Granados: 8 Valses Poéticos (Grosvenor, Fernando Pérez)

Two lovely -- and very different -- performances of the Valses Poéticos. Grosvenor plays these as improvisatory waltzes with a poetic element; Pérez, as poetic pieces with some waltz-like elements. While apparently simple, the Valses Poéticos are gems of craftsmanship: in Valse No.1 the harmonies are nudged just ever-so-slightly ajar from what we’d expect, for instance, Valses Nos.4-5 really turn out to be a pair of mazurkas (or something very similar), and the coda which begins as a spryly chromatic 6/8 Presto winds down and resolves – suddenly and beautifully – into a complete literal reprise of Valse No.1, bringing the suite full circle.

In Grosvenor’s playing the rhythms are taut, the articulation razor-sharp, the faster passages sleek and sparkling [see the Vivo, for instance]. He’s got a pretty distinctive style: often shorter notes which lie just alongside longer ones are given a shorter value than they actually are worth, which gives the playing a characteristic snap and feeling of spontaneity.

Pérez’s recording has long been one of my very favourites: it’s basically a case study in perfect use of rubato. The sound is rich, the phrasing liquid and translucent (the idea of “phrasing” can often be a bit opaque because hard to explain in words, but you only need to compare both pianists’ playing of the Melodico to see what a huge difference it can make), and the voicing of even the thinnest intimations of counterpoint incredibly precise. The emotional heft generated from such an apparently lighthearted suite can be quite surprising: Perez’s return to the Melodico theme from Valse No.1 at 22:43, for instance, is intensely moving.

Grosvenor -
00:00 – 1. Vivace Molto – Melodico [1:03]
02:04 – 2. Tempo di Valse noble
03:30 – 3. Tempo di Valse lente
05:02 – 4. Allegro umoristico
05:40 – 5. Allegretto
06:49 – 6. Quasi ad libitum
07:52 – 7. Vivo
08:32 – 8. Presto

Fernando Pérez -
10:18 – 1. Vivace Molto – Melodico [11:36]
13:25 – 2. Tempo di Valse noble
14:51 – 3. Tempo di Valse lente
17:08 – 4. Allegro umoristico
17:57 – 5. Allegretto
19:26 – 6. Quasi ad libitum
21:07 – 7. Vivo
21:55 – 8. Presto

[timward]

That melody in #1 is heartbreakingly lovely. Even though it's in a major key there's a tinge of regret, like a forgotten memory, to it.

[robertcohn]

I think this suite has one of the saddest, most wistful and most beautiful waltz themes I've ever heard. Thank you for posting.

[Franciscosmourato]

The first piece (melodioso) is so sweet and nostalgic! And the second one (Tempo de valse noble) is very elegant and beautiful as well!

[pleasegoawaynowpleas]

The way Grosvenor plays really reminds me of Pletnev's treatment of the Scarlatti sonatas in the sparkling quality of his sound.

[Lucas]

I'm discovering the music of Granados and these are such lovely waltzes!

[Ficktao]

This is great! Thank you uploading. It is also very interesting to have these two performances next to each other. I personally like the light, playful touch of Grosvenor more, but I do also appreciate the more dramatic interpretation of Pérez.

[EmilianoManna]

Thank you for giving us two interpretations of this beautiful, not often performed work. Grosvenor's clarity and perlage amazes me

[spiritualneutralist]

Spanish composers are so damn great especially Granados.

[fergusmaclachlan]

I have never listened to Granados before. Clearly I've been missing out on a lot.

[claaria]

Thank you very much for uploading this! It really is amazing music.

[geoffwalker]

Delightful and previously unknown to me. The opening of number 4 has clear echoes of the opening of Schumann's 'Faschingsschwank aus Wien'.

[begonae.]

Grosvenor focuses solely on virtuosity and speed.
Pérez, on the contrary, focuses on feeling, depth and meaning without forgetting virtuosity.
Pérez was a student of Alicia de Larrocha who drinks from the sources of the school itself founded by Granados.
Undoubtedly, both are high-level pianists, but I don't think the comparison here makes much sense, because Pérez understands it much better and does justice to the composer.

[mantictac]

This suite is criminally underperformed. My favorite has to be No. 7.

[julienbard]

Magnifique interpretation, jolie travail

[TiticatFollies]

Grosvenor's "shortening of the shorter notes" gives the piece a jazzy feel, which doesn't work for me. When I listen to Granados, I don't want to feel snappy jazziness. I want to hear and feel something of Spain. I think Perez's version is near perfect.

[ianboard]

I really like this rendition. A side note: You should check out the classical guitar version of this by John Williams.

[enricogargano]

It gives so many chills from Papillons by Schumann

[jikooksmochi]

I am playing number 8 which is Valses no 8 and I listen to this every time

[alexy]

There's a wonderful recording of this set by Thomas Rajna. Haven't been able to track it down lately, but it is offered with some of the larger public library databases of recorded music (Hoopla, etc.) Tthe heftier passages are a little rough in his playing, but he's got a great sense of tempo and rubato, and he knows how to create both momentum and suspension.
I'd love to hear Stephen Hough playing this -- it's right up his alley: late romantic salon music that easily borders on sentimental, but with the right phrasing becomes elevated and quite touchingly evocative of that innocent/nostalgic/gilded age of European culture yet to be torn to shreds by nationalism and war.

[aloziecnwachukwu]

You can hear ROBERT SCHUMANN influence on Granados with a DOUBT!! I’m glad he branched into his own sound later in his compositions.