Ania Dorfmann with Familiar Beethoven

My series of recordings by pianist Ania Dorfmann continues with perhaps the two most often heard Beethoven sonatas - the"Moonlight" (No. 14 in C-sharp minor "Quasi una fantasia", Op. 27, No. 2) and the "Pathétique" (No. 8 in C minor, Op. 13).

Dorfmann recorded these pieces in New York's Town Hall in June and July 1952 for RCA Victor's revived Bluebird label, which had become a budget imprint. Reader Jon Butler, in requesting this transfer, noted that "So many people learned about both Beethoven and the piano through Dorfmann's low-priced Bluebird recording."

My own introduction was via Rudolf Serkin, and of course I remain
attached to his readings. But these interpretations by Dorfmann have their own stature, with both poetry and power as required.

The sound is generally good, although the first movement of the Moonlight was problematic - my pressing had severe distortion in several places on one or the other channel. Luckily this was only on one channel at a time, and I was able to negotiate my way through to a largely unblemished final product. In other places, you may notice some discoloration in the fortes, which may have been on the master tape; I hope this isn't too distracting.

Tchaikovsky and Schumann from Ania Dorfmann

Here is the latest in a series of posts devoted to the Russian-American pianist Ania Dorfmann (1899-1984). 

This 1955 RCA Victor LP contains music by Tchaikovsky and Schumann, with the major work a complete traversal of Tchaikovsky's Op. 39, the Album for the Young (Children's Album), a set of 24 pieces written for student musicians.

Dorfmann also includes seven excerpts from Schumann's Op. 68, the Album for the Young (Album für die Jugend), which inspired the Tchaikovsky collection.

1954 ad in Musical America

Completing the LP are five excerpts from Tchaikovsky's "The Seasons," including Troika (November) and Barcarolle (June), the most often heard.

Dorfmann performs with her usual effortless elegance, which is well suited to this repertoire. She recorded Tchaikovsky's Op. 39 on April 12, 1954 in New York's Town Hall, per Michael Gray's discography. Gray does not offer information on the other works, but presumably they were taped at about the same time. The sound is excellent. RCA originally issued the disc with the somewhat creepy cover at left. I believe the cover at top is a replacement.

An Ania Dorfmann Recital

Previously in my Ania Dorfmann series, we have had her Grieg and Mendelssohn concerto pairing, Chopin waltzes, and Beethoven's first concerto with Toscanini.

Ania Dorfmann

Today we present a varied recital, which actually may have been similar to programs she may offered at the time. We can assume that the Liszt, Mendelssohn and Chopin at least were in her standard repertoire, because she had recorded them for 78 issues at various times dating back to 1932. Only the Menotti is at all unusual - a Ricercare and Toccata on a theme from the composer's first opera, The Old Maid and the Thief. The piano work was new when Dorfmann recorded it; although the cover notes claim that Menotti composed it in 1940, the published edition cites research that dates it as being from 1951, the year before the pianist took it up.

This set derives from three January 1952 dates in Town Hall (not to imply that they were recorded at public recitals - there is no audience present). Dorfmann is in typical sparkling form, and RCA Victor does well with the sound.

Grieg and Mendelssohn from Ania Dorfmann

Here is the second installment in a series of recordings from the underappreciated pianist Ania Dorfmann, following on the Chopin waltzes and Beethoven concerto featured here a while back.

Concert flyer

Both this disc of Grieg and Mendelssohn concertos and the Chopin disc were issued on RCA Victor's Bluebird label. Dorfmann was one of the first artists presented on Bluebird when RCA revived the mark as a budget line in 1952. The big record company was responding to inroads by independents who were issuing all types of European sourced classical recordings and undercutting the price of the majors' high-end lines.

Billboard magazine, in covering the phenomenon, observed delicately that the products of those companies - and the artists themselves - were "of rather uncertain quality." RCA aimed to provide a higher standard of excellence by concentrating on "concert artists who have achieved wide and enthusiastic critical acclaim" but are not yet "by popular standards, the top names in their field." So Bluebird would concentrate on instrumentalists Ania Dorfmann, Ida Haendel and Byron Janis and conductors Erich Leinsdorf, Karl Böhm and John Barbirolli - most of whom have been featured on this blog.

On this concerto disc, Dorfmann is in her usual glistening form, with sturdy backing by Leinsdorf and the "Robin Hood Dell Orchestra" - that is, the Philadelphia Orchestra in its summer configuration. The session in the Academy of Music was in July 1953, with what I assume to be a patching session in RCA's New York studio a month later. The sound is quite good (much better than the current standard), well capturing the glint of Dorfmann's tone. If the Grieg is more enjoyable than the Mendelssohn, it is probably because the former is a more inspired piece. The pianist does well by both works.

Dorfmann did appear on RCA's full-price line at other times - and this present disc was elevated to Red Seal status later on. 

Ania Dorfmann in Chopin and Beethoven

Having recently posted two Chopin collections from Maryla Jonas, I thought I might present a contrasting approach to the composer from a Jonas contemporary, Ania Dorfmann, via her collection of waltzes issued on RCA Victor’s Bluebird budget label.

Like Jonas, Dorfmann did not enjoy an extensive recording career. Most of her records were made for RCA, although the Russian-born pianist did set down some items for EMI before coming to the US permanently in 1938.

You can hear the differing approaches of Jonas and Dorfmann in their renditions of Chopin’s Waltz No. 13:

The sense of unease lurking in Jonas’ playing is largely absent from the Dorfmann track. The latter artist was known for the elegance and sheen of her pianism, admirable qualities in full display throughout her collection of Chopin waltzes, which date from 1953 sessions at New York’s Town Hall.

As a bonus, I have also uploaded Dorfmann’s 1945 recording of Beethoven’s first concerto, with Toscanini and the NBC Symphony. While there is some end-of-side distortion on my pressing, the overall sound may be among the best ever afforded Toscanini, coming from Carnegie Hall rather than the cramped Studio 8-H. The more resonant sound may be one reason why the result seems less relentless than many of the maestro’s recorded output. Of course, many critics adored Toscanini in hard-driving mode, and this particular rendition has been criticized for being bland!

Dorfmann went on to record Mendelssohn, Grieg and others for RCA before joining the Juilliard faculty. I also have her Schumann-Tchaikovsky collection and hope to transfer it before too long.