Recordings of professional pianists playing on crappy instruments

[psadagio]

When we attend a concert or buy a CD today, most of it is performed on state-of-the-art instruments. So I thought that it would be interesting to hear some professional pianists play on some not-so-good instruments.

[michel dvorsky]

I have recordings of Richter playing Mephisto, Scriabin 6 etc. on a badly maintained, out-of-tune piano.  It also sounds like an upright to me. The playing is fabulous though.

[dan101]

Interesting topic. I can't recall a recording on a lousy piano. I think that the placement of mics and the skill of the sound engeneers probably affects the quality of recordings to a huge extent.

[gyzzzmo]

Probably has to do more with way of recording than a flawed piano.

[camstrings]

Glenn Gould's recording of Bach's Inventions is a bit of a shock.
The piano has a definite clunking action. Was this following a rebuild of his smashed Steinway? I would suspect so.
Thankfully the playing transcends the piano's failings.

[michel dvorsky]

Yeah, w.r.t the Gould Inventions, he and his engineered had tinkered with the mechanism too much.  The result is pretty charming, imo.

Other examples

Horowitz breaking a string during the Rach 2nd Sonata.  Gilels breaking a string during the Liszt Sonata.  Gilels actually finished the performance; he compensated by changing his phrasing around the broken string!

[xpjamiexd]

Listen to some of Rach's Ampico Roll Recordings, the instrument is awful yet it has a warm charm to it.