Kempff's Schumann

[Waldszenen]

I recently bought the Kempff 4 CD set of Schumann's Piano Works on DG and I've found that they're... shoddy. I don't like the playing at all (there's one or two pieces he plays exceptionally well though) and it sounds very stiff and expressionless.


But apparently his Schumann is very popular. What do you all think?

[Floristan]

I don't like Kempff for anything, but especially Schumann.  I find his Schumann shoddy as well.  Others might disagree  .

[arensky]

Yes and no, not really I guess; the only way I can describe his playing is that it's "constipated".
It's very typical of that "correct" mid-20th Century playing style, that emphasizes strict fidelity to the text and doing nothing out of the ordinary. In short, playing like a good junior executive, never making waves, don't want to make the boss angry, etc.  I guess I like his recording of the Symphonic Etudes op.13, he does some cool playing, but it remains earthbound, it never take flight. But I would rather listen to my recordings of Casadesus, Richter, Cortot and Ashkenazy for this piece...

I don't think it's shoddy playing (his Op.13), but it is definitely stodgy.

I think his Beethoven Appasionata is VERY shoddy, it's at practice tempo most of the time; a joke about Kempff used to make the rounds, "his fast movements are really slow, but he makes up for it with his fast slow movements"  I've always found this to be true...he's not the worst pianist ever, but he's not the best. He represents an approach and esthetic that has never held any appeal for me...