Recommended Recordings

Horowitz's recordings span some six decades, from the late 1920s through 1989. Sony Classical and RCA-Red Victor own and issue most of his recordings, including several live performances, though there are several older, historic performances, recorded in concert, issued by Music & Arts and other independent labels. Several of these are historic, and reveal the young Horowitz's technical wizardry.

I suggest that anyone building a collection of Horowitz discs assemble recordings from every stage of his career. The recordings he made during his self-imposed sabbatical in the 1950s and early 1960s are perhaps the best, and most artistically satisfying. But several of his later recordings, made in concert, are also worthy for their fire, and sometimes their excess as well. For an insider's view of the great pianist, I recommend David Dubal's enormously entertaining memoire Evenings with Horowitz, just reissued by Amadeus Press with an accompanying CD of Dubal's talks with the pianist.

Sony Classical has recently issued a comprehensive Nine CD set that retails for US$221. Individual CDs from the set are available at about $19 a piece. For more info and a list of all the recordings, go to:

Of particular interest are :

The Historic Return: 1965-66 Carnegie Recitals. Sony 53461 (3 CDs) This is the 'doctored' version; Sony has also just issued this set as a centennial edition with Horowitz's mistakes restored (Sony 93023)

Vladimir Horowitz: A Reminiscence. Sony 89669 A compilation of encore pieces, including works of Scarlatti, Scriabin, and Chopin.

Horowitz Rediscovered. The 1975 Carnegie Hall Recital RCA Red Seal CD 8287650749. RCA' Jon Samuel's engineering tries to capture the more intimate, softer side of the Horowitz sound. Includes Horowtiz's most affecting performance of Schumann's Traumerei.

Toscanini conducts Brahms Piano Concerto No 2. Music and Arts 1077. Music and Arts 1077 Horowitz in a thrilling, if hardly idiomatic live performance with his father-in-law, the great Italian conductor in October 1948.

Vladimir Horowitz: Discovered Treasures. Sony 48093 Several unusual items here, not released in Horowitz's lifetime. A remarkable performance of Medtner's Fairy Tale, the only recording of this composer he made.

Horowitz at the Met. CD 09026633142 Recorded live at New York's Metropolitan Opera House. A smoldering performance of Liszt's B minor Ballade

Horowitz. The Last Recording Sony 45818 Horowitz at his most indulgent, recorded only days before his death. Works of Wagner-Liszt, Chopin, and Haydn.

Rachmaninoff: Concerto No 3. Two interesting CDs here. RCA 09026636812 with Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra, a memento of VH's mid 1970s comeback with orchestra; and Music & Arts CD 965, in a blistering (but not so pristinely recorded) performance with Serge Koussevitzky and the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra (also coupled with the Tchaikovsky Concerto in B flat Concerto under Wm. Steinberg)

Horowitz: The Celebrated Scarlatti Recordings. Sony 53460 A must have for Horowitz collectors. Scintillating.

Horowitz plays Rachmaninoff; RCA 7754-2CD. A white hot reading of the B flat minor sonata, recorded live in 1980, as well as an exceptionally rich performance of the Concerto No 3 with Fritz Reiner and the RCA Victor Symphony (1951)

Video

Horowitz: A Reminiscence. Sony Classical A marvelous look back at the pianist's life and career, with abundant musical samples and conversation

Horowitz in Moscow Sony Classical A moving tribute to Horowitz upon his return to Moscow in 1986, his first visit there in more than sixty years. Includes the complete recital at Moscow's Bolshoi Hall.

Horowitz: The Last Romantic. A film by the Maysles Brothers. A revealing look at the maestro at home and in his daily and concert life.

Horowitz plays Mozart. Here the pianist gives in to his love of Mozart in a rehearsal of the A major concerto, with conductor Carlo Maria Giulini.

For more information about the screenings of these films in New York, go to www.filmlinc.com