I've heard his Chopin Etudes, Waltzes and Nocturnes but never this:
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=friedman+chopin+polonaise&search_type=

I have never heard such a titanic performance of this piece.

It sounds to me that he many have added some extra notes(filled in) to some of the octaves in the bass. Does it sound like this to you? Many of his transcriptions have huge left hand chords.

Wow! I loved it. Thanks for the link. If I'm not mistaken, he also changed up the last few chords a bit.

My main curiosity was, does he do the famed "Ignaz Friedman rubatos," even in this piece which seemingly doesn't lend itself to it that much.

He does.

Love it!!! Rubatos and all.
I think I gotta re-try the piece.....

He added a lot of notes.

Friedman's rendition is definitely "over the top."

This recording is astonishing. I think a 1933 recording of this will be released soon.

-Mikhail Kaykov

Excellent!

Love it, BTW his edition of the études is a MUST, Schirmer.

Is there a pdf scan of his Chopin Etudes Edition anywhere? I have the Cortot edition.

-Mikhail Kaykov

Wow. So willfull, so eccentric... are you sure this isn't early Gould? :-)

The rubato is almost fractal - time is equally distorted on both long and short scales, from playing the phrase in Bb minor in double time, to the prolonged mid-theme agogic (sounds like a memory slip, except he does it every time), to the double- and even triple-dotted eighths.

It's interesting to hear the roaring Horowitzian bass in places.

I couldn't stand it. I had to stop listening.

... and then I went back and listened to all of it. It didn't get any better did it? What a mish-mash of distorted, pounding, excentricities! It was all Friedman; it certainly wasn't Chopin!

Regards,

I have a recording of Friedman playing Chopin and it's wonderful--nothing like this rendition of the Polonaise. I didn't listen to the entire thing but I agree with BruceD--it was bad.
I know he had a technique equal to anyone and can't understand this recording and even more puzzling is why so many previous posters admire it. It's weird.

Titanic is a good choice of words here, since it sinks badly. I could only listen to about 45 seconds, roughly...it hurt my ears.

More Friedman, maybe less eccentric?

Revolutionary Etude
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3_fSNd1_ic

Chopin Nocturne
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYuXYE3MpiQ

Mendelssohn Songs without Words
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqc6YInfEHA

Chopin 4 Mazurkas
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k15R92xkRK8

Weber Invitation to the Dance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrOBsTZuE-w

Comments?

I'm with Bruce. There were several other recordings of the Op. 53 on the same YouTube page (including Rubinstein and Lhevinne), and all of them were better than Friedman's by a country mile. One I found especially interesting was a recording by Wladislaw Szpilman, the Polish pianist who was the main character in the movie "The Pianist". It was heroic and sweet, strong and tender by turns, and it hung together nicely. It sounded bangy here and there, but I suspect that was due more to recording technology than anything else. If you're intrigued, you can find it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLNrm3KNMSs&feature=related

Reminiscent of Lang Lang playing the Horowitz version of HR2.