Exquisite! Extraordinary control particularly with the pianissimo passages. I agree, Barenboim at his best.

That was absolutely marvelous. Such exquisite balance and dynamic range. Loved it!

For my taste, this is one of the greatest Chopin recitals I have ever heard. Still there are aspects that even Barenboim has neglected, the major one being that he ignores Chopin’s miraculous pedal indications. One example is Chopin’s long pedal at the end of the Nocturne in D-flat, right through to the final two chords. Another is the miraculous pedal indications at the opening of the Barcarolle. If only he would read my book on Chopin’s pedaling. Another concerns certain choreographic movements, which are not always consistent, such as how performs two-note phrases. He sometimes performs them gorgeously, but other times he fails to glide down with his wrist on the first tone and then glide slowly up before playing the second tone. Finally, he has slight tension in his shoulders. With the exception of the A-flat Polonaise, which to me was below the level of the rest of the recital, his poetic concept and his singing tone were heart-rending. Many of the great young pianists who recently performed at the Cliburn competition could learn a great lesson from merely observing how quietly he sits at the piano without histrionic facial and body expressions. His musicality is so overwhelming that one forgets what a phenomenal technique he has. It is always at the service of the music. This is the performance of a true master.
Seymour
PS I noticed rather impassive, almost bored expressions on many of the audience members. One would think that after such a recital the entire audience would give him a rousing standing ovation before the encores. Finally they did after the second one. There was a lot of reticence projected there.

Apparently the length of one’s arm does not minimize facility at the piano. Excellent performance. The music spoke to me.
Joebee

I live in India and here we do not have the opportunity to see and hear a pianist of the class and calibre of Mr. Barenboim as pianists of his stature rarely visit this side of the world.
So it with unfathomable joy that I sat through the recording of this concert. There’s something very delicate about Chopin’s music (at least for me) and Mr. Barenboim brings this out better than anyone else I’ve heard. God bless him …..and the internet….for allowing me to hear this wonderful performance
Zubin Balaporia
PS: I can’t help but agreeing with Mr. Seymour Bernstein’s comment about “observing how quietly Barenboim sits at the piano without histrionic facial and body expressions. .”
I find pianists who do that, extremely distracting and trying to “impose” a kind of feel that i feel should come from within…and this “feel” for the music, coming from within, is something that Mr. Barenboim is a master of.

Agree that this is wonderful Chopin, probably Barenboim at his best. I note that no one has said anything about the Steinway used or the recording engineers. This is probably a Hamburg Steinway that produced a bright heavenly sound and a bass that does not overwhelm the delightful tones of the upper octaves. The recording is wonderful. You hear every note, every strike of the felts, each a beautiful bell tone that stands alone. I was impressed with the instrument and engineers recording as I was the playing.

Barenboims forte is his pianissimo. Excisit and mesmerising.
Otherwise his pedaling and overall playing is questionable.