Arthur Rubinstein - Chopin: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 (RCA Living Stereo)

There are a number of fine couplings of the Chopin concertos in the catalog, however, so highly regarded were these Rubinstein recordings that for decades they were the standard by which all others were measured.

On this CD

1. Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor, Op. 11, CT. 47
Composed by Fryderyk Chopin
Performed by New Symphony Orchestra of London
with Artur Rubinstein
Conducted by Stanislaw Skrowaczewski

2. Piano Concerto No. 2 in F minor, Op. 21, CT. 48
Composed by Fryderyk Chopin
Performed by Symphony of the Air
with Artur Rubinstein
Conducted by Alfred Wallenstein

Tracks
01. Allegro maestoso
02. Romance
03. Rondo
04. Maestoso
05. Larghetto
06. Allegro vivace

Hank Drake (Cleveland, OH United States) @ amazon.com
Rubinstein recorded the Chopin Concertos numerous times. This version of Chopin's first Concerto is particularly successfu, partly thanks to the sensitive accompaniment of the New London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Stanislaw Skrowaczewski. Tempos are well-judged, phrasing is supple and natural, virtuosity is there, but not for its own sake. The sound on the original LP and the first CD issue was plagued by dropouts at the beginning of the Concerto–these have been smoothed over remarkably. Balance between orchestra and piano has also been improved.
The Second Concerto is somewhat less successful. Here, Rubinstein is partnered by Alfred Wallenstein, his favored accompanist during the 1950s and early 1960s. Wallenstein secures reasonable playing from the Symphony of the Air, then long past its earlier glory as the NBC Symphony Orchestra. Purists should be warned that, at Rubinstein's insistence, the violins do not play "sui ponticello" as Chopin indicated in the last movement. Rubinstein's playing is fine, but the overall enjoyment of the performance is hampered by the sonic picture, which remains synthetic and dryish–despite the best efforts at SACD remastering. The later version with Ormandy is to be preferred over this one.

jsa (San Diego, CA United States) @ amazon.com
There are a number of fine couplings of the Chopin concertos in the catalog, however, so highly regarded were these Rubinstein recordings that for decades they were the standard by which all others were measured. Have they been superceded? Maybe, but they have a strong advantage in that they reflect what must have been hundreds of performances by the great Chopin pianist going back forty or more years. The best way to describe them is that they are very sturdy but elegant, completely fresh & inspired, splashed with poetic touches & also have plenty of muscle in the virtuoso passages.
The sonics, dating from 1958 & 1961, are naturally not state of the art, especially the second concerto which is the older of the two & in which the piano is a little dimmer than I recall from previous LP & cd incarnations. I do, however, think the sound on the first concerto is an improvement over anything I've heard before.