tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18540063.post114765513573497422..comments2024-03-16T08:02:38.070-04:00Comments on wellsung.blogspot.com: Off topicAlexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15748408812275965064noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18540063.post-1148617777133918802006-05-26T00:29:00.000-04:002006-05-26T00:29:00.000-04:00Hey Rick/Lisa,I really do think the 'coldness' (no...Hey Rick/Lisa,<BR/><BR/>I really do think the 'coldness' (not your word) question with Pollini is an interesting one. I own a handful of recordings--the late Beethoven sonatas, the Chopin preludes, and Brahms 2 come to mind, and while I like them very much (esp the Brahms) they have never shaken the lunch money out of my pockets the way the live experience did. While I have never felt "oh he's being distant" I haven't noted rapture per se. <BR/><BR/>I think that's because cold/warmth is a secondary issue for Pollini. He approaches the great piano literature as one approaches a great novel, where magic is to be found in the wholeness of the thing, in the balancing of constituent parts, in the sudden comprehension of the narrative's full scope. The emotional impact that he draws from these works is bound first and foremost to their structure. In a way, this comes off as distant indeed, compared to interpreters primarily concerned with evoking the emotional world of a piece. But I believe it is a different kind of resonance. Pollini's Chopin may not pour out his heart to you, but he speaks with an honesty and truth one has rarely heard. And the exhilaration of hearing such things spoken to you is an emotional satisfaction all its own.Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15748408812275965064noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18540063.post-1148596282126523722006-05-25T18:31:00.000-04:002006-05-25T18:31:00.000-04:00I enjoyed your review, although I disagreed with t...I enjoyed your review, although I disagreed with the content; I was extremely disappointed with most of the performances, especially the Liszt Sonata. It seemed in that work in particular Pollini was dragging in the fast sections and pushing in the slow sections, as well as repeatedly playing several phrases with "typos" (perhaps he's using a 'bad' edition?). I didn't find his technique all that special in this work or in the Chopin half, it certainly paled in comparison to his recording, which I enjoy very much. <BR/><BR/>I found his Chopin oddly detached, excepting the very first work on the program, the Nocturne, which I thought was a glimpse of what was lacking in the rest of the program (warmth?). I know it's easy to throw out a word like "cold," so I won't, but I didn't feel like he was making any attempt at reaching out emotionally. I've heard performances of those Liszt works that sent chills up and down my spine, but Pollini didn't get anywhere close to that.<BR/><BR/>Regarding the encores, I agree with you wholeheartedly - the Liszt etude in particular kicked ass (I've never heard it played with such abandon, including Cziffra), and the Debussy showed that when he wants to, he's a superb colorist. I just wish he had applied that to the rest of the program. Just my two cents, but I'm glad you enjoyed his program even if I didn't! <BR/><BR/>Great site, keep up the good work!<BR/>Rick M.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18540063.post-1148581938246244602006-05-25T14:32:00.000-04:002006-05-25T14:32:00.000-04:00I've heard enough Pollini to wonder where the hell...I've heard enough Pollini to wonder where the hell that reputation for "cold/distant" comes from. It's insane; no lack of warmth or emotion in anything I know of his.Lisa Hirschhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14014924958428072675noreply@blogger.com