| PRODUCT DETAILS | | Oistrakh, Menuhin & Rostropovich Play Bach, Brahms & Mozart (EMI Classic Archive 18) |
| User Reviews |  | Absolutely classical
rating: 4
I bought this item as a filler for a free shipping. And I was skeptical about the quality of the recording. If it was made from decades ago then the sound may well be distorted. If it was dubbed with nowadays performance then it would make me feel cheating.
But it turns out this DVD lives up to the greatness of these performers even the recording was done decades ago. This DVD will bring you back to the good time where you can feel the enthusiasm of the players, the devotion and courtesy of the audience and the professionism of the recorders.
Recommended, 4 stars
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In b&w, static picture, sound could be better
rating: 1
This documentary, in black and white, shows the artists playing, but the scenes are relatively static, the quality of sound could be better, and the picture in not much richer than a slightly animated slide show, unless the objective is to see the artist's technique. There is no much advantage of watching this documentary over listening just the music from CD.
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?
rating: 3
This DVD is either defective or else (like another EMI music DVD I bought, also Oistrakh by the way) will not play on a computer. I hit "play programme" and watched the Bach. (It was boring. I sigh do not like Bach's organ music or his chamber or orchestral music, and I knew it when I bought it. Duh!) Then the screen went black and stayed that way. After worrying with the thing for a couple minutes I tried clicking "play" and found myself at the start of the Mozart (the 2nd piece). I didn't watch it. I was tired and disgusted. On the Bach at least (BW), the picture was clear and distinct and the sound was good (probably better on a stereo than on a computer). There were no fancy camera shots of fingering or bowing, but sigh I was able to watch their bowing and how they held their bows, which was what I wanted to see. I will take this home and try it on my ordinary DVD player. I expect it to work (the other EMI I bought did), and if not, sigh, I'll just exchange it. Incidentally, I don't expect to enjoy this DVD. I bought it because it was a near miss, Amazon is running out of music DVDs that I am interested in, HAS run out of them. I am mainly interested in watching the violinists' technique. I am studying the fiddle myself.
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Music making at its best
rating: 5
If you were planning to buy just one dvd with Rostropovich, this should be the one. And, actually, only the Brahms concerto would suffice: here we see two giants, Rostropovich and Oistrakh, playing together in a way that would make even the best performers of today envious. They are totally 'together', in every way: musically, of course, extremely together (always keeping an eye/ear on eachother), down to the very sixteenth-note; physically together (watch all their movements, as if simultaneously moved by Brahms himself); and, especially, emotionally together: this makes this sich an exhilirating performance of Brahm's music. One moment makes this clear: in the middle of a intense and dramatic, almost wild section, they exchange just one glance, just a fraction of a second, and go on, together, passionately. At that moment you realise what you are seeing: the summit of musicianship. Fascinating, gripping, brilliant. This makes the rest of the dvd, almost by definition, a bit tepid, but who cares?
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Greatness captured
rating: 5
It's hard to envision a better offering than Oistrakh and Rostropovitch playing the Brahms Double. Luckily, this DVD does not disappoint, bringing that moment of musical excellence to remastered life, and adding to the mix some Bach and Mozart.
These broadcasts, culled from the BBC archives, present Oistrakh at his best. Each performance highlights his musical generosity, while demonstrating his ability to mesh with each partner's individual style. Whereas the Brahms has the ideal pairing, the Mozart is almost eerie in the way father and son play in almost the exact same way. The Bach performance has something to offer as well, especially for violinists, if only to compare the bow arm differences between the two players.
Yet another excellent EMI release, almost making up for the false advertising of the Heifetz-Rubinstein-Piatiagorsky DVD.
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Oistrakh, Menuhin & Rostropovich Play Bach, Brahms & Mozart (EMI Classic Archive 18)
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