Hey guys this is my first time posting in this forum.
First allow me to introduce myself, I live in New Zealand and I have been playing the Piano since I was 8 years old (I'm only 15 years old )
I've been playing this piece for a year and this is my very first recording
Please give me some feedbacks and advice to improve because I'm very inexperienced pianist and I know I have so many things to work on.
I'm sorry if you find this recording boring or time wasting.

Hello.
Always nice to listen to someone else play this. I still love it!
You have very capable fingers and breeze right through all the fast-finger passages. That you are only 15 years old is amazing - I am...(never mind) years old and can't play that fast. Where you can improve is the style and feeling. You play very steady almost all the way through, but there are numerous places where you can insert more passion, fire, or gentleness and sorrow. You may want to listen to a lot of professional recordings to get the idea.

Never boring to listen to someone doing a good job on a masterpiece like this ! Although it does become boring when people start submitting snapshots of their progress every few days. I hope you are not planning to do that.

This is remarkably assured and accurate playing for such a young person. Great respect !
On the bad side, the piano tune is rather horrible, and so is the recording with its frequent clipping and the funny noises at the start and beginning. And indeed there is little expression and drama. On the good side, you can keep up the drive and rhythm, and make very few mistakes. This is a great base for further development.

Some random observations:

At the great climax in the middle, your LH is a bit wimpy and fumbly. More weight and expansion here, and absolute ringing clarity. Take just a little tempo back, always a good idea at a weighty climax.

There is a strange moment as 6:08 which sounds like a either a botched edit or you jumping around on your chair, and what follows is not very convincing - the drama collapses like an deflated tyre. You need to keep on the pressure here !

At 7:08 and around 7:19 there are some reading mistakes you may want to look into.

The double scale runs are perfectly done, kudos, but do not bite them off so sharp at the end. Let then sound a little more, and/or apply a crescendo if you can.

All in all, very promising. We expect great things from you ! The bad sound quality makes this one unsuitable for the site though. Best advice, as pianolady said, is listen to great pianists' recordings, if you have not already done so, and make up your mind about what is possible for you to do with this piece. Just don't try to copy them.

Amazingly, especially considering your young age

Yes, you have very good technique, your runs are evenly and fast. There are some passages you play very lyrical, some rather static and with less expression. Beside some minor slips all the notes are there. You also came pretty good through that famous presto con fuoco part. I know what I speak about - I am too working on that piece for about 14 months now, and still will need some more

Especially the faster parts went very well. You could consider making the lyrical ones, the slow A-theme and B-theme parts e.g. more interesting. Show that it is one of the most beautiful piano pieces ever written! E.g. the part with arpeggios after the B-theme (before the A-theme comes again in another key) you could consider to play more mellow, tender, maybe slower too.
But the important message is, that technical wise you are very developed. I wish I could play the final runs of the last page that evenly and fast like you can

Hey thanks for your feedback.
I would like to know whose recording should I listen for this piece.
What do you recommend?

My favorite recording is by Ivan Moravec (the recording is from 1965, there are all Ballades and some Mazurkas on this CD). He plays with unbelievable soft touch in places, but also with fury on the climaxes.

Also the Rubinstein recording I find great (don't know whether he made several recordings in his career, this one is also from around 1960 or so).

Last but not least, the recording by M.Hawley on this site I find great too. Some wrong notes, but with tons of passion. I would be interested how you find this version.

Krystian Zimerman

I find E. Kissin's ballades to be a bit too robotic for my taste. Also I believe that Ashkenazy is also too mechanical.
But you should listen to them as well and develop a sense on how to play it and how not to play it.

I didn't really like the Ballade recording on this site, its ok, I wonder why he played in different key though. I cannot find any of pianists you mentioned in the internet, is there a site where you can download them?

Indeed it seems to be a half tone or more higher in key. It is a live recording from a competition, so I can't believe that the piano itself was that much detuned, and that upwards
Nevertheless, I do like that recording because of its passion, and by the way, everyone who records this demanding piece live finds my additional respect.

On http://classic.chubrik.ru/ you find a poor quality Rubinstein recording of that ballade, otherwise I don't know.