Alexei Sultanov, the youngest gold medal winner ever in the
Van Cliburn Competition, enjoyed extraordinary fame and acceptance both in the United States and abroad, particularly in Japan. Reading some of the accolades he received from his Japanese performances, listeners may expect to hear something different on this album than what it actually delivers. Some of
Sultanov's strengths as a pianist included his ability to charm and engage his audiences as
Horowitz did, his Herculean strength at the instrument like
Bronfman, and his brilliantly clean and translucent technique like
Ashkenazy. This live performance in Japan from 1997 does not always capture the best aspects of these strengths, however. The number one suspect at the root of any problems is the recording quality itself. Though it is a live performance, that's still not an excuse for a lack of clarity or audience noise, particularly for a recording made in the late '90s. Some of the clarity of
Sultanov's inner voices is lost because of this. His strength and power seem to go overboard in spots, particularly in the
Scriabin Fifth Sonata, which begins almost brutally. Likewise, the opening of the
Rachmaninoff Second Sonata teeters precariously on the fence between energetic and savagery. While
Sultanov was absolutely one of the most gifted pianists of his generation, those gifts simply are not captured well in this particular recording.