Schubert: Piano Sonata No.21, etc.
Anton Batagov (piano) (Melodiya)
(scroll down for English review)
最近十年，錄音令到巴塔戈夫的名字在千禧後傳開，成為又一個俄羅斯鋼琴怪傑，最簡單的形容是慢，更是超慢，另外就是曲目選擇不俱一格，可以彈巴哈、舒伯特，現代曲目會涉獵梅湘，但又灌錄了全套格拉斯的鋼琴練習曲。
秉承李赫特的緩慢舒伯特「傳統」，巴塔戈夫這張舒伯特雙碟，就是以最後的D960奏鳴曲作主打。巴塔戈夫一方面把全曲的演奏時間推過了一小時，另一方面把四個樂章拆散（軌二、四、七、九），中間穿插了其他舒伯特鋼琴作品，但也是以後期作品為主，串連成一首長140分鐘的巨型奏鳴曲。
超慢的舒伯特，在這幾十年來其實已經聽慣，巴塔戈夫雖說是破了紀錄，但又未至於令人感覺不能再慢。相反，我從他這些演奏聽出的並非絕望、孤寂，反而是一種悠然自得及安寧，或者他這種彈法就是把音樂剩餘的不安，都化成接受及釋然。我不能保證人人都受得住這種超慢的舒伯特，但聽完之後是和我預期的重口味很不同。
Over the last decade Anton Batagov has become a cult figure because of his ultra-slow recordings. His taste is eclectic: he recorded Bach and Messiaen, but also made a complete recording of the Philip Glass Etudes. Finally came this double Schubert album, in the tradition of the super-slow Schubert style set off by Sviatoslav Richter.
Not only did Batagov break the hour-mark of the last Schubert sonata he split up the four movements (tracks 2, 4, 7, 9). With other mostly late works by Schubert Batagov thus compiled a mega-sonata clocking in at 140 minutes.
The shock of Richter’s slowness has worn off over the years. Although Batagov broke the slowness record he didn’t give me the feeling of maximum slowness. I didn’t find his interpretations to be full of despair or solitude; on the contrary, it was serenity and peacefulness that I felt. Perhaps such slowness transformed Schubert’s angst into resignation. I won’t vouch for Batagov’s extreme interpretations, but I didn’t expect such serenity out of them.