Chopin: Robert Lortat - Complete recordings (APR)

Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849)
24 Préludes, Op.28 (1834-39)
14 Waltzes (1824-48)
Études, Op.10 (1829-32)
Études, Op.25 (1832-35)
Nouvelles études (1839)
Piano Sonata No.2 in B flat minor, Op.35 (1839)
Robert Lortat (piano)
rec. 1928-31, Paris
APR 6042 [2 CDs: 152]

Louis Diémer pupil Robert Lortat had a successful but limited career; he travelled widely in the years after his graduation, including a trip to the U.S., sharing the journey with Russian pianist Josef Lhévinne. His playing was critically acclaimed by the press in Germany and the UK and alongside what was evidently a generous concerto repertoire that included works by Lyapunov, Brahms and Saint-Saëns he was active in chamber music, performing with the likes of Georges Enescu. He became a great friend of Fauré and championed his music, playing all his piano works to date in concerts in London in 1914 and it was at Bechstein Hall, London two years earlier that he first played the complete works of Chopin. The first World War brought a halt to his musical activities though he was invalided out in 1916. He travelled to America once more in the interests of fostering Franco-American relationships; his career continued after the war though he was a changed man. He continued performing and in the decade leading up to these recordings he shared the stage with conductors such as Paul Paray and Gabriel Pierné and singers Claire Croiza, Madeleine Grey and Reynaldo Hahn. In the thirties depression and failing health was catching up with him and he performed little though in the 1933-34 season he did once more present the complete works of Chopin. The poster announcement for his earlier Chopin recitals is reproduced in the booklet and shows that complete did not include the first Sonata and many of the posthumous and early works – only 6 polonaises and 15 waltzes are mentioned – but it is still and impressive feat.

His first venture into the recording studio was to record the 24 Préludes, recorded on one day in May, 1928 at around the same time as Alfred Cortot was recording his first complete set. These remained the only complete op.28 préludes until 1939 when Leonid Kreutzer and Raoul Koczalski added their versions. Lortat’s is a very commendable set, full bodied and individual. The legerdemain that we have seen throughout this French piano School series is readily apparent here; the third prélude is faster than Cortot’s but for me has more clarity and depth and the B flat minor prélude must rank as one of the best I’ve heard. In the more extrovert préludes he certainly favours fast tempi, occasionally unsuccessfully; the E flat prélude has a few finger slips and is a wee bit breathless in the first half. He can charm as the F sharp major, A flat major and Raindrop préludes demonstrate though the mannerisms of the 19^th Century with its dislocation of hands can be heard strongly in the E minor and B minor. Occasional lapses such as the E flat minor prélude with no noticeable sense of character or the final prélude whose dramatic right hand is not matched by a suitably surging left hand are minor quibbles in an otherwise vivid set. A month after recording the préludes Lortat returned to the studio to record Chopin’s second sonata in B flat minor. I was quite taken aback when I heard this; Lortat sprints off the starting blocks in the opening movement and though he pulls back a little after a couple of bars it is purely for the sake of actually making any sense of the music – the tempo remains one of the fastest I have heard and I have never the triplet chordal passages played this fast. Though he finds space in the sostenuto passages it is all rather frantic. The second movement is played at a fast pace but even so Lortat still pushes the tempo where he can so in the second half of the piu lento section he rushes away with the left hand quavers almost to the tempo of the outer sections. The funeral march is more successful with his remorseless plodding left hand chords and a trio that is for the most part free of excess rubato and sings fairly beautifully. My favourite is his finale, fearless and gritty; Lortat seems to shy away from even the hints of melody that lie amongst the notes, preferring to paint this picture of subdued anguish. It is definitely not a performance for everyone and one that is hard to forget.

The remainder of disc two is dedicated to the études which were recorded in late 1929 and 1930 and include the Trois nouvelles études unlike the set recorded by Wilhelm Backhaus for HMV the previous year. He is less idiosyncratic here than in the waltzes from 1931 and this is a very satisfying reading. Backhaus, a year older than Lortat, is a little faster most of the time but Lortat is no slouch and shows off his clean fingerwork in études such as the A minor op.10 no.2 or op.25 no.11. He gives beautiful accounts of the E flat minor from op.10 and the first of the op.25 études finding some real delicacy but some may be put off by the quite wayward rubato in op.25 no.7, the cello étude. Lortat’s rubato here and some of the surges in tempo through the left hand runs make Backhaus’ well paced and lyrical performance seem quite modern by comparison. I think my favourite must be his playing of the E minor étude, the fifth of the op.25 set in which he finds a gorgeous singing tone for the central section. His final recordings are of the Waltzes, recorded over two days in May 1931. The word that struck me on first hearing them is robust; again we have the incredible virtuosity and though this makes for excitement in the waltzes op.34 nos.1 and 3 or op.42 I am even more aware here of his mannerisms. The A minor waltz op.34 no.2 has a left hand melody that is almost syncopated due to his habit of playing left hand before right and quite broad rubato is heard in many pieces; the A major section of op.34 no.3 is a case in point. The oft recorded C sharp minor waltz op.64 no.2 is given quite a stiff reading with little lyricism and the middle section begins as a rather gruff duet but he follows this with the third waltz of the set, beautifully flowing and supple. He brings a different character to some than I expected, op.69 no.1 for instance which is rather despairing though with a joyful middle section and he adds a Viennese lilt to the waltz rhythm to the scherzo like third waltz tune of op.34 no.1. Overall these are well played but it is fair to say that his is an individual approach. One thing that is noticeable, particularly in the préludes and waltzes is a strong bass sound to the piano; some of this is Lortat, the fz bass notes in the A flat prélude for instance but it was noticed in an early review, quoted in the booklet which described the otherwise balanced piano sound as suffering from ungraceful low notes. The Columbia engineers at the time had actually boosted the bass to make the recordings sound better on modest domestic equipment and the effect is not unpleasant here.

So that was it. No more Chopin and unfortunately no Fauré at all from his friend and champion. Lortat lived for another seven years after recording the Waltzes, dying in 1938 less than a year after marrying for the second time; one hopes it brought some peace to his final months.

This is the tenth in APR’s marvellous French Piano School series and as with previous volumes there have been some surprises along the way. These recordings were released on CD some time ago by French label Dante; I have not heard those transfers though I cannot imagine they came anywhere near the magnificent clarity of sound that APR and Mark Obert-Thorn have achieved here. Booklet notes, by Frédéric Gaussin, are in French and English and provide valuable biographical information.

Rob Challinor

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