The Film
Recorded live at the Concert Hall of KKL Lucerne in February, Martha Argerich & Mischa Maisky is a visual and sonic gem that deserves a vast audience; primarily for its musicianship and sweeping performances. While the evening's performance is focused on the world premiere of a newly commissioned work by Russian composer Rodion Shchedrin -- "Romantic Offering"; a double concerto for piano, violoncello and orchestra, the entire cast does a superb job with late-Romantic pieces by Cesar Franck, Antonin Dvorak, and Dmitri Shostakovich.
Shchedrin is considered in some circles to be Russia's most important living composer and while best known for his ballets, he has an accomplished record of symphonies, operas, and numerous solo concertos. He succeeded Shostakovich as President of the Union of Russian Composers and is a member of the Berlin Academy of the Arts. "Romantic Offering" is itself highly operatic and ideally suited for two soloists (Argerich and Maisky) who have played together for close to three decades. Their synergy is uncanny to observe; the energy seems to flow between them and the music benefits greatly from their execution. The tempo of the entire performance is marvelous and the two hours just flies by.
Mischa Maisky settled in Israel in 1973 (after being imprisoned in a Russian labor camp for 18 months) and has performed with almost every major symphony in the world. His playing is inspiring and spontaneous; filled with fire and color and I was lucky enough to watch him perform with the Israel Philharmonic many years ago. He performs on a regular basis in Europe, Asia, and South America. Well worth the price of admission.
Conductor Neeme Järvi is an imposing man with more than 440 recordings to his credit. Those who frequent the symphony in Philadelphia, Chicago, Detroit, and Washington D.C. are well acquainted with his work and he always seems to coax the most out of his musicians.
The Picture
The Sound
The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track has superb resolution and tonality; notes have the appropriate weight and decay and the top end is very airy. The production feels very up-close and personal and it draws you in with each passing note. The surround channels do a great job of filling in the space; you get a sense of the concert hall in Lucerne and it feels like you are sitting only a few rows from the stage. Bass response is tight and very quick. Argerich and Maisky are playing very close to one another, but it is easy to discern each instrument and neither musician overwhelms the other. The LPCM 2.0 mix is also quite strong with excellent separation, but it lacks the gestalt of the surround mix; instruments have far more body. The presentation sounds great at low listening levels, but its impact at above conversation levels is fantastic. Superb quality.
The Extras
Accentus has included a behind-the-scenes discussion with the artists that looks interesting. Unfortunately, the audio didn't work for me so it's impossible for me to report if the discussion was truly worthwhile. Accentus really needs to resolve this problem. They also included a series of trailers for four of their classical blu-ray releases (I own 2 of them) and strangely enough, the audio works fine on those. Disappointing, especially because Shchedrin is a unique composer and I really wanted to hear his thoughts on the double concerto.
Final Thoughts
This marvelous production is likely to fly under the radar unless you are a fan of either musician or Shchedrin and that is a genuine pity. Shchedrin's double concerto just flows effortlessly and is a wonderful composition. Argerich and Maisky do a wonderful job with the Dvorak, Franck, and Shostakovich pieces; the synergy between the two of them is something to behold. Throw in superb sonics and outstanding image quality and one has one of the sleeper classical Blu-ray titles released this year. Highly recommended.
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