At the turn of the nineteenth century, the waltz was a disreputable dance that was frequently banned for the same reasons that the tango was so disdained near the turn of the twentieth century: sexual innuendo and excessive proximity between the two dancers. This is a bit difficult to believe in modern times, when the waltz is viewed as a courtly and almost noble dance. There are moments when pianist
Eugéne Mursky does a splendid job of juxtaposing a touch of sultry with equal measure of grace and nobility. The A minor Waltz, Op. 34/2, and the famous C sharp minor Waltz, Op. 64/2, are quite successful in depicting the intimacy once associated with the dance. Throughout the album,
Mursky's playing is clean, well-paced, and emotive without being overdone. The feature that prevents this recording from being held in the same esteem as the gold-standard recordings by the likes of Rubinstein,
Arrau, or
Pollini is recorded sound quality. Unlike the great recordings of these works, Profil's sound is very dull and the lower register of the instrument is insufficiently reproduced, resulting in a very unbalanced sound. Despite
Mursky's noble efforts, this album is not a clear alternative to others already on the market.