你好Great Chopin pianists are few and far between. Like the Himalayas, many musicians try to master the endlessly technically demanding and subtle requirements of one of the world’s greatest composers for the piano, but very few have the poise, lucidity and sheer discernment to make the grade. I know the word will probably cause a sneer or two, but nobility is also an ingredient.

Claudio Arrau (1903-91) was one of the twentieth century’s greatest pianists – or as one writer put it, “like God reaching out to Adam on Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel’s ceiling, liquid, mysterious and profoundly alive…” It sounds like way too much, until you hear Arrau play Chopin, leaving no stone unturned, looking for insight.

Arrau called performing Chopin giving blood; the intensity and passion of his playing coupled with incredible nobility, is not far from that. And the nocturnes as one of Chopin’s greatest achievements are worthy of it all.

In the 19^th century the nocturnes were usually thought of as deathbed confessions, as opposed to say, the Waltzes or the Polonaises. There is a slippery, mysterious quality to them, again paradoxically paired with a dark, slippery chromaticism that foreshadows Wagner and maybe even Debussy.

What’s in my player: Chopin: Nocturnes – Claudio Arrau – Philips 416-441-2

Quite a different take than say, Horowitz or Rubinstein, Arrau is super-intense, but these recordings are among his greatest achievements. Everything is distilled and deeply thought out, voiced and balanced with super-human clarity. There are no extra roulades or frills – Arrau is totally honest without being in the least showy. (Lang Lang - or Bang Bang as he is known in the music world – eat your heart out.) Tempos are slow enough so that the music can breath, and at the same time there’s nothing phony, no smoothing over of details. Lyricism? Arrau goes way beyond lyricism to give every note its due.

These aren’t romantic character pieces, fit for the salon, as most people think of Chopin. As Arrau plays them, they are epic, “a glance is spun into a poem, a sigh into a novel.”

Also in my player: Chopin: 51 Mazurkas – Arthur Rubinstein – RCA – The Rubinstein Collection

It’s impossible to limit Chopin to just Arrau. Take Chopin’s Mazurkas for instance. They are based on an old Polish national dance from Mazowia where Chopin grew up. But the way Chopin has treated them is so rich harmonically and contrapuntally, it would be a big mistake to dismiss them as little folk dances. Legend has it that Chopin never played a Mazurka the same way twice. The same thing could be said of Rubenstein who has played the entire series at least three times. The version in my machine is the 1965 stereo version which combines a naïve country quality with mellow reflection. It’s difficult to imagine the mix until you hear it. An extraordinary example of the art that hides art.

Also in my player: Chopin: Waltzes Etc. – Dinu Lipatti – EMI 7243 5 66222

Chopin’s waltzes can be appreciated as little morsels for the salon or as individual mini-narratives. Lipatti chose the latter and came up with the best recording of Chopin’s waltzes ever made. Recorded in 1950 in mono, shortly before Lipartti died of leukemia, these renditions have the warmth and deep feeling that only someone like Rubenstein can approach.

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