Johannes Brahms:
• Handel Variations Op 24; Rhapsodies Op 79; Piano Pieces Op.118 & 119
Brahms’ shorter piano compositions are among the amazing miracles that he produced. For me these melodies bring back the memories I have of visiting the place where Brahms composed some of this music: Bad Ischl, and other similar places in Austria.
Murray Perahia gives us lovely, yet also intense accounts of the intermezzi and of the Rhapsodies. They are held up for us to enjoy by Perahia’s unique ability to give each tiny piece its own form and experience, yet also to create a seemingly spontaneous flow of music-making.
This CD provides the listener not only in the thoughtful, introspective late pieces of Op. 118, and especially the Op. 119; but also in the more extrovertly-styled Handel Variations, too. The pianistic challenges of this music are met without ever drawing attention to their difficulties. And the way in which Perahia performs this music is exemplary.
So experience this thoughtful, warm, and creative music from one of the really astounding composers that emerged from the 1800’s.
Here is the first encore to a ‘live’ concert at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, 6-22-03:
And here is Murray Perahia playing Rachmaninoff’s Etude Tableaux Op.39 No.5 in E flat Major
If you would like to purchase this CD at Amazon, please click on the image below to complete your purchase:
Tags: Murray Perahia, Brahms, Intermezzo, Rhapsodies