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Brief Review: Yevgany Sudbin - Rachmaninov Piano Concertos 2 & 3

Are the Rachmaninoff concertos the most recorded pieces of the piano repertoire? I certainly get that impression when I open Gramophone every month and see a new release of either the 2nd or 3rd. I'd suspect if you have been a recording savvy person your whole life this could get rather tiresome. Not for me, I still look forward to every new recording of these works. I will probably get bored one day. I like to think I have listened to a respectable range of recordings of the Rach 2's and 3's. For a while now, my favorite recordings have been Alexandre Tharaud for the Rach 2 (of course, excluding the absolute sublime glory of Richter's), and Denis Matsuev (with Gergiev) for the 3. I favor a Slavic, 'hammer' approach that is for sure. In my opinion, the piano has to be the dominant force by a mile, and the loud sections should be deafening.
This month saw the release of a new recording. Could it bring my bias as to how a Rachmaninoff concerto sound to its knees? Yevgeny Sudbin and the BBC Symphony Orchestra with Oramo. I have to confess before anything else, I am not overly familiar with the pianist Yevgeny Sudbin. However I have seen Oramo live on many occasions, and he is a very convincing interpreter. His conducting looks as though he is dramatically painting a modernist picture. It's fantastic. In fact, all my experiences with the BBC Symphony Orchestra have been very enjoyable. Now lets get on to the actual recording. Sudbin starts off very fast. Much more so than what I am use to. He does not go down the 'grandstand style' route of playing those eternal opening chords, like a certain Lang Lang etc would. It is much more subtle. And despite my inclination towards the loud and sensational, it really works for me. More than anything, this is because Sudbin really emphasizes the rhythm after the opening chords, and it really pulls you in. From there, his playing is of the utmost accuracy and expressiveness. The orchestra sounds silky smooth, and gives Sudbin all the dynamic breathing space and time in the world. The main thing that strikes me from listening to the first half of this CD is the full bodied-ness of the sound. No gaps, no lack of balance. How much of the credit is due to the sound engineers for this, I can't say, all I do know is that it sounds right. The finale is appropriately monumental and goose bump worthy. The thing that strikes me about Sudbin's playing is his effortless consistency. Varied, yes, but it all just fits together beautifully.
I find the 3rd Concerto on this disc ever so slightly less inspiring. It is still miles above 90% of the accounts I have heard of this piece (including Argerich), but it lacks something... It lacks the intensity of the 2nd. One should feel constantly on a knife edge in the 3rd concerto, but I am disappointing to say I don't. I have to say though... I may be in a minority with this opinion. My favorite recording, the Matsuev one, is hated by The Guardian and Gramophone, So lets see what they say about this. Anyway, back to my point. Of course, the 3rd has some really thrilling parts, but I didn't think it worked as a whole. The 2nd movement was a redeeming factor, but not quite enough.  As for the 2nd concerto, I am properly, properly impressed.
My original question was could this recording bring my bias as to how a Rachmaninoff concerto should sound to its knees? Well no. Because it largely fits in with my ideals (or the 2nd concerto does anyway). I'm very sorry if that's a disappointing answer. 
Too conclude, I think this is a must have disc for any self proclaimed Rachmaninoffarian if there is such a thing. I will absolutely make an effort to pay more attention to Sudbin's work in the future. 

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