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American Record Guide

The most common CD program of Rachmaninoff’s two-piano pieces is the two suites along with the Symphonic Dances. Here the first Trio and two short pieces arranged for piano trio are offered along with the suites. For me, they are the best thing here. The Suites are quite adequately done, a little on the slow side, but that allows for some details to emerge that are not often heard. There is plenty of world- renowned competition in the suites: Argerich-Friere and Ashkenazy-Previn are two that sit at the top of my favorites. If we go back in time, Vronsky-Babin are superb and played them for Rachmaninoff, who also played at least Suite 2 with Horowitz (wish that had been recorded). In recent years, they have been played at Carnegie Hall by Trifonov and Babayan, who also played the Symphonic Dances. I assume they recorded (or will record) these for DG. The suites here are individual enough to create interest in their many-faceted details. 

Polish pianist Barbara Karaskiewicz plays on every track and also translated the booklet essay by Mlynarczyk from Polish to English. She teaches at two colleges in Poland, and this is her ninth CD. The Huberman Piano Trio appears to have been founded in 2014 and has recorded at least one other CD. Cellist Rysanov has been a member since the beginning, but it was unclear as to when pianist Karaskiewicz joined. Violinist Swystun joined in 2022. Their Rachmaninoff Trio is top notch. It is a big single-movement piece that is usually a filler on CDs of the much longer Trio 2. This first trio was written in four days as a tribute to Nikolai Rubinstein in 1892. It was not published until after Rachmaninoff died. The Huberman Trio plays this rarely heard piece with all the passion and attention to detail one could ever want. The additional trio pieces are an uncredited, but very effec- tively arranged Elegie Op. 3:1 and the well- known Vocalise arranged by Julius Conus for piano trio. With all of the available recordings of the 2-piano suites, it is the trio pieces that set this release apart and make it worth getting.