COMPOSERS: Saint-Saens
LABELS: Decca
WORKS: Piano Concerto No. 1; Piano Concerto No. 2; Piano Concerto No. 3; Piano Concerto No.4; Piano Concerto No. 5
PERFORMER: Pascal Rogé (piano); RPO, Philharmonia Orchestra, LPO/Charles Dutoit
CATALOGUE NO: 443 865-2 ADD (1981)
Saint-Saëns’s charming, relatively undramatic concerto style is not exactly fashionable these days. Of the five concertos he composed between 1858 and 1896, the Second (in G minor) and Fourth (in C minor) are the best known; they are also the best, though the so-called ‘Egyptian’ Concerto (No. 5) is typically full of charm, grace and good tunes. Pascal Rogé plays fluently throughout, without giving us the blazing conviction that this is all top-quality music. Dutoit, as one would expect, secures fine playing from all three orchestras. This is not, perhaps, a set to listen to all in one go, but it’s a useful collection nevertheless. Stephen Maddock
Saint-Saens: Piano Concerto No. 1; Piano Concerto No. 2; Piano Concerto No. 3; Piano Concerto No.4; Piano Concerto No. 5
Saint-Saëns’s charming, relatively undramatic concerto style is not exactly fashionable these days. Of the five concertos he composed between 1858 and 1896, the Second (in G minor) and Fourth (in C minor) are the best known; they are also the best, though the so-called ‘Egyptian’ Concerto (No. 5) is typically full of charm, grace and good tunes. Pascal Rogé plays fluently throughout, without giving us the blazing conviction that this is all top-quality music. Dutoit, as one would expect, secures fine playing from all three orchestras.
Our rating
4
Published: January 20, 2012 at 3:16 pm