I recall some sublimely intricate Tchaikovsky for solo piano on the
radio and, not long after that, at around 8 or 9, a few LPs came my way:
Paganini's VC1, played by Michael Rabin (Goossens) on Angel-Seraphim,
with Wieniawski's VC on the flip side.  Rachmaninoff's Concerto #2, and
his 'Creme de Menthe' Variations (Agustin Anievas/Fruhbeck de Burgos).
Also Beethoven's Emperor Concerto #5; not sure who played, but it was a
Deutsche Grammophon LP.  These LPs spun incessantly in my Sears Silvertone
portable turntable, competing with the early Beatles LPs that were
becoming all the rage.

Of all the mentioned pieces, only the Emperor Concerto can still hold
me riveted.  I recently got a DVD with Arrau playing it, long after
hearing of a DVD of a performance from weeks before he died.  Don Claudio
was presumably so wizened they just about had to carry him onstage, yet
once at the keyboard he played as never before.  Maybe tonight I'll find
out if I've got the right DVD.

Bert Bailey

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