Kapell Rediscovered
List Price:
Our Price: $12.62
You Save: $3.37 (21%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $3.19 (click here)
Category: Music CD
See more new music releases
Buy this Music CD at online store in your country
Canadian Music Store
Canadian Music Store
Music CD Cover
Composer: Sergey RachmaninovComposer: Johann Sebastian Bach
Composer: Modest Mussorgsky
Composer: Thomas Arne
Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Composer: Claude Debussy
Composer: Frederic Chopin
Composer: Sergey Prokofiev
Conductor: Ernest MacMillan
Conductor: Sir Bernard Heinze
Orchestra: Toronto Symphony Orchestra
Orchestra: Victoria Symphony Orchestra
Performer: William Kapell
Edition: Music CD
Audio: English (Unknown)
CD Release Date: 2008-05-06
Music Label: RCA
Soundtracks:
Music CD 1
- Concerto for Piano no 3 in D minor, Op. 30: 1st movement, Allegro ma non tanto - Sergei Rachmaninov
- Concerto for Piano no 3 in D minor, Op. 30: 2nd movement, Intermezzo - Sergei Rachmaninov
- Concerto for Piano no 3 in D minor, Op. 30: 3rd movement, Alla breve - Sergei Rachmaninov
- Suite in A minor, BWV 818: Allemande - Johann Sebastian Bach
- Suite in A minor, BWV 818: Courante - Johann Sebastian Bach
- Suite in A minor, BWV 818: Sarabandes 1 & 2 - Johann Sebastian Bach
- Suite in A minor, BWV 818: Gigue - Johann Sebastian Bach
- Pictures at an exhibition: Promenade - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: The Gnome - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: Promenade - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: The Old Castle - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: Promenade - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: Tuileries - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: Bydlo - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: Promenade - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: Ballet of the Unhatched Chickens - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: Rich Mr Goldenburg and Poor Mr Schmuyle - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: Promenade - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: The Market - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: Catacomb - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: Cum mortuis in lingua morta - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: The Hut on Fowl's Legs 'Baba Yaga' - Modest Mussorgsky
- Pictures at an exhibition: The Great Gate of Kiev - Modest Mussorgsky
- God Save the King - Thomas Augustine Arne
- Sonata for Piano no 17 in B flat major, K 570: 1st movement, Allegro - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- Sonata for Piano no 17 in B flat major, K 570: 2nd movement, Adagio - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- Sonata for Piano no 17 in B flat major, K 570: 3rd movement, Allegretto - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- Suite bergamasque: no 1, Prélude - Claude Debussy
- Suite bergamasque: no 2, Menuet - Claude Debussy
- Suite bergamasque: no 3, Clair de lune - Claude Debussy
- Suite bergamasque: no 4, Passepied - Claude Debussy
- Barcarolle for Piano in F sharp major, B 158/Op. 60 - Frédéric Chopin
- Nocturnes (2) for Piano, B 152/Op. 55: no 2 in E flat major - Frédéric Chopin
- Scherzo for Piano no 1 in B minor, B 65/Op. 20 - Frédéric Chopin
- Sonata for Piano no 7 in B flat major, Op. 83: 1st movement, Allegro inquiero - Sergei Prokofiev
- Sonata for Piano no 7 in B flat major, Op. 83: 2nd movement, Andante caloroso - Sergei Prokofiev
- Sonata for Piano no 7 in B flat major, Op. 83: 3rd movement, Precipitato - Sergei Prokofiev
Free Music Notes for Kapell Rediscovered
Free Music Review: Are There Still More?
Hit: 5 Stars
When I first listened to this recording (it came two days ago) I thought that Kapell's sound was agressive, (it is), he rushed (he does) and that his sense of proportion was often out of whack with what's really going on (sometimes it definitely is). But when all was said and done, I realized that despite those moments where things get slightly out of hand, the overall idea, the ebb and flow of many of these pieces, was consistently beautiful and harmonious in the sense that everything seemed to have its natural place in the scheme of things.
I'll be as brief as I am able to be. The opening Rachmaninoff concerto is a very noisy recording, but in my professional opinion, had that noise been removed, there would remain NO aura of Kapell's sound, which is in abundance here. There is a generalized broadcast haze hanging over the entire set. At big fortissimi in the concerto the sound tends to break up, but I don't think this is Kapell's doing. This is a jury-rigged recording setup and that's the culprit. Kapell proves that he can handle any tempo or gradation of the sound. There is a clear legato that is even audible through the swooshing noise that occasionally shows up. And the cadenza in the first movement gives the sense of exactly what the CD is going to be about: lots of energy with plenty in reserve.
The Bach is lovely. It is delicate without being narcissistic. It's the sort of Bach one hears from Landowska, although the rhythm is not as spectacular as hers; the other Bach proponent that comes to mind is Arrau. You'll have to hunt to find those CDs now.
The Mussorkgsky is played as it should be - with amazing brilliance.
The second CD runs the gamut. Kapell's Mozart is a welcome relief from many of today's tedious one dimentional conceptions of "music for babies"!
The Debussy is the BIG surprise. I'm reminded a little of Gieseking, but Kapells is fuller than his on the older 78s. Its the surprise of the set.
The Chopin has some problems from time to time, but that's because I'm comparing the pieces to my favorite performances. When I stop doing that they seem far more successful in their own right. Kapell does have a tendency to rush the middle of phrases, and that occasionally gets in the way as you can sense the next transition will arrive awkwardly. The Barcarolle is fat and juicy. The Nocturne, Op. 55, #2 in E flat, is almost as great as Friedman's unique vision. This gem scares most pianists to death because of its many sustained voices all going at once. Kapell givse it a very good shot, but his voicing is often a bit heavy. For a laugh, try the usually wonderful Rubinstein if you want to hear it go completely off the tracks! I do believe the best known Chopin interpreter is actually sight reading in the recording session.
Prokofiev's Seventh Sonata is the capper to this set. At first the rushing bothered me. I am almost cultish about Glenn Gould's extraordinary playing of this piece, both on CD and video. This despite the fact that Gould more often than not leaves me utterly bored. To the contrary, the third movement tocatta, is played just a bit slower than is usually heard. Gould's is still the most fantastic I've ever found for rhythmic constancy mixed with variation, while never once breaking the perfect pulse. But Kapell pushes and pulls and ultimately manages to put everything in its place, and all this on the live concert stage.
Concerning the controversy over the sound; on first hearing it is thoroughly evident that what Jon Samuels, the producer/engineer, first had to work with was a near disaster. There were noises caused not by over playing of the acetates. Samuels makes a very clear eyed argument for his work in his own notes in the booklet. Most of the noises that are left behind are lengthy in nature, and to remove something of that sort will also create a "new" set of sounds that are even less appealing, because they generally resemble nails on the chalk board. For those of us who started with '78s I say don't worry. And if you are just coming to the party via an Ipod, now you can see what we used to put up with from all the major record companies. My hat's off to Jon Samuels for one of the most balanced noise reduction attempts ever to be put on commercial CD. It is a joy to find an engineer who like his fellow traveler, Ward Marston, doesn't remove all noise only to create artificial sounds that are explained away with nonsense by those who operate under the credo of "cleaning up ALL extraneous noise", simply because they are able to do so. No matter what anyone may say, removing all noise would simply mean that Kapell might as well be Bela Lugosi. One wouldn't be able to tell the difference. Better to gently "take off the curse", as my mentor/engineer used to tell me, from the noisy patch so that one can at least accept the noise because all the music is still audible and the noise is now dimished if not gone assuring NO other sounds have been introduced.
Finally, throughout the second CD (I listened on Sennheiser HD600 headphones) I could hear RF, or "radio frequency noise". That is, the recording cables or mics were acting as receivers and occasionally you can hear people talking at a very low level in quieter moments. I did't really hear this on my speakers, but my AC is running right now :)
Overall, this is a great compilation, mostly heretofore unknown to us; Get it while its on the shelves!
Classical Music CDs
Music Genres
Top music charts in Classical Music CDs
Winterscapesby London Philharmonic
Prophetic Voice; Published: 2000-07; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $2.74
Price in other shops:
The Queen, the Bear, & the Bumblebeeby Dini Petty
Children's Group; Published: 2001-03; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $13.40
Price in other shops:
Classical Kids - Beethoven Lives Upstairs CdrRelease date: 2000-04-05; Music CD
Best price: $25.98
Tchaikovsky (Life and Works (Naxos))by Malcolm Sinclair, Jeremy Siepmann
Naxos; Published: 2003-11; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $35.99
![Jose Carreras - Jubileum Concert [VHS] Image](/images/Jose-Carreras-Jubileum-Concert-VHS-1584481471-X.jpg){kind=small}
Jose Carreras - Jose Carreras - Jubileum Concert [VHS]Sling Shot; Release date: 2000-04-18; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $5.87
Price in other shops:
![Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker / Nureyev, Park, Royal Ballet [VHS] Image](/images/Tchaikovsky-The-Nutcracker-Nureyev-Park-Royal-Ballet-VHS-156127092X-X.jpg){kind=small}
Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker / Nureyev, Park, Royal Ballet [VHS]Kultur Video; Release date: 1997-09-09; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $29.94
Price in other shops:
![Lonely Town Lonley Street / Sergeant's Early Dream [VHS] Image](/images/Lonely-Town-Lonley-Street-Sergeant-Early-Dream-VHS-1561270857-X.jpg){kind=small}
Rambert Dance Company - Lonely Town Lonley Street / Sergeant's Early Dream [VHS]Kultur Video; Release date: 1997-10-28; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $24.99
Price in other shops:
Winter Music: Composing the Northby John Luther Adams
Wesleyan; Published: 2004-11-10; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $19.73
Price in other shops:
![Puccini - La Fanciulla del West / Santi, Domingo, Neblett, Royal Opera Covent Garden [VHS] Image](/images/Puccini-La-Fanciulla-del-West-Santi-Domingo-Neblett-Royal-Opera-Covent-Garden-VHS-0769720382-X.jpg){kind=small}
Puccini - La Fanciulla del West / Santi, Domingo, Neblett, Royal Opera Covent Garden [VHS]Kultur Video; Release date: 1999-05-25; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Price in other shops:
![Verdi - Falstaff / Giulini, Bruson, Ricciarelli, Nucci, Royal Opera Covent Garden [VHS] Image](/images/Verdi-Falstaff-Giulini-Bruson-Ricciarelli-Nucci-Royal-Opera-Covent-Garden-VHS-0769720358-X.jpg){kind=small}
Verdi - Falstaff / Giulini, Bruson, Ricciarelli, Nucci, Royal Opera Covent Garden [VHS]Kultur Video; Release date: 1999-05-25; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $12.95
Price in other shops:
Top Rated Albums
Scriabin, a Biography: Second, Revised Edition (Dover Books on Music)by Faubion Bowers
Alfred Publishing; Dover Publications; Published: 2011-03-17; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.48
Price in other shops:
Claudio Arrau - Serioser Klangzauberer/ Serious Wizard of SoundRelease date: 2011-03-08; Music CD
Best price: $15.65
Price in other shops:
Paul Lewis - Schubert: Piano Sonatas, Impromptus & KlavierstuckeRelease date: 2011-11-08; Music CD
Best price: $17.48
Price in other shops:
Schubert: Piano Sonatas No. 14, D.784 & No. 19, D. 958 ~ LewisRelease date: 2008-07-08; Music CD
Best price: $5.33
Price in other shops:
William Kapell, Vol. 2: Broadcast Performances 1942-1953William; Release date: 1995-04-04; Music CD
Best price: $9.85
Price in other shops:
William Steinberg - IconRelease date: 2011-10-11; Music CD
Best price: $37.45
Price in other shops:
Wilhelm Furtwangler: The LegacyRelease date: 2011-04-26; Music CD
Best price: $116.62
Price in other shops:
Horowitz: Discovered TreasuresRelease date: 1992-10-06; Music CD
Best price: $2.00
Price in other shops:
Chopin: Mazurkas ~ KapellGlenna Jean; Release date: 2000-02-08; Music CD
Best price: $3.95
Price in other shops:
William Kapell - William Kapell EditionGlenna Jean; Release date: 1998-09-29; Music CD
Best price: $59.11
Price in other shops: