Dmitri levkovich biography

CD Review

When you hear the pianist's no-nonsense tempo for the opening chords of the famous C-sharp minor Prelude, which opens this CD, you suspect a briskness in pacing to follow in the main theme: it does.

This is one of the faster versions of this warhorse you're likely to encounter, as even the middle section is taken more quickly than usual. But despite its alacrity the performance freshens up what can sound stale taken at traditional tempos.

The ensuing F-sharp minor Prelude, #1 from Op. 23, is also played relatively briskly: this is not Largo, as the composer calls for in the score, but rather more like Andante or even quasi-Moderato.

Dmitri levkovich biography

And so it goes with Ukrainian-born Canadian pianist and composer Dmitri Levkovich. He is generally quite brisk in his tempo selections for the twenty-four preludes. Only one other pianist that I know of, Sergio Fiorentino, plays them faster, but just barely: 69:56 compared with 70:47.

Typically the preludes are played in the range of 75