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Biography by Steven Coburn

Gregor Piatigorsky began playing the cello at the age of seven and was admitted to the Moscow Conservatory at nine, studying there with Alfred von Glehn. In 1919, he joined the Lenin Quartet and was appointed principal cellist of the Bol'shoy Theater Orchestra. In 1921, Piatigorsky left the Soviet Union, going to Leipzig by way of Warsaw, and studied for a time with Julius Klengel. Furtwängler appointed him principal cellist of the Berlin Philharmonic in 1924 where he came into contact with the leading German musicians of the time, including Schnabel and Flesch, with whom he formed a trio. In 1928, Piatigorsky left Berlin to concentrate on a solo career, which began triumphantly with his New York debut in 1929. Although Piatigorsky concertized regularly as a soloist, he continued his activity as a chamber musician. Starting in 1930, he formed a trio with Horowitz and Milstein, and later, in 1949 with Heifitz and Rubinstein. In 1961, Piatigorsky and Heifitz formed a chamber music series in Los Angeles, much of which was recorded, and remain among the treasures of chamber music performances.

For many years Piatigorsky directed the chamber music program at Tanglewood, helped found the Meadowmount School, succeed Emanuel Feuermann as professor of cello at the Curtis Institute, and in 1962 became a professor at the University of Southern California. His legacy as a teacher remains a powerful fixture in the world of cello playing; his famous students include Erling Blöndal Bengtsson, Mischa Maisky, and Nathaniel Rosen, among many others. Piatigorsky was known for his Romantic expressiveness and virtuosic flair, and was at his best in the big nineteenth and early twentieth century concerto repertory. He premiered works by Walton, Hindemith, and Castelnuovo-Tedesco, published a number of original works and arrangements for the cello, and collaborated with Stravinsky on his Suite Italienne. Widely revered and honored, Piatigorsky was one of the most important and influential musicians of his generation.


Even though many decades have passed since Gregor Piatigorsky performed Dvorák's Cello Concerto in B minor and Walton's Cello Concerto with Charles Münch and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, his recordings still stand as profound achievements, rarely if ever matched for passionate expression, timbral clarity, and technical fluency. This reissue in RCA's SACD line is most welcome - indeed, its inclusion is de rigueur - for these Living Stereo recordings truly represent the high performance standards and technical advances for which the label has been esteemed. Piatigorsky's 1960 performance of Dvorák's Concerto is deeply moving for its humane warmth and Romantic intensity; and Münch, at the peak of his powers, draws brilliant colors and full textures from the glorious BSO. Walton's Concerto - dedicated to Piatigorsky and premiered by him - is more subdued and mysterious, and the work provides a striking contrast to Dvorák's vigor and ebullience. Piatigorsky brings out Walton's dark-toned lyricism with richness and delicacy, and this 1957 recording overflows with fine details and magical colors. The original three-track masters have been duplicated in the multichannel remastering, so the sound will be heard only from the front left, center, and right channels. Still, the recording quality is superb, and the depth of sound is satisfying without further studio enhancements.