Claudio Arrau - Liszt: Piano Works (5CD) (1991)

Although Claudio Arrau had impressive credentials as a Liszt player - his only teacher was Martin Krause, who was a student of Liszt - and he performed many of the composer's works early in his career, he neither exploited this association, nor became known as a Liszt specialist. Perhaps this was because Krause warned him not to become a specialist in the music of any one composer, urging him instead to embrace all music. Consequently, the younger Arrau's repertoire was very large; however, as he grew older he concentrated on fewer composers, moving as it were from the universal to the particular applying almost prophetic insight into certain scores, especially those of Beethoven and Liszt.

Arrau didn't begin recording his Liszt series for Philips until he was nearing seventy, not necessarily an auspicious age to be taking on such a technically challenging project, yet the energy and imagination he brought to this music was remarkable. To be sure, Arrau the poet-philosopher was ultimately in charge, and it is the mythic/heroic and spiritual aspects of Liszt's music that are most evident in his recordings. Even such obvious examples as the Transcendental Etudes reveal themselves under Arrau's hands as music first and technical exercises second, not because they are toned down, which they aren't, but because the pianist drills into and extracts the musical core. Indeed there are technical miracles all over the place even though many listeners won't necessarily be aware of them (just listen to the magnificent Verdi paraphrases), but displays of raw power was not what Liszt's, or for that matter any composer's music, was all about for Arrau.

Virtually every recording in this box set is exceptional - from the Sonata, which was hailed as a classic when it was first released in 1970, to the selections from Annees de Pelerinage. Les jeux d'eaux a la Villa d'Este glitters with an incomparable display of shimmering color while making a profound spiritual impact. And what a gorgeous sound Arrau's piano makes here! Arrau's Sonetto del Petrarca 104 is a superbly judged combination of architecture and poetry, and no. 123 a statement of sublime transcendence. Listening to the rhapsodic Benediction de Dieu dans la solitude unfurl reminded me of the many unforgettable Arrau recitals I attended in the 1970's when the Maestro frequently programmed the Sonata, Ballade and Les jeux d'eaux. Playing like this forces you to rethink what Liszt is all about.

All of this is truly desert island Liszt; and given that many of these recordings have long been unavailable, I would urge collectors to acquire this set while they can.