. July 26, 2008

A Fond Farewell

For those familiar with Vladimir Horowitz's televised recital from Vienna a few weeks prior to this one, both the repertoire and the manner of performance will be similar. There are a few differences in details, which mainly spring from the differences between Vienna's Golden Hall and Hamburg's Music Hall, which is "drier" acoustically.

By 1987, Horowitz had stripped his playing of much of the artifice which marred the performances he gave while in his 70s. Gone were the bizarre rubati and general obliteration of structure, and in their place was an unforced spontaneity and balance between tension and relaxation. A case in point is Schumann's Scenes from Childhood, which Horowitz recorded several times. Horowitz's two studio renderings, from 1950 and 1962, are fairly straightforward accounts, with occasional lapses into pianistic micromanagement and hints of nervousness when there should be relaxation. A 1982 live recording is almost the opposite, with nonsensical rubatos, distended ritards, slack rhythm, and almost no coherence. But here, in 1987, Horowitz has pulled himself together and plays with simplicity, controlled freedom, and conviction. It is often said that the elderly sometimes return to a childlike state. In old age, Horowitz had achieved communion with Schumann's visions of childhood lost. Horowitz still dared, however, to look beyond the printed page and interpret the music. Few pianists have ever dared to make Chopin's Mazurka in B Minor sound so sassy and sexy.

As far as technical matters go, Horowitz's fingers are fully up to the task of his chosen repertoire. By now, the octogenarian realized he was no longer capable of sustained virtuoso fireworks, so he often substituted finesse and coloration for bravura. The balance and evenness of his passagework, his incredible control of lower levels of dynamics, and ear for pedaling remain unrivaled. There are, however, tiny memory lapses which occur during the early part of the concert (and in almost the exact same places as occurred in his Vienna concert). However, these are not greatly distracting and can be easily forgiven, and they are nowhere near as pronounced as those I witnessed at Claudio Arrau's last Boston recital. Only note perfect pedants will cry foul.

DG includes a note indicating that one work, Schubert's Impromptu, D 899, No. 3 was not included in the broadcast or this recording due to technical reasons. However, my understanding is that it was omitted due to an audience member who became ill and had to leave, which created a noisy distraction.

Copies of this recital, which was broadcast, have been circulating among collectors for years. However, radio broadcasts are typically compressed and this was no exception. For this release, DG has gone to the uncompressed master tape, which sounds entirely natural, with ideal microphone placement that brings Horowitz into the room. So, even if you have the "pirate" tape, it's well worth getting this CD.
July 12, 2008

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