JOHN
BROWNING EDITION
PREVIOUSLY
UNRELEASED RECORDINGS 1950-1965
ALBENIZ,
J.S. BACH, BARBER, BEETHOVEN, CHOPIN,
DEBUSSY, FALLA, HAYDN, HENDRIKS, MOZART, RACHMANINOV, RIMSKY-KORSAKOV, SCARLATTI
&
SCHUBERT
COMPLETE
4-CD SET ~ LIMITED EDITION
MS1124 ~ $29.95
"BUDGET
PICK OF THE MONTH"
"This
is a heart-warming selection and shows just what a powerful and impressive
musician he was...
these discs will give a strong insight into the younger Browning’s sensitive
musicianship."
MusicWeb International
2006
"...this
is a fascinating documentation of the early career of a major American
musician...it surely does provide plenty of reason to be thankful for the beauty
that he gave us."
Fanfare - January/February
2006
"...the
artistry of John Browning involved a deep understanding of the form
and harmonic richness of the music he played. He yielded to none in the true
power, musical integrity, and elegance of his artistry. The deep beauty of his
tone production was something that, once heard, was not easily forgotten. His
dignified aristocratic presence at the keyboard also made an impression on his
audiences. MSR
Classics has now come out with a handsome 4-volume tribute to this artist ... lovingly
digitally remastered...the
John Browning Edition is one historical reissue that is treasurable for a lot
more than purely historical reasons."
Atlanta Audio Society - Fall 2005
*
* *
PURCHASE
INDIVIDUALLY
MS1120
~ EDITION
VOLUME I ~ $9.95
J.S. BACH, CHOPIN & SCHUBERT
College of William & Mary - November
22, 1963, 8:30PM
Recital given in honor of President John F. Kennedy
MS1121
~ EDITION VOLUME II ~ $9.95
ALBENIZ,
BARBER, CHOPIN, DEBUSSY, HENDRIKS, ET AL.
Denver, Colorado 1950; Brussels
1958;
College of William
& Mary, 1964
MS1122
~ EDITION VOLUME III ~ $9.95
BEETHOVEN Diabelli
Variations & Sonata No.17
Austin,
Texas
1965
MS1123
~ EDITION VOLUME IV ~ $9.95
J.S.
BACH, HAYDN, MOZART & SCARLATTI
Brussels 1958; College of William & Mary,
1964
* * *
John
Browning won ardent respect during his long
career and much of it
came from admiring colleagues. He was a pianist’s pianist, an
incorruptible artist whose devotion to the music he performed demanded intense
study and restudy, in addition to the unceasing practice required to maintain
the level of virtuosity his training had afforded him.
Born in
Denver in 1933, Browning was the son of a violinist father and a pianist mother.
His studies at home began at age five. By age ten, he had made his orchestra
debut as soloist with the Denver Symphony. Summer classes with Josef and Rosina
Lhévinne preceded studies with Lee Pattison in Los Angeles and schooling at
Juilliard. At Juilliard, Browning undertook further studies with Mrs. Lhévinne
who opened for him the doors to the Russian school of piano performance, the
discipline upon which his career was built. By his early twenties, he had won
several important competitions, including the Steinway Centennial Award and the
Leventritt Competition. In 1956, he was awarded Second Prize in the Queen
Elisabeth International Music Competition in Brussels. Browning’s 1956 debut
with the New York Philharmonic attracted enthusiastic attention and led to other
important engagements.
Browning
enjoyed a little less celebrity than certain other more flamboyant pianists, but
he yielded nothing to them in musical integrity, power, deep, sumptuous tone and
technical facility. Teachers who wished their students to experience piano
artistry both elegant and ringing with truth took them to Browning performances
to hear what happens when a master plays.
