Muriel Kerr plays Scriabin (1928 RCA)

The sole 78rpm disc recorded by Canadian-born pianist Muriel Kerr is this Victor disc 4113 set down on October 31, 1928, featuring Scriabin's Etude in C-Sharp Minor Op.2 No.1 and Etude in D-Flat Major Op.8 No.10. The transfer heard here was effected by Tom Jardine, to whom all thanks, from a record in his personal collection.
A child prodigy who debuted in a Mozart Concerto at the age of 7, Kerr made her Carnegie Hall debut on December 5, 1928 when she played Rachmaninoff's Second Piano Concerto with Mengelberg conducting the New York Philharmonic. She studied extensively with Ernest Hutcheson at Juilliard, where she would also teach from 1942 to 1949.
The only known studio recordings of Kerr are this sole 10-inch Victor disc and an LP of Hindemith and Schumann for the obscure Hyperion label that was reissued by RCA as a 'special products release' after Kerr's tragically premature death of an asthma attack in 1963 at the age of 52.
Aged 17 at the time of this Victor recording, Kerr plays with the authority and command that characterizes the playing on her LP recording and which is referenced in most concert reviews (a 1945 New York recital featuring the Liszt Sonata compared her to the legendary Teresa Carreño). With long lines in lyrical passages and clarity of texture throughout, Kerr's playing features consistently beautiful tone, marvellous pedal technique, and wonderful dynamic control.
To read about and hear more of this amazing pianist - including two private chamber music performances (also on my KZbin channel) - here is a feature on my website:
www.thepianofiles.com/a-forgo...
If you wish to support The Piano Files, please consider membership at my Patreon page: / thepianofiles

[@timothyweir8790]

Wonderful Scriabin from Muriel Kerr. Glad this came up in my feed today.

[@sergiociomei1197]

A genius of the keyboard,and an incredibly mature and sensitive musician!! Thanks for this hidden treasure!

[@musikantropo2278]

Grazie per questa magnifica rarità!un grande applauso!!

[@stefanabels8971]

A truly wonderful find! What went wrong with modern pianistry and taste? Thank you for sharing!

[@ticket555]

Splendid. . Thank you so much.

[@aritina8379]

So sad that she left us at such a young age (52- just one year older than I am today!😢) Why isn’t she famous?!! Amazing pianist! When she was 17, she won a piano competition that got her a contract with RCA!❤❤❤

[@ThePianoFiles]

It wasn't a full contract, unfortunately - just the one record. Read the feature that I link in the comments for more insights... Unfortunately when an artist dies without making many recordings, it's far too easy for them to be forgotten!

[@kevasman9974]

Absolutely beautiful playing!!

[@siriojanicolaev3389]

Splendid !!!❤

[@JanWeinhold001]

Wonderful!

[@Chopinetto]

Amazing!! Thanks.

[@MartinVanBoven]

1:37 👏

[@wolfgangwilking6862]

You want to introduce a pianist whose activity had finished before 1960, possibly russian, dont hesitate to begin or conclude whith "the last romantic". What the hell is "romantic"? THIS is romantic! A still formed from the , earliest erliegt childhood to produce sounds with this Instrument like the child's tender had listened. In the process of professioning, the musician will develop

[@wolfgangwilking6862]

A skill...develop the most complex and difficult tacnique. The sounds of such a pianist is strictly impossible to describe. The listener will quite natiorally perceive as the discs

[@user-sk4kd7ob2b]

Очень задушевное и проникновенное исполнение! Благодарю!!! И Спасибо,Вам за ПАМЯТЬ! А у нас в РОССИИ сегодня замечательный день- День Рождения Александра Сергеевича Пушкина!