Frederic Chopin (1810-1849)
Piano Concerto No.1
Piano Concerto No.2
Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne/Christian Zacharias (piano)
rec. 2003/04, Métropol, Lausanne, Switzerland
MDG 102 23916 SACD [72]

This disc is a welome reissue in the MDG label’s Preziosa series. In the booklet, producer Werner Dabringhaus says that the series brings back to the forefront of the catalogue recordings very important to him personally, which hold special memories for him. This sounds to me like a marketing gimmick, not least because his arguments for the disc’s special nature are not very convincing, and his anecdotes about the recording process are not exactly thrilling.

Thankfully, however, the performances speak for themselves. When Stephen Vasta reviewed the disc’s first release, he was as impressed as I am now, primarily with the communicative nature of Zacharias’s playing and the effective collaboration with “his” Lausanne Chamber Orchestra. The concertos are frequently criticised for relegating the orchestra to the role of a sideshow. It is perhaps the finest compliment one can pay this disc that here this never feels like the case. In fact, the first thing you notice at the opening of No.1 is the muscular orchestral playing. There are no period niceties here. Instead, there is force and strength, something that Zacharias responds to when he enters, deploying the piano like a mighty orchestral instrument at first.

There is also plenty of variety. Later in that first movement, the tone sweetens delightfully, and the second subject is so meltingly beautiful that there is a strong feeling of light and shade. Clean articulation is also particularly notable in the precision of the opening movement of No 2. Its slightly salty oboe tone expertly balances the suave sophistication of the string playing, and Zacharias’s direction from the keyboard is always expertly unobtrusive. No. 2’s finale gets a discreet forward propulsion that turns it into a genteel tarantella.

Zacharias builds himself into the orchestral sound, and in the outer movements he rarely grabs the limelight for its own sake. More important, he fully understands that gorgeous, gently wandering quality of Chopin’s greatest melodies. He bears that out marvellously in both slow movements. They have oodles of vibrato, deployed liberally but judiciously to give the music an utterly convincing freedom of flow. In particular, No.2’s middle movement, wondrously rhapsodic, is guaranteed to tug the heartstrings.

The one definite benefit of this release is that it captures the recording in SACD surround sound, if you have that technology. And even if you do not, the recording is really lovely. It fully lives up to MDG’s audiophile reputation. There is lots of bloom and presence which still allows individual contributions to shine out.

There is so much competition for these concertos that almost every collector will already have a favourite. For my money, there is little to challenge Krystian Zimmerman’s performances with the Polish Festival Orchestra. Still, there is poetry and great beauty here. If you are an admirer of Zacharias, then you will find a huge amount to enjoy.

Simon Thompson

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