Most of Leon Fleisher records

Leon Fleisher had thirty years when he was chosen by George Szell to interpret the five Beethoven concertos, essential complement to the complete symphonies of Beethoven recorded by Szell even with his Cleveland Orchestra, became by him the One of the sharpest phalanges of the American continent. Between 1959 and 1961, the five scores were therefore registered by the American virtuoso. This then was a bit in the shadow of two of his contemporaries, Stars Byron Janis and Van Cliburn, and remained moreover, wrongly: Fleisher exceeds a good head for what the German repertoire . The Concerto No. 25 of Mozart comes from elsewhere show how this appropriation of classical language and the first romantic piano was wide. One can only regret not having more records on his part, the fault of a bad paralysis of the right hand that only medical advances managed to absorb forty years later, allowing us to hear from Only a few years Fleisher replay of his hands.
Since we all gauge complete Beethoven concertos compete, it must certainly be admitted that we stay here, the depth of the speech, the agreement between the pianist and leader, orchestral quality (but excellent not absolute, as indeed for symphonies by Szell, round which I find quite obsolete) to below a few references. At least two of them, the famous cycle Claudio Arrau - Colin Davis (with the Staatskapelle Dresden) and the first integral of Maurizio Pollini, with Jochum Böhm and the head of the Vienna Philharmonic. But beyond these two monuments, Fleisher ranks without concern among the first contenders, flush with Barenboim Klemperer, Kempff in his two integrals (very overrated in my opinion), and well over a Uchida.

Fleisher completed so this collaboration with Szell by both Brahms concertos, the first recorded in 1958 and the second in 1962. And then we no longer discuss the discography supremacy of these recordings, at least for all that has been achieved in stereo. A great admirer of Schnabel, Fleisher arises heir to a discourse that is both solid and fluid, and his piano dominates these partitions as few pianists have done so before and after him. Certainly isolated readings are essential (Curzon in 1 Richter, Backhaus 2 in) but Fleisher has a speech of his own, admirable, and also beautifully supported by the fury of Cleveland Szell, sharper still in his habits.

Finally, the supplements are worth their weight in gold. In particular variations on a theme by Handel, in an excellent mono, and remain in my opinion the absolute reference in this partition.

5 CDs that condense the essentials (alas) the legacy of Leon Fleisher before he lost the use of his right hand, but what a legacy!