Rediscovering a Lost Pianist

In an era of young classical titans, whoseperformances had a wider resonance in a world that was still listening, WilliamKapell was a rising star. The American pianist’s ascent was cut short by aplane crash in 1953. He was only 31.

The last recordings he made have been locatedand collected on reDiscovered(released by Sony BMG), a two-disc set culled largely from radio broadcastsduring Australian tours in the summer and fall of his final year. I say “largely”because the producers of this set weren’t content to leave history alone. Amissing section from a performance of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 was“patched” with a recording Kapell made five years earlier. Similarly, bits andpieces missing from Mussorgsky’s TheGreat Gate of Kiev and Bach’s Suite in A Minor are plugged from othersessions, granting the performances an unnecessary illusion of seamlessness.

The Australian recordings themselves,though scratchy, can’t conceal the pianist’s formidable artistry. Kapell wasfluent on his instrument to be sure. He also sounds driven, masterfullyempathetic with the emotional as well as the technical challenges of hisconcert repertoire. Listening can be exhausting. One imagines that for Kapellthis music represented a rocky summit, a dangerous sonic Matterhornhe was determined to climb at all costs.