My friend Maready at Avant que j'oublie just posted an unusual, but vital, offering of John Ogdon performing Messiaen and I happened to have this disc of Nielsen transferred from a while back. What a pleasant coincidence, don't you think?
Ogdon was one of the most gifted and brilliant pianists of the 20th century along with being one of the most highly erratic and unpredictable ones too. At his finest, his interpretations were probing, highly intellectual and magnificently crafted; the other side of the coin featured pedestrian, mannered and bored accounts that left the listener scratching his or her head, "why?"
Fortunately here, Ogdon is magnificent. No less then Robert Simpson exalted Ogdon's renderings of these works as being at the highest level. Though we do not think of Nielsen as a writer for the piano, in Ogdon's hands, a strong case is made for Nielsen as the composer for solo instrument. It's fine fare and much too bad that others have not made works such as Symphonic Suite a part of their repertoire.
I hope that you find enjoyment in this lp and Maready's Messiaen offering. Marvelous remembrances of an artist who had the ability to make neglected, or obscure, music come to life with dazzling results.
