Rachmaninoff: 10 Preludes (Lugansky)

It’s not easy to think of a composer who was Chopin’s match in writing miniatures, but Rachmaninoff at least comes very close. His preludes are marvels of textural innovation, harmonic imagination, gorgeous counterpoint (Rachmaninoff’s brilliance at counterpoint is really not noticed often enough), and lyricism in all its forms -- bleak, sweeping, stark, doleful, lush. (Individual descriptions below.) Lugansky’s performances are some of my favourites. I think of him as being for Rachmaninoff what Rubinstein was for Chopin. There’s nothing bloated or forced about his style, and it manages to find a perfect middle ground between harsh, steely banginess (a bit easy too easy to slip into with Rachmaninoff) and saccharine melodrama. The melodies are clear, the counterpoint well-formed, the tempi judicious, the musical peaks and troughs clear even in the densest passages. In some passages Lugansky also reveals a gift for startling coloration. With music as naturally rich as Rachmaninoff&