Vladimir Horowitz - A Reminiscence (VHS)

Vladimir Horowitz - A Reminiscence

Sony Classical: SHV 53478

Please note: The first part of this video is actually a documentary on Horowitz, with many extracts from various works, while the second part consists of selections from his London recital on May 22, 1982. Below are all works Horowitz plays in completition in front of the camera in this video.

Alexander Scriabin
Vers la flamme, Op.72    [New York, 1974]

Robert Schumann
Träumerei, Op.15 No.7    [Moscow, 1986]

Frederic Chopin
Introduction & Rondo, Op.16    [New York, 1974

From Horowitz in London, 1982:

Domenico Scarlatti
Sonata in F minor, K.466 (L.118)
Sonata in F minor, K.184 (L.189)
Sonata in A major, K.101 (L.494)
Sonata in B minor, K.87 (L.33)
Sonata in E major, K.135 (L.224)

Frederic Chopin
Waltz in A-flat major, Op.69 No.1

Sergei Rachmaninoff/Vladimir Horowitz
Sonata No.2 in B-flat minor, Op.36

Sergei Rachmaninoff
Polka de W.R.

Vladimir Horowitz - A Reminiscence

Vladimir Horowitz--A Reminiscence, is aptly named. For Horowitz fans, it will bring back memories of all the familiar moments--the collaborations with Toscanini, the 1965 return to Carnegie Hall, the Moscow concert--but this documentary offers little that is new. There is no interview footage with other musicians, collaborators, or members of the Horowitz' inner circle. The only figure shown, aside from Horowitz himself, is the pianist's widow, Wanda Toscanini Horowitz. She recites the usual anecdotes, prompted by an off camera Peter Gelb--Horowitz' manager during the 1980s. Wanda, who arguably knew Horowitz better than anybody, avoids delving into certain aspects of his non-musical life--she is even sketchy as to whether the pianist's 1953 crisis, which brought on a 12-year retirement from public performance, was a nervous breakdown, or colitis, or both. Other aspects of Horowitz' life, ranging from his homosexuality to the tragic fate if his Russian family (aside from his sister, no one in Horowitz' immediate family survived Stalin's reign), to his disastrous 1983 concert in Japan are not mentioned at all.

Another annoying factor is the almost total reliance on performance footage which has been available for years--the 1986 Moscow recital, the 1982 London recital, etc. Aside from some grainy home movies and excerpts from an abandoned 1974 documentary, there is nothing new here. It would have been a treat to see excerpts from his 1968 Carnegie Hall recital, the 1978 White House recital, or the 1978 Rachmaninoff Third concerto performance. The pianists' 1983 Tokyo recital was filmed and has wisely never been released. There are a few moments of insight here, but one cannot escape the impression that this material was thrown together for one purpose, to sell records. With an artist of Horowitz' stature, that could well be reason enough--but there could have been so much more. Hopefully, someday someone will put together a real documentary about this elusive figure.

© Hank Drake

This page is part of The Vladimir Horowitz Website
http://w1.854.telia.com/~u85420275/index.htm