Thread: Bartok Piano Concertos 1-3

I'm wondering how many recorded versions of these great works you Bartok fanatics own? And which ones you think are the finest?

I've been listening to the same recording for 20 years, and I've hesitated to try different performances. I have the Gyorgy Sandor CD on Sony. It has a great cover photo too!



I'm looking forward to your comments and opinions on the various recordings.

I only have a few.

The Boulez set with Zimerman, Andsnes & Grimaud
Fricsay with Anda
Fischer with Schiff

I have some other one off's and two off's like:
Abbado with Pollini (Concertos 1 & 2)
Bernstein with Entremont (Concertos 2 & 3)
Dutoit with Argerich (Concerto 3)

I'm sure a few others that I don't remember off the top of my head.

Fricsay with Anda is probably my favorite set with all 3 concertos.

Kocsis/Fischer is my favorite. Anda/Fricsay is good, mostly because of Fricsay & orchestra. The 1st is very difficult to nail, according to Bartók and to me. The 2nd is marginally less difficult, and maybe the best balanced between percussion and other aspects of music. The 3rd is apparently relatively easy to perform adequately, though the elderly Boulez messes it up.

My library has the Schiff/Fischer, so I'll give it a try. The Anda is listed as a CD-R at Amazon.

Concerto 1:
- Kocsis,Fisher,BudFestO/hg 87 slpd 12869-71
- Kocsis,Lehel,BudSO/hg lpx 11516. He has some subtle accents in the percussive motifs right from the beginning I don´t hear in other recordings.
- Kovacevich,Davis,LSO/ph 412 000-1
- Serkin,Szell,ColSO/cbs st ms 6405

I´ve owned the Sandor/Reinhardt Vox and the Anda/Fricsay sets too of the concerti, but prefer Kocsis and the others I have underlined here.

Concerto 2:
- Richter,Svetlanov,USSRSO/rev 67-97 rv 10093. Great dramatic sense, very serious.
- Farnadi,Scherchen,WPO/urania cd mono urn 22.303 & westminster LP xwn 18277. Rather entertaining/improvising playing.
- Kocsis,Fisher,BudFestO/hg 87 slpd 12869-71
- Kocsis,Lehel,BudSO/hg lpx 11516

Concerto 3: No real favourite recordings, but:
- Kocsis,Fisher,BudFestO/hg 87 slpd 12869-71
- Farnadi,Scherchen,WPO/westm mono xwn 18277
- Argerich,Dutoit,MontrSO/emi
- Ranki,Ferencsik,UngStPO/hg slpx 11421
- Kovacevich,Davis,LSO/ph 412 000-1
- Katchen,Ansermet,SuissRom/decca-london mono ll-945
- Bernathova,Ancerl,CzPO/artia st als 7199
- Ditta Pasztory Bartok,T.Serly,WienStOpO/mhs st 3337 (Unfortunately very poor; a late, extremely boring recording of hers)

Rhapsody:
- Kocsis,Fisher,BudFestO/hg 87 slpd 12869-71
- Sandor,Reinhardt,SWFunk/turnabout LP (poor sound, but somehow I like this melodramatic version a lot)

Scherzo:
Kocsis,Fisher,BudFestO/hg 87 slpd 12869-71

It appears there are a few others I need to listen too

The best one I have encountered is the Geza Anda/ Fricsay version. The second best is the Pollini/ Abbado version. Anda's is superior but the sound quality (which is pretty darned good for 1960 btw) is inferior to the Pollini version, although I think Pollini lacks some of the spark of Anda. He just isn't delicate enough in the Andante Movements IMO.

I only own one recording of these phenomenal works (have heard others only on youtube), so I appreciate the information in this thread. My version for all three concertos is Donohoe / Rattle and I have to say they are to my ears very great versions.

I'd like to get the Zoltan Kocsis recordings if they get repackaged and re-issued.

I ordered a used copy of a Philips 2 CD set for 4 dollars. I don't know if it's any
good, but it has the 3 piano concertos, violin concerto no.2, which I don't have
and concerto for orchestra.

Originally Posted by joen_cph

Concerto 1:
- Kocsis,Fisher,BudFestO/hg 87 slpd 12869-71
- Kocsis,Lehel,BudSO/hg lpx 11516. He has some subtle accents in the percussive motifs right from the beginning I don´t hear in other recordings.
- Kovacevich,Davis,LSO/ph 412 000-1
- Serkin,Szell,ColSO/cbs st ms 6405

I´ve owned the Sandor/Reinhardt Vox and the Anda/Fricsay sets too of the concerti, but prefer Kocsis and the others I have underlined here.

Concerto 2:
- Richter,Svetlanov,USSRSO/rev 67-97 rv 10093. Great dramatic sense, very serious.
- Farnadi,Scherchen,WPO/urania cd mono urn 22.303 & westminster LP xwn 18277. Rather entertaining/improvising playing.
- Kocsis,Fisher,BudFestO/hg 87 slpd 12869-71
- Kocsis,Lehel,BudSO/hg lpx 11516

Concerto 3: No real favourite recordings, but:
- Kocsis,Fisher,BudFestO/hg 87 slpd 12869-71
- Farnadi,Scherchen,WPO/westm mono xwn 18277
- Argerich,Dutoit,MontrSO/emi
- Ranki,Ferencsik,UngStPO/hg slpx 11421
- Kovacevich,Davis,LSO/ph 412 000-1
- Katchen,Ansermet,SuissRom/decca-london mono ll-945
- Bernathova,Ancerl,CzPO/artia st als 7199
- Ditta Pasztory Bartok,T.Serly,WienStOpO/mhs st 3337 (Unfortunately very poor; a late, extremely boring recording of hers)

Rhapsody:
- Kocsis,Fisher,BudFestO/hg 87 slpd 12869-71
- Sandor,Reinhardt,SWFunk/turnabout LP (poor sound, but somehow I like this melodramatic version a lot)

Scherzo:
Kocsis,Fisher,BudFestO/hg 87 slpd 12869-71

I believe the Anda/Fricsay is probably the best but how fascinating to see the Edith Farnadi recordings. She's a favourite of mine and I have many of her recordings but did not know of her Bartok Concertos.

Yes, Farnadi can be great, the Tchaikovsky´s 2nd Concerto with Scherchen is one of the wildest and most eccentric piano recordings in existence .

Apparently she also recorded some solo piano Bartok works and Violin Sonatas with Taschner & Gertler, but I haven´t heard those (a few clips can be found on you-tube;
From a Violin Sonata: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Og5MiHbHHsU;
Allegro Barbaro and others: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWjqz50OsKQ).

Originally Posted by joen_cph

Yes, Farnadi can be great, the Tchaikovsky´s 2nd Concerto with Scherchen is one of the wildest and most eccentric piano recordings in existence .
[...]

Hey, that's interesting. The finale of that work always detracts from the good feeling the first two movements have generated; did Farnadi/Scherchen fix it?

Originally Posted by Hilltroll72

Hey, that's interesting. The finale of that work always detracts from the good feeling the first two movements have generated; did Farnadi/Scherchen fix it?

After their incredible first movement, the others seem slightly more normal, yet the finale is very improvisatory-gypsy-like and unusually speedy (my Heliodor-LP has both Tchaikovsky concerti, one on each side).
As regards Bartok, their tempi are less extreme (or perhaps one should say that any extremes are indicated in the scores), but the 2nd Concerto is given a lot of contrasts.

Here´s a you-tube of another Argerich recording of th 3rd Concerto:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elaY_...eature=related

Originally Posted by joen_cph

Yes, Farnadi can be great, the Tchaikovsky´s 2nd Concerto with Scherchen is one of the wildest and most eccentric piano recordings in existence .

Apparently she also recorded some solo piano Bartok works and Violin Sonatas with Taschner & Gertler, but I haven´t heard those (a few clips can be found on you-tube;
From a Violin Sonata: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Og5MiHbHHsU;
Allegro Barbaro and others: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWjqz50OsKQ).

I have her many Liszt recordings but not Bartok. I also have her doing Dvorak's Piano Quintet Op.81 with the Barylli Quartet.
This is the woman who appeared at the age of twelve playing and directing the orchestra in Beethoven's C Major piano concerto.
Who has gor the Westminster catalogue?It's a crime that the gems it holds,and there are many,are not available to us.

Originally Posted by Hilltroll72

Hey, that's interesting. The finale of that work always detracts from the good feeling the first two movements have generated; did Farnadi/Scherchen fix it?

The problem was caused by Siloti who cut the second movement to pieces thus causing a complete imbalance.
The concerto starts off with a massive 22 minute allegro brillante movement and then originally went into a longish approx.20 minute soulful,beautiful andante, this is a miniature concerto for violin and cello and it is wonderful. The last movement is almost a "to hell with all this ,let's go!" outburst. Then it all makes sense.
But nearly every recording was the Siloti version,so look for an uncut recording and you will be rewarded.