The version of Rachmaninoff's Third Concerto was originally recorded live in January of 1978 and released about three weeks after the concert. By rushing the LP into stores, RCA was able to cash in on the publicity of Horowitz' golden jubilee, but the sound on the original release was very poor indeed. The piano was miked too closely, and the orchestra mix was very poor. The CD released in the mid-1980s was a great improvement over the LP, but the sonics were problematic there also. The piano was mixed down too severely and seemed to recede behind the orchestra in some passages. This new High Performance reissue is a vast improvement over both earlier versions. The balance problems have been solved, and both piano and orchestra have a much warmer, deeper sound. The dynamic range has been greatly opened up--the final timpani THWACK at the end of the Concerto is quite startling.

As for the performance, this remains my sentimental favorite--even though Horowitz was in better shape in the 1951 version with Reiner than he was in 1978. (He was 74 when this recording was made.) There is something about Horowitz' phrasing, his ability to vary the tempo without losing hold of the basic pulse, and his mixing of inner voices that seems so right. It is more than mere piano playing, it is the art of PERFORMANCE. Bringing the music to life is so much more than putting the right finger in the right place at the right time--and Horowitz was a master of this elusive art. The Rachmaninoff Third Concerto was undoubtedly the greatest piano concerto of the 20th century--and this is my desert island performance.