Rachmaninoff - Piano concerto no 2, op 18

[fnork]

Here comes the first movement, recorded it today with my teacher on 2nd piano.

[fnork]

Oops, just noticed that the last 10-15 seconds are missing... very annoying. Also, the volume is very low, so you need to turn the volume up on your computer.

I've practiced this movement a lot, escpecially since the beginning of May, and today I had my piano exam and played it together with Bachs toccata in e minor. In general, I'm happy with how it went, except that I need to work on playing more with my whole body - if I'll ever play it with orchestra, it's necessary to get a big sound - especially in the chordy passages when the first theme comes back.

[pianistimo]

i don't have an issue with your playing - but these pianos are dreadful. 

you and your teacher have a lot of sensitivity and passion to your playing.  i'd personally like to see you do your daring do on two steinways or bosies.  but, i have expensive taste.  the bosies with the extra notes let rach's lovely bass tendencies ring.

there's no 'sparkle' to the treble - no matter how well you are playing.  it's 'tinny.'  i'd like to hear some pizzaz in those treble notes.  it's all the piano's fault.

[fnork]

No, it's probably the microphones fault - I was playing on a Steinway D and my teacher on a C (I think), however, I couldn't find a good place to have the microphone and was in a hurry - I just placed it on the floor 7-8 metres from my piano and it didn't capture the whole sound very well... It wasn't supposed to be a CD recording anyway, just for myself, to listen closely to what I'm doing and what I need to work on.

[fnork]

What do you think of the tempo? I usually play it somewhat faster, at least the opening theme which to me feels too slow at this pace.
I played it on masterclass for a teacher who actually told me that it's no good to listen to Rachmaninoffs own recordings because they were time-limited and he thought that the fast tempos were because they couldn't have fit it on a grammophone otherwise.... I'm very skeptic about that, though - sure, the recordings are very fast but still, it never sounds rushed for me at least.

[pianistimo]

i like it.  you can hear all the notes.  perhaps the key is simply that.  if you can play it slightly faster and still hear everything clearly.  but, the seriousness of this tempo gives it a definate rach 'feel.'  also, it leads into that really fast passage excellently.  when the 'main theme' comes in - it just seems to settle out of nowhere.  i really respect your sense of tempo.  however, some of the rubato seems a tiny bit too 'romantic.'  but, that's just me - i like to hear rach with a certain amount of restraint which seems odd.  for instance at the end of phrases - not so much 'i know there's going to be a rubato on this last note.'

[arbisley]

I've got recordings where it's played fast, and I like it like that, but yours is good in that it is slower but loses none of the meaning and colouring as it is very easy to do. I bet you can play faster by comparison to the other passages, but I'd say maybe just a touch faster than the recording would be enough. Although maybe with orchestra the melody would become a bit boring if too slow, but that depends on the conductor too. Still not a bad recording for a bad mike position!

I just wonder, if you can bring all that sound out of the piano already, how much more could you bring out with mroe body movement? I suppose there is always more to be done on rachmaninoff in volume....

What more can I say, it sounds brilliant to me! very serious and uncheesy if I may say so 

[fnork]

thanks for your comments. arbisley - I got a comment from the teachers who listened that I need to play more with my whole body, just imagine playing this piece with orchestra - some parts will sound "tiny" the way I play it now, at least according to the teachers who are all respectatle pianists.

[arbisley]

yeah I can imagine, I played a Mozart concerto for the first time, and I realised how difficult it is to cut through the orchestra, so with Rachmaninoff and a huge symphonic orchestra it has to be proportionately larger I imagine! I believe Richter once said something along the lines of "The sound must come from the feet", obviously referring to useing the whole body to produce sound.

That's where it becomes difficult to keep beautiful tone colour in my view, even my teacher, who has performed Rach2, I find plays things too brutally sometimes in order to achieve sound. I prefer to concentrate on tone and less volume, maybe that's why I like Debussy!