FANFARE MAGAZINE Review
by Raymond Tuttle
LISZT Sonata in b. Waldesrauschen. Vallée d’Obermann. Liebestraum No. 3. VERDI-LISZT Concert Paraphrase on Rigoletto. WAGNER-LISZT Lohengrin: Elsa’s Bridal Procession. Tristan und Isolde: Isoldes Liebestod • Andrew von Oeyen (pn) • DELOS DE 3412 (72:45)
I spent an enjoyable afternoon with Liszt’s Sonata in B minor, beginning with Horowitz (his 1977 recording from RCA Victor), Cecile Ousset (EMI), Paul Lewis (Harmonia Mundi), and finally this new recording from American pianist Andrew von Oeyen. All four are satisfying, but in different ways, of course. Horowitz’s is the most mercurial (and least self-effacing), Ousset’s is the most structurally convincing, and Lewis’s and von Oeyen’s are the most insightful, at least on a moment to moment basis. All of them are comfortable with the work’s technical demands. Horowitz, Ousset, and Lewis are good company for a pianist who was born in 1979, and although I had not heard of him until now, on the basis of this CD I predict that we will be hearing more from him in the future. Delos is lucky to have signed him. He studied at Columbia and Juilliard, and his mentors have included Jerome Lowenthal, Alfred Brendel, and Leon Fleisher.
Delos does not identify what piano he plays on this CD. Be that as it may, his tone is bright and penetrating (but seldom hard) and anything but monochromatic. The Lohengrin transcription, for example, seems to glow from within, and it and the Liebestod have enough sentiment to make the listener conscious of his or her own heartbeat. The latter’s climax, carefully prepared by the pianist, has all the sense of catharsis it needs, and for once one is not left regretting the absence of a soprano. The Rigoletto paraphrase sparkles without losing its implicit pathos. Turning to Liszt’s original works, the Liebestraum is emotionally intense, and a demonstration of both the pianist’s taste and his control over tone color. Obermann’s spiritual and geographical isolation is handled with confidence, and von Oeyen finds all due excitement and subtlety in the nature-painting of Waldesrauschen...this is a very impressive disc, and it should please Lisztians at any stage in their development. The engineering is excellent, and Lindsay Koob’s booklet notes add to one’s appreciation of these works.