Kabalevsky: Complete Piano Sonatas

Albumbeschreibung

Dmitri Kabalevski (1904-1987) is a kind of fourth wheel of the Soviet cart, the first two being Prokofiev and Shostakovich, the latter two being himself and Khatchaturian. Some have criticised him for his pusillanimity towards Stalin's dictatorship, although his name figured in the infamous list in the Zhdanov Decree, which at best meant twenty years of winter sports in Siberia, and at worst a bullet in the head. Kabalevski chose his own means of escape, in particular with an impressive (and delightful) repertoire of works for children, but also these three Piano Sonatas, the first written in 1927, and the other two in 1944 and 1945. The First still betrays the influence of Scriabin in its nebulous chromatism, while the later works follow paths trodden by Shostakovich and Prokofiev, but also – more surprisingly – by Poulenc, with his lighthearted French humour, which here strikes a rather Bulgakovian note. In any case, the language remains powerfully pianistic in the tradition of the Russian piano school: still lyrical, even at its most jarring moments; generous in its conception and its realisation. Note also that international pianists like Horowitz, Moiseiwitsch, Zak, Weissenberg and Gilels wrote these sonatas into their repertoires. These pieces are performed here by the German pianist Michael Korstick, who has spent decades carving out a well-known and highly-regarded reputation for specialising in rarer repertoires: Busoni, Reger, Milhaud (whose complete works for piano he has recorded!), Koechlin and, of course, Kabalevski. Magisterial: you need to hear this urgently... And what incredible sound quality! © SM/Qobuz