Beethoven, Ludwig van/Scrabin, Alexander/Ravel, Maurice/Poulenc, Francis: Emil Gilels plays... (BBC Legends Audio CD)

Any Emil Gilels recital is an eagerly awaited event for collectors. His live recital of Back, Prokofiev, Scarlatti, Schumann and Tchaikovsky on BBC Legends (BBCL 4015-2) has been a best-seller since its release in 1999.

Gilels first performed Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No.3, Op.10 as late as 1979 during a US tour which included the ‘Eroica Variations’, Op.35. Both were recorded in the studio but these live performances have a special atmosphere, Gilels having the uncanny ability to hold the audience’s attention throughout.

Gilels often mixed early and late Scriabin, ending with the Preludes, Op.74, the last work of Scriabin’s to be published in 1914. Gilels conveys the extraordinarily unsettling power these works can still have when played by a master.

Although he played three pieces by Ravel at this Cheltenham recital, the ‘Pavane pour une infante défunte’ had to be removed due to time constraints. All the French titles are played stunningly, ending as an encore with the delightful ‘Pastorelle’ by Poulenc.