Track Listing

1. Concerto in F, for piano & orchestra: I: Allegro
2. Concerto in F, for piano & orchestra: II: Adagio - Andante con moto
3. Concerto in F, for piano & orchestra: III: Allegro agitato
4. Piano Concerto in G major: I. Allegramente
5. Piano Concerto in G major: II. Adagio assai
6. Piano Concerto in G major: III. Presto

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #187461 in Music
• Released on: 1997-11-25
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .23 pounds

Amazon.com essential recording
This is one class act. Helene Grimaud generally prefers the heavy-duty German repertoire and has fought hard not to be typecast as a dainty "French" female pianist. Nevertheless she has expressed a certain affection for selected French and non-Germanic works, which is a good thing for us because this is the best performance of the Gershwin concerto we are ever likely to hear. It has style, warmth, and bravura to spare. In fact, everyone concerned treats it like it's the greatest piece of music in the world, and the same positives apply to the Ravel. --David Hurwitz

Customer Reviews

Quite good but not the absolute best
Well... this isn't likely to be a 'popular' review, but it will be honest. First let me say that Helene Grimaud is simply the best pianist I've ever heard recorded. I have her Brahms recordings and find her sense of expression, control of dynamics, and most importantly, warmth, unmatched by any other at the instrument. (The only way to get warmer would be to play the Intermezzi, for example, on a Boesendorfer Imperial...but that's another issue.)

In this PARTICULAR recording however, I don't really like what I hear, although the playing is still admirable. The trouble is that Grimaud seems to lack her characteristic dramatic gusto and 'big sound'-- something necessary for playing Brahms. Perhaps she found this mode of playing unsuited to the Gershwin and Ravel-- Ravel, I can understand... that half of the recording is 4 1/2 stars certainly. The Gershwin is more about 3 stars. Zinman and his orchestra outshine Grimaud-- partially Gerswhin's "fault" since his orchestration is so damn coloristic and exciting. Grimaud sounds as if she's playing down at even th big fortes... this might be an acoustic balance problem too. I also find her under tempo-- I understand that for 'modern' recordings it's the in thing to slow down the repertoire and bask in the glorious clarity of the recording... but, if you listen to Gershwin's own interpretation or, better still, OSCAR LEVANT's top-notch interp. of the Concerto, you'll see that Gershwin and his entourage very consciously brushed over notes, used A LOT of rubato, and whizzed through the movements like showoffs. That's the 'jazz spirit' of the piece... Even the slow movement is quite a bit faster in Levant with very tasteful rubato and swing.

So, I guess I'm saying... this is the "modern master" recording... very good, but not the best. Pick up the OSCAR LEVANT recording, which you can find here at Amazon, to accompany this recording for the Gerswhin. If you're buying this CD for the Ravel... then you've got nothing to worry about. Grimaud and Zinman are, as I said, 4 1/2 stars there. Thanks for reading.

A Decent Gershwin and a Great Ravel played by Grimaud
If you're interested in hearing more of Grimaud's playing then buy this CD. However, her performances of the Gershwin and Ravel concerti aren't definitive. Indeed, her playing of Gershwin seems tentative, as though she admits her lack of comfort with playing jazz music or her unfamiliarity with Gershwin's music. She is almost immediately overshadowed by Zinman's energetic conducting and the vibrant performance he yields from the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. Much more successful is her fine performance of Ravel's Piano Concerto, which is as good as her earlier Denon recording with Lopez-Cobos conducting the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. If you're interested in hearing her splendid playing of Ravel's music, along with Rachmaninov's, then you might be better off buying her earlier CD instead.

The Ultimate "Romantic" Gershwin and Ravel!
Helene Grimaud's performance of the Gershwin Piano Concerto with the Baltimore Symphony conducted by David Zinman is the ultimate "Romantic" performance of this work, unlike the "jazzy" approach most people are used to in this concerto. Grimaud brings out the lyrical and melodic elements of the score, making it more tuneful and memorable than other recordings. By "Romantic" I mean both romantic in its usual sense as well as being in the vein of nineteenth century classical music (the Romantic era in music). The concerto sounds less brash and modernist and more like a traditional piano concerto from the late nineteenth or early twentieth century, albeit with a uniquely American or "Gershwin" sound! This "Romantic" approach to the concerto does not, however, come at the expense of excitement: Zinman effectively controls the orchestra, allowing it to build to climaxes of great physical excitement and Grimaud lets loose with fiery playing when it's called for.

Grimaud's playing is certainly not tentative or signifying her discomfort with the jazz elements of the work, as some reviewers here suggested. Her playing is quite deliberate and a quick listen to her super-fast and virtuosic last movement (as well as the first and third movements of the Ravel) reveals her ability to play quite comfortably at faster tempos. Her delicate entry into the first and second movements of the Gershwin are a deliberate effort to reclaim this work as a genuine "classical" piano concerto. Her approach succeeds in this endeavor, making this work a true piano/orchestral "classic", not just a jazzy crossover attempt by a composer only known for non-classical works. Gershwin's best "crossover" work in the piano format is Rhapsody in Blue, anyway, which made the concerto sound like a distant second in that category, in most performances. (For the best jazzy Gershwin Piano Concerto--fast and exciting--as well as the best Rhapsody out there, try the Wild/Fiedler/Boston Pops account, in one of its incarnations [I like the 2001 release the best]). With Grimaud's fervent interpretation, along with the very precise and lively playing of the Baltimore Symphony--everything seems to be done so carefully, including a perfectly placed gong toward the end of the last movement--Gershwin's Piano Concerto has been "redeemed" as the masterpiece concerto that it is.

Grimaud's rendition of the Ravel as well makes the work sound so different than we usually hear it. It's usually taken at a speedy clip, with the orchestra and pianist having a party, making the work sound like a wild romp, a musical circus of sorts (complete with a whip!). Zinman conducts the orchestra in a more serious and mature rendition, while Grimaud savors the latent Romanticism of the work, without neglecting its Ravelian Impressionism or its jazz influences. (Grimaud here surpasses her own earlier account with the Royal Philharmonic). The result is a very satisfying performance, making this concerto stand, together with the Gershwin, as two of the twentieth century's greatest piano concertos. Add sound quality that is crystal clear and detailed throughout, and you have a CD that is very worthy of the title "Amazon.com Essential Recording".

For those looking for "Romantic" and mature recordings of these two concertos, I can think of no finer disc. Way to go Grimaud and company!