Liszt: Piano Concerto no1 in Eb - Jorge Bolet; Sydney Symphony Orchestra; Kurt Sanderling, conductor

in the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall, August 25, 1981
concertmaster: Donald Hazelwood/ principal viola: Laszlo Vidak/ principal cello: Al Motekaitis/ 1st flute: Susan West/ 1st oboe: Kathy Martin/ 1st clarinet: Alan Vivian/ 1st bassoon: Roger Brooke/ 1st horn: Kazimierz Machala/ 1st trumpet: John Wood/ 1st trombone: Russell Mattocks/ timpani: Barry Heywood

[@jean-mariedethier5495]

Bolet, c'est de la poésie pure. Tout ce qu'il a joué de LISZT reste incomparable, une fortune de sensibilités et de fraicheurs inégalées.

[@AlexanderArsov]

My, my, what a find! JB on video, in Liszt at that! Incomparable, as always, imbuing this overplayed, overabused and underrated concerto with dignity, nobility and charm it seldom if ever receives from other performers.

[@goldberg72]

Lui è un grande . Un suono splendido

[@salt_cots]

Gosh this is rare material and quite a find. I think this is Jorge Bolet's third tour of Australia (the previous ones being 1965 and 1977). The music critic of The Sydney Morning Herald had a memorable description of the pianist from a concert on 17 August: ‘Slowly striding on stage like some patriarchal walrus, then bending over the keyboard with the statuesque immobility of an Easter Island idol, Jorge Bolet presents a monumental image.' You get some idea of that here, too.

[@maestro15552]

I was a member of the orchestra then. He was huge and had massive hands. He was of the great romantic old school and had the air of a wise teacher. Backstage we all chatted with him at length during rehearsal breaks. He was approachable and talkative on all subjects - he had a particular hate for Fidel Castro...

[@salt_cots]

Bolet was very fond of this concerto but said in an interview that as he got older and lost the higher frequencies in his hearing, he could never hear the triangle at the start of the third movement, which made things difficult. It’s not my favourite of Liszt's compositions, but it is marvellous to hear JB in fine form here, so thank you very much indeed for uploading this. The only other film I know of him in Australia was made in 1987 at Rippon Lea House outside Melbourne and he wasn’t on the best form before the cameras with no audience.

[@nickk8416]

Thank you for your always interesting anecdotes about JB. I've been a big fan of him for years so I appreciate your contributions. @@salt_cots

[@salt_cots]

My pleasure@@nickk8416

[@marksmith3947]

So stylish and grand. I know JB is highly regarded but even so I consider him underrated.

[@stefanufer608]

Hugely underrated - so unfair

[@stefanufer608]

A huge thank you for posting this - one of my favourite pianists, caught "on the wing" - at his peak, I would venture to say

[@nickk8416]

Jorge at his best. Wonderful to see this. Thanks.

[@ivanilsonamorim9348]

Que pianista, ele se importa mais com a qualidade da música do que mostrar o seu virtuosismo, suas frases são muito autênticas. 👏👏👏👏👏

[@stefanufer608]

I love Jorge Bolet

[@yourgirlme9163]

Wow ❤❤❤

[@driemaaldrommels]

OMG!!!! What a fantasic upload! I didn't even knew this existed! Many many thanks!

[@maestro15552]

Thanks, and I hope you also enjoy other performances on my playlists.

[@pianopera]

13:10 How did the lid of the piano stay open there?

[@notmytempo464]

Ah thats rough

[@sergeihsiao4011]

what the treasure

[@danielcela8712]

Versión muy tosca.... Feo manejo del pedal. La versión de Martha Argerich es infinitamente mejor.

[@goldberg72]

Ma va va . Lui insegna l