IDAGIO | SHURA CHERKASSKY – The Ambassador Auditorium Recitals, 1981

Featuring

Shura Cherkassky
Frédéric Chopin
John (Jean-Baptiste) Loeillet of London
Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Josef Casimir Hofmann

Franz Liszt
César Franck
Robert Schumann
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Leopold Godowsky
George Frideric Handel

Did you know?

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Critical Reception

A Los Angeles Times review described Shura Cherkassky as resembling 'an ageing gnome, walks like Jack Benny and plays the piano like an angel'.

Interpretation

The live audience at the Ambassador Auditorium stimulated Shura Cherkassky to give more compelling performances than he would in a recording studio.

Performer Biography

Shura Cherkassky, the pianist on this album, was advertised as an eleven-year-old prodigy at his debut in the United States, though he was almost 14.

Recording & Production

Most concerts at the Ambassador Auditorium were recorded for archival reasons and not originally intended for commercial release, leading to variable sound quality.

Recording & Production

The Ambassador Auditorium, where these recitals were recorded, was a major West Coast concert hall from 1974 to 1995, hosting around 2500 concerts.

Performer Biography

During World War II, Shura Cherkassky lived in Los Angeles and taught actress Bette Davis to play Beethoven's 'Appassionata' Sonata for a 1946 film.

Performer Biography

After receiving negative reviews for a 1947 Carnegie Hall recital, Shura Cherkassky focused his career on Europe, finding particular success in Germany and the United Kingdom.