Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor, Op. 23 Argerich/Kondrashin—Esoteric Mastering vinyl reissue [2024]

Martha Argerich, Piano
Symphonie-Orchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Conducted by Kirill Kondrashin
Product ID: ESLD-10007

Released November 2024

Original Recording
Recorded at Herkulessaal, Munich, on February 7-8, 1980

Re-mastering
Date: June 2024 Esoteric Mastering Center
Producer: Motoaki Ohmachi (Esoteric Mastering Center)
Associated Producer: Jo Yoshida (Esoteric Mastering Center)
Mastering Engineer: Masaya Tohno (Esoteric Mastering Center)
Cutting Engineer: Katsutoshi Kitamura (MIXER’S LAB)

Several digital irons are in the fire on this new ESOTERIC vinyl release from Japan. Originally, it was a Philips release on LP from 1980, right on the cusp of early digital recording. Many very early digital releases were not successful, company-dependent. EMI had some initial success, and Philips, if I remember, sounded pretty good. I never heard the original of this recording.

The good news, other than the great artists, is the recording location. Not the dreaded Munich Gastieg, but the smaller Herkulessaal, a Munich location with far superior acoustics.

Herkulessaal (Hercules Hall), Munich

Argerich and Kondrashin are no strangers to this magnificent concerto. Kondrashin recorded it with the most famous player of the work, Van Cliburn, winner of the inaugural Tchaikovsky Competition in 1958. Their recording on RCA Victor Shaded Dog from the same year (LSC 2252) is still a leading choice.

Argerich has recorded the Tchaikovsky three times. A famous DG from 1971 with her then-husband Charles Dutoit conducting the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (audiophiles, this superb performance was remastered AAA for vinyl on Speakers Corner in 2013). The third recording (available in a digitally remastered DG vinyl Argerich/Abbado box set) is from 1994. I’ve owned both DG recordings on vinyl—the RPO/Dutoit performance is especially brilliant. If you have the Speakers Corner vinyl, I think you're set—probably no need for the expensive $100 ESOTERIC vinyl unless you are one of the many Argerich completists.

Kondrashin is a superb accompanist in this work; he knows all the rubato nooks and crannies great artists like Van Cliburn and Argerich throw in, as well as the plethora of Tchaikovsky’s very specific marks of expression. He also conducted a recording on Vox from 1962 with Richter as soloist.

Kirill Kondrashin, conductor (1914 – 1981).

The Argerich Berlin DG recording is from the Philharmonie, the RPO DG version from Croydon’s Fairfield Halls and the new ESOTERIC taken from a live show in 1980 in the Herkulessaal. All good recording locations. And no worries about a live recording on the ESOTERIC. Argerich, in her very intense vision of the concerto, hits a few clunkers in all three recordings. Nothing to complain about, but all three recordings give a very clear picture of what’s going on. And on this live one from Munich, you get a crackerjack performance. Argerich is a wonder to behold in concert, and even now, in her ‘80s, she chooses her repertoire well and plays it for all it’s worth (many are available on YouTube).

On the new LP, at the end of the first movement, you’ll get a quick glimpse of the lovely acoustic with the included applause at the end of the concerto. Both are warm, resonant, detailed audiophile tells of a quality recording. Argerich’s piano, highlighted by her ringing tone, sounds glorious—her technique is prodigious in the many octave runs and powerhouse passages. As usual, she’s all in, and the audience is the winner. You’ll feel like applauding, too.

As for the remastering, it equals the performance. A virtuoso effort. You will hear no digital artifacts, difficult to achieve on such a purely digital recording and a piece with so much arpeggiated ringing high treble. The ESOTERIC engineers still tell of their pure vinyl process in great detail, but there is a humdinger of a digital step in there somewhere, but no worries, they’re on this. All you get on this Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 is warmth, detail, power, concert hall acoustics with appropriate soundstage and imaging with very accurate timbral cues. You may as well be listening to a wide band Kingsway Wilkie. Yes, that good.

Keen-eared audiophiles will hear the rich pizzicato of the strings on Tchaikovsky’s brilliant four-note descending motif given initially by the BRSO’s splendid horn section (see image below; Strings = Archi). And then the few times Tchaikovsky allows thoroughbred pounding octaves tumbling downhill at breakneck speed, the clarity of the recording makes such passages even more thrilling (see image at the end of the review).

So, this is another feather in ESOTERIC’s reissue series cap. Unless you are married to the RPO/DG, this is a superb audiophile buy—better performance and vinyl pressing. A definite Audiophilia Dream List © entry and will be considered for the 2025 Recordings of the Year List (all Audiophilia music reviews published past the Dec 1 cutoff are considered for the next calendar year).

My thanks to ESOTERIC’s Canadian importer, Angie Lisi of American Sound, for providing us with a review copy for our readers.

They are pressed in limited numbers, so if you are a fan of great music and performances in the very best vinyl pressings, you better get them before they’re gone. Very highly recommended.

On ESOTERIC’s previous release (Fauré Requiem), a licensing issue I’m surmising caused the pressing to use a generic, awful Warner gray label in place of the original, stunning Angel Blue label. Lunch bag let down. Here, ESOTERIC uses the Universal license to dodge the original Philips label (left) in favour of substituting a much sexier Decca label.

Argerich unleashes the thunder!