Classical artists blind comparison #2

Here it is. Blind comparison #2.

Protocols:

Please rank them from 1 to 8 in order of preference.

Feel free to comment on any or all of the pieces.

I prefer that the votes and comments be sent to me via PM which I will cut and paste after the poll closes. If you wish you may vote via direct post to the thread but please use the spoilers blinders. (I still have not figured out how to use that option ) If you vote by PM please post that you did so to give the thread a bump.

Either way please do not say anything that might give away the identities of the artist.

POLL WILL CLOSE IN 6 DAYS

You can use the poll to indicate that you voted by PM or by posting with blinders. Please use spoiler blinders!

A few notes on the individual selections. #4 and #6 have some dead space before the music begins and #7 has an additional Etude. Sorry about my inability to edit and normalize these things.

Chopin Etude Op 25 No. 1

1.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/61803565/classical music folder/1.mp3

2.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/61803565/classical music folder/2.mp3

3.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/61803565/classical music folder/3.mp3

4.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/61803565/classical music folder/4.mp3

5.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/61803565/classical music folder/5.mp3

6.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/61803565/classical music folder/6.mp3

7.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/61803565/classical music folder/7.mp3

8.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/61803565/classical music folder/8.mp3

 

Kewl. I'll check these when I get home later.

 

Thank you for your effort. This is a really nice idea. I hope this kind of polls is going to continue and we'll get to some different music.

 

I am quite open to suggestions.

 

Well, call me Cpt. Obvious - what about Bach? Or Messiaen? Satie could be fun. Not to mention Schoenberg.

 

Some times the obvious is obvious for very good reasons. I will explore some possibilities with your suggestions.

 

I just voted by PM. This was fun! Thanks to the OP for this cool thread. Looking forward to the results on this one. Cheers!
--------- Chris

 

PM just sent.

BTW, again this might come in handy if you want to analyse the performances more fairly and accurately:

http://conquest.imslp.info/files/im...1-PMLP01970-FChopin_Etudes__Op.25_Scholtz.pdf

 

Scott, thanks for doing this! This is fun. But it wasn't easy. Great choice of piece too.

I'll try to put up two boxes in spoiler blinders, one with my vote, one with a few comments.

My vote:

Spoiler

3
6
2, 4
5
7
1, 8

And now for some comments:

Spoiler

First, I don't mind admitting it's very hard for me to come up with a real ranking of eight different performances like this, even though it's a short piece. And I might wake up tomorrow in a different mood and prefer one to another that I thought better the night before. Plus, there certainly is something to hearing these things in context. I didn't know what to make of 5. It is slower, with almost garish rubato, it seems, coming as it does among the others in this list. But the dynamic variations are beautiful and in the right context this one might very well be the best.

I thought 3 was the best. It just breathed so naturally.

But for the huge disparity in sound quality I would guess 2 and 4 are by the same pianist. They are too similar stylistically, especially with the chording around bar 17.

7 seemed a bit slower without quite the character of 5.

I liked 1 and 8 the least. 1 seemed a little strident with the melodic lead. Frankly by 8 I was just tired. (Sorry.) 6 was also straightforward, comparatively, but struck me as a performance of real integrity, no showing off, very solid pianism.

The other thing perhaps worth noting was that I listened to these one my laptop with my headphones, which is not how I usually listen. It was just easier this way to navigate between the various pages. Perhaps it was because of that, or perhaps because Scott tried to equalize the sound by compressing the files, but I wasn't blown away by the sound on any of these recordings. 4 clearly was the worst-sounding, a distant live recording.

Anyhow, this was fun . . . I'm dying to know who is who! I'm not going to try to guess because I know I can't . . . Tell me tell me tell me!

 

I just sent Scott a PM, too.

Great idea, posting the printed music. I listened earlier today with the notes in front of me from a book of the Etudes I may have "borrowed" from my brother (who plays keyboards professionally) some time ago.

 

It helped me actually, because without meaning to give anything away, I thought one of the pianists was bringing out too many of the inner notes, then I realised from looking at the score that although for the most part the main melody comes from the uppermost note on every beat, occasionally some of the right hand sextuplets off the beat are stressed, giving the impression of a lower countermelody which should clearly be heard. So I listened to it again, just to check whether or not my initial judgement was too harsh.

 

I looked at it (the score, although I had pulled up a German edition, "Zwolf Etuden"; I suspect it's no different but didn't compare) as well, mainly to check out the dynamic indications and whether there is an instruction to slow down before 9, which everyone seems to do. (There isn't.) There's definitely some variation in how observant performers are with respect to the crescendos and descrescendos.

 

I voted by PM.

 

What do you mean, buddy?

 

Some people might need to see them that way . . .

 

late night bumb

 

I'm giving this baby a bump because I'd like see some chatter. I'm really looking forward to hearing who was who. Late last night after brazenly posting my comments I spent hours listening to different versions, and I'm pretty sure I know at least a few of the performers now. But I'm still interested in knowing for sure.

It's too bad I missed the previous one of these, got busy last week and never saw it. But this is fun, a good thinking exercise as well.

 

This time I give it a nudge instead of a bump.

 

Spoiler

I have to say this choice was much harder, as I don't hear a real standout. I liked #8 the best, though. Let's call #1 second place, but beyond that, I can't really say.

 

wow when I opened them up it played all eight at once, only a small amount off. spectacular. I'm voting for simultaneous playback of all versions!

 

p.s. I voted

 

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