<<  -- 7 --  John Bell Young    SCRIABIN ON DISC

5. There's something Byzantine about Sofronitsky's performance; he highlights its irregular phrase periods, gives emphasis to its angular, widely spaced motives and punches up its grumbling basses. His pedaling is spare but judicious, and by the time he reaches the nuclear, apocalyptic coda all hell breaks loose. Most important, he understands that the work is essentially a huge, if unwieldy waltz gone mad. Zhukov's weary, labored and muddy performance can't hold a candle to the others. Given the ludicrously slow tempo and poor pedaling he imposes throughout, he is not even remotely up to the work's complex technical demands. It is a stodgy, dutiful and stillborn account of the fifth, entrusted to the hands of a pianist as intellectually impoverished as he is technically challenged, at least in this repertoire.

Szidon is my personal favorite. He doesn't follow Scriabin's meticulous phrasing indications, and yet, while even when it's all wrong, it works wonderfully. Sensual moments are sensual in the extreme, which is precisely what the doctor ordered in this feverish, exotic work. Horowitz is likewise vivacious in a concert performance, delivering one of the most seductive readings ever recorded (RCA 6216). Achatz also offers a big boned, no-holds-barred reading (BIS). Richter is incredible, the musical equivalent of a nuclear furnace smoldering en route to the work's powerful conclusion, where it explodes with the devastating force of a hydrogen bomb. He is perhaps the only pianist besides Horowitz to play the polyrhythmic Presto allegrezza correctly, giving slight emphasis to the second and fourth beats in the left hand in order to avoid the impression of slurs over every two notes (Music & Arts). Bekhterev is perhaps less convincing here. Though his reading is imaginative and precise -- witness his marvelously adjudicated treatment of the Presto allegrezza that pays homage to the underlying pianissimo -- it is rather too episodic, proceeding in fits and starts, and failing to ignite the work's cumulative rhythms. Scriabin notates the coda in massive chords over three staves: this coda is the energetic nexus of all that has come before it. Absent that, the game is lost.

6. Block and Sofronitsky capture the overtly feminine character of this restless, dark and oceanic work. Mikhail Rudy also makes an impressive showing here in an evanescent and detailed reading. Szidon offers a terrifying vision, and his sultry rhythmic sensibility serves the work well. Ogdon fascinates for his tight command of its thorny polyphony, which proliferates exponentially. Richter is convincing here, too, taking great care to shape every line of counterpoint (Melodiya). Fyodorova's sumptuously detailed, jewel-like performance weaves through the dense and sometimes murky counterpoint with exceptional clarity and purposefulness (Melodiya LP; also www.mp3.com/fyodorova).

7. Alas, Sofronitsky never recorded this sonata, which Scriabin dubbed the 'White Mass'. But Szidon's reading is evocative and sensual, underlining the work's ceremonial character and its symbolic ethos. Unlike any other pianist I've heard, he understands that 7 is fundamentally about Russian bell music, as well as the evocation of chant and prayer. Ashkenazy turns an effective, even thrilling performance, though again compromises its rhythmic trajectory with a certain heavy handedness and a hard, opaque tone. There is a bootleg Richter performance recorded in New York, which is at once tense, exciting and even brutal. But in spite of his impressive command, the Richter rejects both intimacy and sensuality in favor of architectural supremacy.

8. Sofronitsky is once again king in this sonata, which is the most complex and difficult of them all. This is without any question the most comprehensive, immaculately detailed, psychologically perceptive performance on record. His reading is a miracle of light and shadow, a drama whose viscerally articulated motivic gestures give characterization a whole new meaning. It is incomparable, and will likely never be matched. Zhukov's idiotically slow tempo ruins the work and should be avoided. Szidon again brings out colors that no one else does in a most appealing and beautifully nuanced reading.

9. For some reason, there are more than the usual number of exemplary performances of this sonata, a favorite among pianists. Horowitz is appropriately driven and demonic; performer and piece seem to disappear one into the other (RCA). Szidon is dark and sensuous, Block is smooth and shrewdly sinister, and Sofronitsky, who rivets the listeners attention as always, is absolutely terrifying. Masimilliano Damerini, a terrific Italian pianist who I wish would record more Scriabin, turns in a beautifully drawn and effectively nuanced reading full of fire and tension (Arts). Richter makes the most of the sonata's turbulence in a breathtaking performance (Music & Arts). Gieseking brings his customary intensity and razor sharp intelligence to one of the most diabolical and exciting performances ever (Music & Arts CD 1070). Fyodorova x-rays the ninth with lapidary precision, exposing its compositional facets with scrupulous attention (have a listen at www.mp3.com/fyodorova).

10. Here Sofronitsky boils things beneath the surface in one of the most potent readings ever. Horowitz is effective, if skittish, while Szidon milks the work for its colors and sensuality. Block's affecting performance combines the best of both worlds: it is sexy and alluring, but deftly nuanced and rhythmically tense. Pletnev offers a stand-out performance that is bold, imperious, and imaginative (Virgin 45247). Indeed, Mr Pletnev has a particularly keen ear, finding opportunities for voice leading and voice exchange that others ignore. One of my favorite recordings is by Anatoli Vedernikov, whose tensile account makes a gripping experience of the development section's vibratory rivulets in trills (Melodiya LP). Dag Achatz again proves himself to be a superior Scriabin player in a noble, exceptionally well planned interpretation that emphasizes the music's architectural features and rhythmic trajectory (BIS). Neuhaus's fingers, though not as secure as those of his eminent colleagues, delivers a reading notable for its intonational finesse and subtlety of inflection (Dante).

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