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I'm listening to Reflections from the Keyboard tonight, and the program is absolutely fantastic. The performances are wonderful, especially Koji Attwood! Hi, Koji! And of course, David Dubal, host and impresario, is indubitably Dubalesque.

I've been listening, too, and here are my impressions. (You can hear Reflections from the Keyboard at 10:00PM EST at http://www.wqxr.com ). I think my favorites tonight were the Scarlatti Sonata in B minor and the Liszt Impromptu written in 1872.

Schumann: Op. 133 No. 1
This is the first of a set of "Early Morning Songs", written by Schumann immediately before insanity consumed him. This particular piece is very slow and hymn-like.

The first pianist: Daniel Leavy. The second was new to Reflections, Edith Picht Axenfield. Between the two I preferred Axenfield's performance. It was smoother, more intimate.

Earl Wild: Transcription (Etude) of George Gershwin's "Embraceable You"

First pianist: Carol Gerstein (a man). Second pianist: Earl Wild himself. Wild's performance was definitely the better of the two. More "style". And Wild's playing was cleaner, making the melody line sing out better. Plus, the few sections performed without pedal added texture. However, Gerstein's performance was still very good. I just preferred Wild's interpretation. Dubal (who introduced Wild as "Earl 'the Pearl' Wild!) said Wild was the first pianist to play Rhapsody in Blue with Toscanini.

Rachmaninoff: Gigue from his transcription of Bach's partita for solo violin

Last week Dubal featured the Gavotte from this transcription. Anyway, tonight the Gigue was played by three pianists: Adam Skomal, Rachmaninoff himself, and a third pianist whose name I missed. Of the three, I like Rach's performance the best; it was cleanest. But interestingly, only Rach's performance omitted the final repeat.

Scarlatti: K. 27 B minor Sonata
First pianist: Ann Kafalik (French) -- A beautifully sensitive, lyrical reading, with wonderful dynamics and clean pedaling. (Did she use the una corda in some places?)
Second pianist: Koji Atwood. Played much more quickly than the first pianist. He added a B minor chord at the end! Probably closer to the "real" tempo, but I really liked the slower, more sensitive reading.

Chopin: Etude Op. 10 No. 7
First pianist: Ruth Slenzenska. Very, very clean, nearly no pedal. But a little bit of mechanical feel.
Second pianist: Robert Lortat (French; died 1938, recording from 1931). Slightly faster than Slenzenska. Includes some mistakes!
Third pianist: Brazilian pianist (lost my internet connection during this performance!) OK, but not that impressive.
Fourth pianist: Andre Gavrilov --- I think I liked his performance the best!

Now for encores:

Alcan (1813-1888): Barcarolle
Dubal referred to Alcan as a "visionary romantic". The pianist was Mark Salmon. Subdued piece, introspective. Somewhat unusual melody against the harmonies, lending a bit of exotic feel in places.

Charles Lamb: Patricia Rag
Pianist: Virginia Eskin. Nice rag, not particularly outstanding.

Liszt: Impromptu (subtitled Nocturne), composed late, in 1872
Pianist: Arnoldo Cohen (Brazilian born). This is not a fluff piece. Some unusual harmonic turns. Definitely worth hearing again.

Prokofiev: "Playing Tag", from The Children's Music, and also "March" from the same
The pianist is the same as last week, the Russian Igor Zhukov. Really nice pieces, capturing the spirit of the titles.

Chris

Ah...Schumann Op. 133#1 is one of my favorites.

And I had the pleasure of hearing Zhukov live a few years ago. Really amazing.

Oops,

Thanks for the correction, Kreisler: Op. 133 for Schumann, not Op. 33. I've edited my posting accordingly.

Chris