JORGE BOLET Recital CHOPIN LISZT WAGNER-LISZT VERDI-LISZT 1973 NEW YORK

CHOPIN: Four Scherzi; LISZT: Three Petrarch Sonnets; WAGNER-LISZT: Overture to Tannhauser; SCHUMANN-LISZT: Widmung; VERDI-LISZT: Rigoletto Paraphrase; SCHUBERT-LISZT: Auf dem Wasser zu Singen. Jorge Bolet at Hunter College, 28 January 1973, live recital broadcast by WNYC-FM NEW YORK.

[@AlexanderArsov]

Scherzi: 0:12 No. 1; 10:00 No. 2; 21:02 No. 3; 29:23 No. 4. Petrarch Sonnets: 42:56 No. 47; 49:40 No. 104; 57:09 No. 123. 1:04:57 Tannhauser; 1:22:53 Widmung; 1:27:54 Rigoletto; 1:36:36 Auf dem Wasser zu singen.

[@FatSwede]

the playing in the Wagner-Liszt Tannhauser is even more stupendous and spectacular than in the famous 1974 Carnegie Hall recital!!

[@nickk8416]

Absolute sublime playing. He had me at the 1st Scherzo. Thanks.

[@peterbracken3711]

I should add, this is an astonishing find, Helen and Herman. You've captured a pianist at his peak and in luxurious sonic grandeur. Hat tip to you both. What a fathomless treasure.

[@helenandhermaninlawrence7983]

I'm glad this strikes home with you, but you give me/us too much credit. Our only claim to fame here is an ability to handle audio, and the willingness to spend (considerable) time and effort to preserve what has come into our hands, and to share. In a different but similar vein, a friend once likened Richter to a force of nature. I agreed, but added that Michelangeli was not of this earth. Orbits, galaxies! The more I listen to Bolet, the more he comes to live in me, and after working on a Bolet video it is difficult to find my way to another pianist for quite some time. GOAT, I don't know, but compelling, unique, and to my mind glorious to be in the company of for sure. He is still relatively new to me, so the processes of discovery are in full swing. Thank you for listening, writing, and thought provoking commentary.

[@scupham]

Helen and Herman - don't underestimate the contribution to the legacy of pianists like Bolet that you are making with these concert uploads! In the case of Bolet in particular, they are filling an enormous gap and will be transforming the ideas of listeners who only know him through his later Decca recordings. I was lucky enough to hear him many times in London in the late 70's and 80's, and the power, electricity and colour he created was something unique and inimitable.

[@nickk8416]

@@helenandhermaninlawrence7983 So wonderfully said. Best Regards.

[@matthewzisi300]

I am always so impressed when a pianist is able to perform the Liszt Tannhauser transcription. The orchestral version is so full, so rich-has so much depth to it, it is barely fathomable that it could be reproduced on piano. And even though Liszt was able to transcribe it, the product wasn't easy-this is probably one of the hardest pieces ever written for piano. Amazing performance!

[@michelangelomulieri5134]

This live recital is a desert island choice..

[@movingonwards]

Thank you so much!!!!!!!!!! I agree that the Tannhauser is just mesmeric in its power and grandeur! It takes a very special artist to shape the melodic lines amidst all the flurry of cascades, especially in the coda. I always enjoyed Bolet's playing, in spite of how he comes across in his interviews.

[@helenandhermaninlawrence7983]

Personally, I am very fond of Ashkenazy, from the early recordings all the way through. But I understand your frustration on the route Bolet's career took, and would like you to know of the Marston label boxed sets of Bolet, if you don't already know of them. To my mind, they are priceless.

[@helenandhermaninlawrence7983]

I can't really say, but among my favorites his early Études are a living presence in me.

[@josephf151]

what a recital to go to, so many great pieces in one sitting! I wish I could be there.

[@helenandhermaninlawrence7983]

Me too, but fortunately for us You Tube has been invented, and this seems the next-best thing to being there then!

[@josephf151]

Thank you for this great channel, I really appreciate people who go out and risk their channels and put hours into finding music for others to enjoy. I got hit a few time for classical music use, and I thus wait for copyright strikes to wear off before uploading lest I get slammed by 4 at once and lose my channel.

[@helenandhermaninlawrence7983]

I don't know what to say, except that the entire matter of copyright infringement is something I do not wish to do, nor do I want it done to me. But the ins and outs, the whys and hows, are unclear to me.

[@josephf151]

I did not want to either, technically I was under fair use, but it sure is intimidating. I guess I could have worded my comment better, but I most appreciate your time.

[@neilford99]

Helen and Herman in Lawrence bolet actively encouraged people to tape his recitals

[@l.hunterkevil6249]

I wonder if he was playing a Bosendorfer...

[@frankromano9064]

He was a Baldwin artist although I heard him in 1977 at Carnegie Hall using his own piano a Bechstein if memory serves.

[@kaleidoscopio5]

PROGRAM: Chopin: 00:12 Scherzo op 20 10:01 Scherzo op 31 21:04 Scherzo op 39 29:22 Scherzo op 54 Liszt: 42:55 Petrarch Sonnet 47 49:41 Petrarch Sonnet 104 57:09 Petrarch Sonnet 123 Wagner/Liszt: 1:04:54 Overture to Tannhauser ENCORES: 1:22:53 Schumann/Liszt Widmung 1:27:56 Verdi/Liszt Rigoletto Paraphrase 1:36:37 Schubert/Liszt Auf dem Wasser zu Singen

[@peterbracken3711]

Bolet is easily the GOAT: the greatest of all time. No one can hold the proverbial candle to him. People talk of the reserve in his recordings. Don't buy it. Just listen to his Decca Liszt, Schubert and Chopin. The thing about Bolet is this. Once you've heard him play it, no other will do. His technical mastery is complete. His romanticism is unsurpassed. And his artistry is peerless. I love Ashkenazy. But comparing Bolet with him is like comparing Waugh with Conrad. And there is no comparison. Bolet orbits a different galaxy.

[@LisztianGR]

Bolet was a great artist, no doubt. But I thing you're talking about Cziffra here.

[@frankromano9064]

Oy Gevalt an ESPN post with the GOAT nonsense. Something so subjective , by its very nature, cannot have a GOAT. How about he is my favorite pianist and a great one?

[@kevinm6790]

@@frankromano9064Exactly! It all comes down to preference, doesn’t it?