Classical Music Discount

Thomas Adès - Piano

2008-12-20T09:07:00.000-08:00

Thomas Adès - Piano
Leos Janacek, Igor Stravinsky, Ferruccio Busoni, Gyorgy Kurtag, Niccolo Castiglioni, Alexey Vladimirovich Stanchinsky, Edvard Grieg, Conlon Nancarrow, Thomas Adès

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #189483 in Music
Released on: 2000-11-21
Number of discs: 1

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
To some, he's the dazzling prince-elect of the new-music scene; to others, he's the spoiled brat decked out in an entire wardrobe of the emperor's new clothes--and each side seems to preach to the converted. Well, whatever your take on the music of young British composer Thomas Adès, who has already written full-scale works in a stunning array of genres--from the sensitive cycle Five Eliot Landscapes to the opéra du scandale Powder Her Face and the symphony Asyla--give yourself an unprejudiced listen to Adès as performer on the recital album Piano and you'll discover yet another dimension to the musical world inhabited by the young upstart--one that holds manifold surprising delights. The most obvious is, of course, the choice of program--and kudos to EMI for backing the bold choices Adès has made--which flies against the current trend toward cozy familiarity or, at best, a mixture of chestnuts with scary unknowns. Not that this is "scary" modern music; instead, it's a gracious, beguiling manifesto for the art of the piano miniature, in modernist, postmodernist, neoclassical, even late-romantic guises. Even the familiar composers are represented by obscure works: some peasant dances of Grieg, some motley pages of little-known Stravinsky, a sonatina of Busoni.

A lot of the fun here is in allowing yourself to discover some of the gems you'll very likely never have heard before: the personality-drenched, enigmatic, Paul Klee-like "games" of Kurtág (one of Adès's early mentors) and--most of all--Alexey Stanchinsky's completely enthralling Piano Sonata No. 2, which also happens to be the longest work here, though the varying senses of time each piece unravels become positively Einsteinian as the program progresses. Adès is like a kid in a candy shop, sharing his enthusiasm with each discovery--it's the perfect merger of personalities between performer and composer. He doesn't play pyrotechnical showoff, even in the head-spinning dual-tempo feats of the Nancarrow canons concluding the disc. Rather, he seems more interested in inviting his audience to participate in each given world. Technique with insouciant energy and boundless humor--the entire recital is a blast. --Thomas May

Customer Reviews

A surprisingly successful collection of lesser-known works
The English composer Thomas Adès has been heavily promoted by EMI as the Great White Hope of British music, but his piano playing has received less attention than his composition (even though he is a former winner of the BBC's televised Young Musician of the Year). This disc is his first as pianist, and shows his eclectic range of interests, featuring lesser-known works by well-known composers (Grieg, Stravinsky, Janácek), pieces by unjustly neglected composers (Castiglioni, Stanchinsky, Busoni) and a couple of contemporary classics (Kurtág, Nancarrow).

Niccolò Castiglioni is a composer grievously underrepresented on disc, and thus any recordings of music by this eclectic Italian postmodernist are highly welcome. Adès chooses to play the composer's lighthearted suite Como io passo l'estate, a ten-minute collection of ten comparatively simple miniatures that ranges from witty neoclassicism to icy tone clusters. It's all done with a very winning lightness of touch common to much of Castiglioni's music, which raises the music above the level of so many descriptive piano suites.

Grieg's Slatter is a collection of pieces based on Telemark fiddle tunes, which the composer sought to gentrify in a piano arrangement. Fortunately, the composer has managed here to create compositions which are lively, entertaining and interesting despite a certain lack of fidelity to the original model. Adès chooses to play three of the nineteen, which is probably a wise choice as I imagine hearing all nineteen would become rather tiresome. The performance here lacks a little in lightness of touch and rhythmic vibrancy, but still brings across the essence of the pieces adequately.

Alexey Stanchinsky was one of the more extraordinary figures of early 20th-century Russian music. Declared incurably insane at twenty and dead, probably by his own hand, six years later, he left behind a small but intriguing corpus of contrapuntally intense music that lies somewhere in the huge space between Bach and mid-period Scriabin. Probably the most extraordinary of all his works is the Canon for four voices (the finest of his five Preludes in Canonic Form), a tour-de-force of contrapuntal writing that manages to combine immensely lyrical writing with strict imitative counterpoint. Also very fine is the Second Sonata, whose slow, intense first movement fugue is contrasted with a vigorous, toccata-like finale. Adès tends to rush the contrapuntal movements a little, and Nikolai Fefilov's more spacious and authentically Russian-sounding recording on Etcetera (still available from some Amazon sites) remains a first choice for both works. (Adès' performance of the Second Sonata is, however, superior to the rather pedestrian Daniel Blumenthal on Marco Polo.)

These days, György Kurtág's eclectic brand of modernism needs little introduction, and selections from his career-spanning collection of piano miniatures, Játékok, have become common features of recitals of contemporary piano music. Adès selects eight pieces in all, and though I might quibble with his inclusion of three rather childish parodies (the two Hommages and The mad girl with the flaxen hair) it's always good to hear more from this collection.

The Janácek selection is a brief one-minute squib, included, I assume, as a taster for Adès' songs-and-piano-music collection with Ian Bostridge, and not nearly as interesting as Busoni's Third Sonatina "ad usum infantis." An essay in simple, almost naïve classicism, this sequence of five brief, related movements has far more depth to it than appears on the surface. Adès' reading is appropriately intimate in scale and tone.

Three Stravinsky miniatures from the 1910s follow: Souvenir d'une marche boche is a swaggering, parodistic march, Valse pour les enfants a simple, neo-classical waltz and Piano-Rag-music an over-the-top rhythmic essay that has rather less to do with ragtime than the title might suggest.

The disc ends with Conlon Nancarrow's Three Canons for Ursula. These are late works, written after the composer had finally found interpreters who could do justice to the rhythmic complexities of his music (much of his previous work had been études for player piano). The first two canons are comparatively slow with complex, flowing rhythms somewhat indebted to jazz. The first has the two hands in tempo ratios of seven-to-five and the complex second is a four-part canon in ratios six-to-nine-to-ten-to-fifteen. In contrast, the rhythmically simpler (two-to-three) finale is a coruscating virtuoso tour-de-force.

This is a fascinating disc, and even though not all of the music here is of the highest standard there is still much to enjoy from composers both familiar and unfamiliar. If Adès' pianism is not up to bringing all the works off with equal success, this is probably in part due to the sheer variety of his musical interests and it should not take off the shine from what is a surprisingly successful collection.

Unfamiliar but highly listenable modern classical piano work
First, it's easy to recognize Thomas Ades as a master interpreter of 20th century piano classics. And it is a full span of the 20th century from the 1902-03 Norwegian Dances to Castiglioni's "How I Spend The Summer" by a composer only a year my senior, and Gyorgy Kurtag's "Jatekok".

The concert starts with Castiglioni's "How I Spend The Summer", a work that can be played by very young piano students, but is a delight to adult ears, with its mixed and playful moods.

That is immediately followed by Grieg's challenging Norwegian Peasant Dances, partly graceful and partly powerful and untamed melody and rhythm.

Neo-classicist Alexey Stanchinsky's four-part Canon and his Piano Sonata in G are extraordinary works which have been described as Bach on the left hand and Scriabin on the right. A pity this brilliant talent lived such a pitifully short lifetime.

As noted by another reviewer, the Kurtag work is a delight and very much to be listened to carefully to catch the playful allusions to Debussy, Tschaikowsky, Janacek, and (catch this) Nancy Sinatra.

Janacek's music, like Grieg's, is pure folk, composed by Janacek and played by Ades as folk without classical pretensions.

Ades continues with works by Busoni and Stravinsky, concluding with Nancarrow, another composer like Kurtag who was wildly original and humorous, apparantly matched only by Ades who performs them in like spirit.

This CD can be an introduction to modern classics, or an addition to an advanced collection. In either case, this music will be new to most listeners, and is bound to be a delight.

A composer pianist's insights.
Thomas Adès is certainly among the most original and compelling composers in today's public eye. In this recording, he demonstrates how a composer with the requisite performing skills can illuminate music in ways that might elude the "mere" performing virtuoso. But make no mistake, Adès is no mean pianist: The musical world first noticed him as a pianist when he took Second Prize in the 1989 BBC Young Musician of the Year contest.

This free-ranging recital includes no virtuoso showpieces. And most (if not all of) the pieces will be unfamiliar to most listeners. But each of them has a compelling musical purpose that Adès finds and places on display for our listening pleasure. Even the juxtaposition of pieces in the recital serves this end.

Special mention should be made of Adès' performances of the Kurtag and Nancarrow pieces. The Kurtag miniatures, from his "Playing Games" are filled with wonderful humor and poignancy that Adès obviously relishes. (Check out "The Mad Girl with the Flaxen Hair", an hommage to Debussy.) These "simple", short works are rarely performed on or off record; the current disc may be worth hearing for them alone.

The Nancarrow canons are outrageously original and slyly humorous takes on this ancient form. While not "virtuoso music", they are nearly impossible to play! But Adès does play them -- and in a way that upstages their dedicatee, Ursula Oppens (whose performance of two of them is available on another five-star disc: Music & Arts CD-4862). While Oppens seems to understand where the music is going and is a fine guide, Adès conveys the sense of knowing why the music goes where it does. So that for example, when the wild syncopations in one of the canons suddenly unfold into familiar jazz-inflected riffs, Adès finds and gets into this groove, and brings us into this familiar world for the brief moment that it lasts. Oppens, on the other hand seems more the detached observer letting it pass by.

In sum, this is a disc for anyone not afraid of the unfamiliar, who doesn't equate musical excellence with overt virtosic display.

The recorded sound is excellent, providing a warm, but very clear (essential for the Nancarrow!) acoustic.

Nancarrow: Studies for Player Piano

2008-12-20T04:10:00.000-08:00

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Nancarrow: Studies for Player Piano
From Wergo Germany

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #184634 in Music
Released on: 2000-01-11
Number of discs: 5
Format: Import

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
To speak of Conlon Nancarrow's music for player piano shouldn't be mistaken to suggest some still broader range of musical output of which the composer's piano rolls are but a subset. Quite the contrary: Nancarrow's meticulous scores--generally unplayable, at least by most primates--are the body of his life's work. This five-CD set contains dozens upon dozens of his studies, each a fairly self-contained exploration of tempo, pitch, rhythm, counterpoint--and the interaction between pairings of those core musical categories. Certainly, this is "difficult" music, hard on the ears, off-kilter in a manner that both demands attention and may repulse listeners unfamiliar with experimental composition. After initial exposure, this collection is the sort of thing that sits on the shelf for some time, before your imagination breaks its internal code. Once that code is broken, though, the vast life inherent in this "mechanical" music becomes almost intoxicating. On some of the quieter pieces, the piano's tone is similar to that of a harpsichord. On others, the palimpsest of ragtime is undeniable. Yes, some pieces seem overly chaotic, but spend some time with them and you'll see, in your mind's eye, dozens of hands working the keys. --Marc Weidenbaum

Customer Reviews

symphony of a thousand (pianos)
Imagine for a moment that you have entered a room full of slightly beat-up upright pianos. These pianos begin to come to life by sputtering out unusual, irregular melodies. The melodies don't fit together exactly, but somehow they seem right sounding together. Before you know it, there are so many pianos playing that you can't keep track of them all and they begin to accrue into an impossibly dense spray of sound. Even if you had a roomful of humans playing these pianos they wouldn't get the overwhelming, unswerving independence of each individual line in each piano. The pianos stop playing and you wonder what just happened....

Hopefully this description will give you some indication of what you're in for with these wonderful studies for player piano. Because Nancarrow was working with these mechanical instruments, he could combine complex ratios of rhythms against each other. Some are so subtle that no human could replicate them exactly. This is not to say that the music is dehumanized. It has a great deal of warmth and humor. What Nancarrow gains from the very mechanical nature of these instruments is part of the appeal.

These studies are as rugged and individual as the composer and, as mentioned earlier, Ligeti's Etudes would never have been possible without Nancarrow's wonderful music.

piano revelations.
This stuff influenced Ligeti's "Etudes" for solo piano. The music is mind-blowing.

Dizzying experiments by a brilliant maverick
A true compositional original, Conlon Nancarrow is best known for these mind-blowing pieces for player piano. Why this particular instrument? Because most of these short works are utterly unplayable by human beings, unless you are capable of say, depressing all 88 keys at the same time. While later in life Nancarrow also wrote a few small pieces for chamber ensembles, his work here is the core of his output and where his imagination truly took flight.

You may not be quite lucid after hearing something like Study No. 25, which has 1,028 notes in its final 12 seconds, or one of my favorites, the so-called "Canon X" (No. 21). It begins with two musical lines at opposite ends of the keyboard: the bass starts slowly and gradually accelerates, the treble begins in a super-fast blur of notes at the highest end and gradually descends, becoming ever-slower. In the middle of the piece, these two lines cross each other before they continue on their separate ways.

In study after study, Nancarrow explores complex relationships between meter and pitch, most of the time with absolutely astounding results. Some of these pieces are a bit more relaxed, with blues and jazz elements giving them an almost homespun quality. But soon the blizzard of notes returns, as the composer makes full use of the player piano's capabilities. You almost can't believe what you are hearing.

A word of caution: You probably don't want to program all five discs straight through. Well recorded as it is, the timbre of the instrument becomes wearing on the ear after awhile. Give your ears a break and to listen to something completely different, like Debussy, Copland -- or maybe Bob Dylan.

An essential collection for some -- I'm not sure whom! -- but something every listener should hear at least once.

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The Legendary Heifetz / Heifetz, Sandor, Bay, et al

2008-12-19T21:10:00.000-08:00

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The Legendary Heifetz / Heifetz, Sandor, Bay, et al
Isaac Albeniz, Manuel De Falla, Nicolo Paganini, Arpad Sandor, Emanuel Bay, Arthur Rubinstein

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #160634 in Music
Released on: 1999-02-09
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Perfect
The sound quality is perfect. Not "good considering...", but perfect, period. The music is marvelous. The virtuosity is stunning. Heifetz (and then Perlman) is my favorite. And then Horowitz on the piano and Sumi Jo soprano. In case you were wondering. As someone said about Midori's performance of Paganini's caprices, they knock the others into the pavement! I can't recommend this CD highly enough.

for shame!
[...]Heifetz is incomparable; everyone ought to have a disc of him playing showpieces, and I see no reason why this shouldn't be that disc. He recorded for RCA with better sound quality, but these early recordings are what made him famous. The second piece, a transcription of a Strauss song, is a model of "vocal-style" playing. This is what the violin should sound like. I was absolutely transfixed by this CD, and if you have any emotions you will be too. [...]

Wonderful recordings by the young Jascha Heifetz
These old (1920s) recordings are amazing in the modernity of Heifetz's musical conception and style, as well as in the reliability of his technique. They are among those recordings with which Heifetz created an entirely new aesthetic and technical standard for violin playing, a standard that is controlling to this day. He simply moved violin playing into the modern age. For example, the way Itzhak Perlman, Pinchas Zukerman and Hilary Hahn play violin (strong, smooth, even tone; total technical reliability; carefully restrained emotion; the complete ease and understatement with which even the most difficult passages are mastered) is simply inconceivable without the pervasive influence exerted by Jascha Heifetz. And these recordings let us witness how he did it, how he single-handedly revolutionized violin playing (and, together with Toscanin and Horowitz, classical music in general). It's great stuff, and in many ways he is better, more exciting to listen to, than all those that had the misfortune of coming after him. The review below is exceptionally silly for taking Heifetz to task for minor technical issues. When he recorded these pieces, there was no splicing, no re-recording passages that didn't work out so well, no electronic tricks. not only are these recordings essential to the history of musical interpretation, they're also simply great fun to listen to.

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The World of Ruth Crawford Seeger

2008-12-19T16:10:00.000-08:00

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The World of Ruth Crawford Seeger
Ruth Crawford Seeger, Jenny Lin, Timothy Jones

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #197776 in Music
Released on: 2002-01-29
Number of discs: 1

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Ruth Crawford Seeger had a brief life (1901-1953) and an even briefer career as a composer. After her String Quartet of 1931, she gave up composing to concentrate on folk music studies. She wrote only brief pieces for piano, and they make a difficult listening program. As soon as you become adjusted to the comfortable idiom of her early little pieces, you are plunged into music in a more advanced style. These too are little pieces, including a bold Sonata that lasts less than six minutes and a fascinating series of 11 Preludes. This disc is a fine presentation. Jenny Lin never shies away from dissonance or aggressiveness, while playing in a musicianly manner with particularly beautiful tonal qualities. Narrator Timothy Jones is clear and dignified in the text of the delightful "The Adventures of Tom Thumb," but the recording is seriously defective, underbalancing the voice so that you need to read the booklet to understand what he is saying. Overall, this is a fascinating byway in the history of American music, highly recommended to the adventurous listener. --Leslie Gerber

Customer Reviews

Nicely played and narrated too
Lin did a nice job of finding unpublished and obscure works. I especially enjoyed Tom Thumb.

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Rachmaninov: Variations on a Theme of Chopin

2008-12-19T09:11:00.000-08:00

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Rachmaninov: Variations on a Theme of Chopin
From Naxos

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #164126 in Music
Released on: 2000-01-25
Number of discs: 1

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Maurice & Marie-Madeleine Chevalier Duruflé

2008-12-19T04:11:00.000-08:00

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Maurice & Marie-Madeleine Chevalier Duruflé
From Gothic Records

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #122797 in Music
Released on: 1999-09-21
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Superb Prelude and Fugue on the name of Alain
The Prelude and Fugue on the Name of Alain is one of the great performances of French organ music. The coda of the Fugue comes at the listener as if it was materializing in another realm and processes to overwhelm the listener with its roulades of notes and its majestic conclusion. Really a knock-out.

The rest of the album is splendid - though some may not care for the acoustics of the National Shrine for Bach. But any organ afficianado is in for a real treat when it comes to Mme. Durufle's interpretation of the Prelude and Fugue

A must have for any lover of organ music
This landmark recording features the husband and wife team of French organists Maurice Durufle and his wife Madeline Durufle-Chevalier. Recorded on the Moller organs in the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in 1967, it is important in the fact that Maurice Durufle was one of the leading French composers of the mid 20th century, and his wife one of the leading organists. Originally released on vinyl in the late 60's, it has been remastered for CD, with expanded notes. Granted, the notes are for those who know music - for casual listeners, it is over their heads. But the assumption is that this is a collector's CD. There is a delicious assortment of baroque music on the first tracks, highlighting the Moller classic registration. But the best tracks are the firey French pieces played by Mdme. Durufle. She plays the Choral Improvisation on Victimae Paschali Laudes by Tournemiere, which was actually an improvisation that Msr. Durufle transcribed from a 78 rpm recording. She then finishes the album with her husband's important work, Prelue and Fugue on the name Alain. Her interpretation can only be considered the definitive. As far as the technical aspect of the CD, the recording is very clear for an AAD remastering of the original analog tapes. The clarity of the organ is almost as good as what Telarc does for organ recordings. But the spaciousness of the organ is captured very well. You FEEL like you're in the basilica. I loved this album as a young organist, and now am very pleased to find it in CD form as an adult....

Organ Duo at Their Best!
Premiere recording at the M.P. Moller organs of the Shrine of the Immaculate Concepcion, Washington, D.C. This tracks were originally recorded in 1967; this re-release reaches another generation of organists who have not yet heard the artistry of this Husband-Wife couple who both taught at the Paris Conservertoire. Unfortunately, Mr. Durufle died in 1986, and according to my information, Mme. Durufle died late in 1999. The world will miss them both. Enjoy this fine showcase for their artistry, the church itself, and the two organs in fine acoustics! Mme. Durufle is especially dynamic in her interpretation of the Prelude and Fugue on the name 'Alain', written by her husband; Jehan Alain was a classmate of Mr. Durufle's in the 1920s, and the work is written in his memory.

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Schumann: The Complete Piano Works (Box Set)

2008-12-18T21:12:00.000-08:00

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Schumann: The Complete Piano Works (Box Set)
From Nuova Era

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #179447 in Music
Released on: 2001-03-06
Number of discs: 13
Format: Box set

Customer Reviews

Schumann: the personification of the Romantic ages!

For some, Robert Schumann was the genuine personification of the XIX Century. If we analyze his entire life, surely we would be unable to find other composer more enrooted conscious or unconsciously with basic premises of this artistic movement. No other composer in that Century could shape with major vigor such level of febrile poetry, bowing phlegm, imaginative restless, fiery melodic fantasy and unequaled introspection those well known facets of his intimacy like him.

Since his stormy love affair and marriage with Clara Wieck, his terrible personal disgrace when he maimed his finger pursuing major virtuosity, until his progressive metal illness and final breakdown. But on the other hand, he anticipated by far the initial seed of the Symphonic poem, through his countless and dissected works of marked self biographical landmark or those lovable pieces dedicated to his daughter, moreover he influenced in straight line to Claude Debussy because somehow he depicted the first signals of a unthinkable musical Impressionism, but take a look around his Third Symphony for instance, Carnival for piano and his unforgettable and majestic lieder, as human being he remarked the grandness of his contemporary Chopin and torched the path for other late composers.

There have been relatively few pianist really worried for diffusing his entire work for piano with such level of vehemence and rapture.

And Demus, indeed, has been one of of them. His lavish musicality, articulated fingering and golden phrasing deserves him a very special place among the great ones at the moment to make a selected list among the most remarkable interpreters of Schumann's bequeath for the piano.

Good for the rare pieces.....but...
Overall, you will be hard up to find a more thoroughly complete two hand piano survey of Schumann's piano opus. However, for the more "popular" pieces such as the op 17, or the kinderszenen, these are decent to mediocre versions are best. They arent bad, Jorg Demus is a skilled pianist, though has always in my view been more successful in a supporting role, as evidenced by his masterful accompaniment in Dichterliebe and assorted Schubert lieder. If you are familiar with Richter's masterful Schumann interpretations-or Horowitz for many of the works, or Lupu, Argerich, these pale in comparison. If you are out for quantity-I would recommend the Ashkenazy set-though it is incomplete. Again, many of the works by schumann that you can only find here will only be of interest to the absolute Schumannaholic, which I am, but it is kind of a two way street because if you are a schumann madman, then you will know how third tier these performances truly are.

Mystery Solved
First off, thanks to WTA for his extremely thoughtful and comprehensive review, which helped me decide to purchase this Nuova Era set (his reasoning about the unlikelihood that Demus would record this huge corpus again was especially insightful).

I own the original 20-LP/6-volume Musical Heritage Society set issued between 1971 and 1973. Having seen the CD set in a store last year, I was puzzled about whether it was a transfer of these invaluable discs, which contain vast tracts of Schumann that you will be hard pressed to find elsewhere (included, for instance, are several posthumously issued works and even a few pieces played from unpublished manuscripts). WTA's review gave me enough clues to suspect that these discs were exactly what I'd been waiting for.

Having just received them, I'm happy to confirm that they are indeed the MHS performances (minus most of the four-hand works, however; see below). I instantly recognized the character of the piano sound and the recording acoustic (both much improved on CD), and a quick check of rhetorical gestures in a sonata movement that I especially value in Demus's hands showed the CD and LP versions to be identical. MHS did not always provide track timings for individual sections of the big piano suites. But where such detail exists, respective CD and LP timings are consistently mere seconds apart -- easily the result of different engineering choices for silent lead-ins and lead-outs to each track.

A further clue comes from a small note on the jewel-box tray inserts, indicating a 1989 digital remastering. I can think of no fully digital (DDD) recording that would be getting remastered so early in CD history. Anything from the '80s would almost certainly be making its first appearance in the new storage medium. Moreover, the sound has none of the hallmarks of DDD recordings (as WTA notes, for instance, Demus's recordings have detectable [but nonintrusive] background hiss).

So for all these reasons, I feel confident in declaring that this set is basically the old MHS offering. There are two sad omissions, however:

(1) The CD set includes all the solo pieces in the LP set, as well as a short, posthumously published F-minor Scherzo on CD 12 that MHS seems to have left out. Nuova Era, alas, omits the vast majority of the often-delightful four-hand works, for which Norman Shetler joined Demus (most of these items appeared in MHS's five-disc finale). The Sketches for Pedal Piano, Opp. 56 & 58, are here (perhaps because they were originally conceived for a now-forgotten solo instrument that had a pedalboard [Alkan was said to have been its greatest master]; on a modern instrument, Schumann's pedal-piano music thus takes two pianists), but -- shame on Nuova Era! -- Shetler gets no credit as the second pianist. If you'd like a fine but inexpensive tour of the four-hand output, try the three-disc VoxBox ("Schumann Complete Works For Piano 4-Hands") featuring Peter Frankl, András Schiff, et al.

(2) The CD set lacks the superb MHS album notes by Douglas Townsend. Also missing is Demus's own illuminating statement about recording these works across a span of about three years. These are thoroughly digested interpretations: Demus not only memorized every note but also played every last work in concert. Complete recordings like this one are not necessarily commercial gimmicks, as some so carelessly assert. A serious and sensitive musician who takes on such a task will uncover secrets and interconnections that only exposure to a composer's full output in a given area can progressively disclose. As Demus explains (in Herman Adler's translation from the German), "Only by knowing Schumann's creative output in its totality has it been possible to uncover fresh facets in overfamiliar standard works. [. . .] In the music of no other composer do we find as many cross-relations and associations throughout his work. Schumann likes to quote himself as well as other composers, as did, later, his French brother-in-spirit, Claude Debussy. [. . .] Only knowledge of this entire universe will result in something I would call *Stilsicherheit* (stylistic assurance)."

But let's not dwell on what's *not* here. As WTA observes, this is a deeply rewarding collection that every serious Schumann-lover will want to explore. Are these performances the last word on Schumann's poetic realm? Of course not: no such "last word" exists. The essential thing is that throughout this enormous journey, Demus never falsifies the music, and he plays with an honesty that can be far more illuminating than flashier approaches.

So, Schumann-lovers, get this set as cheaply as you can -- but one way or another, get it while you can!

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Bach: A Musical Offering BWV 1079 133/ Canons BMV 1072-78

2008-12-18T16:12:00.000-08:00

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Bach: A Musical Offering BWV 1079 133/ Canons BMV 1072-78
From Hanssler Classics

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #127729 in Music
Released on: 2000-02-29
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

A Cavalcade of Canons
This CD is a true gem. Where else can one find a collection of canons from those in the Musical offering to the obscure dedication canons Bach wrote for his friends to the 14 canons on the first eight notes of the Goldberg ground? This is the only such collection I know of. The playing is superb throughout and the recorded sound brings the ensemble into your living room. For those interested in canon this is a polished diamond.

A Bach gem-let!
"A Musical Offering" is the name of an early morning radio program here in the Bay Area [KPFA], on which Mary Berg blesses those who listen each Sunday with beautifully chosen Bachian music. She played this CD last week and I went out and bought it. I've listened thrice now, and each time it brings a smile to my face.

I'm no classical officianado, and admit to a preference for the lyrical and melodic over the dramatic and intense. This group of what would, in today's parlance, probably be thought of as "tunes", god forbid, was co-created by Bach with the recipient of his offering, king Frederick II of Prussia, himself a composer and flutist. Bach's son, CPE, was an employed musician in Frederick's court, and was asked by his boss to get his father, "old Bach", to come and play with the king's "band". Bach appeared after a long day's journey, mostly as a kindness to his son, and this music grew from a collaboration between Frederick and Bach.

I like the story and love the music, which offers up a delightful strand of seemingly disconnected melodies landing in my ears as a bounty of joyful whimsy, cast amongst flute, harpsichord/piano, violin, viola de gambo and cello, in spritely contrapunctual Bachian style. The sound quality and instrumentalists are, to my unpolished ear, stunningly sharp and clear.

I'm not sure I understand where the "Canons on the first eight notes of the aria from the Goldberg Variations" fit in to this sweet gem, but to say they seem simply an extension of the lovely, if shortish, pieces which come before. Probably I love this CD because Goldberg Variations are one of my very favorite Bach creations, having been introduced to them from a front-row folding chair in St. Chapelle, Paris.

May these musical offerings of Bach bring you the tickling merriment they brought to me, so pleasant, in fact, that I was inspired to write this first ever music review. Enjoy.

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The Early Scriabin

2008-12-18T09:12:00.000-08:00

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The Early Scriabin
From Hyperion UK

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #203926 in Music
Released on: 2007-06-12
Number of discs: 1
Format: Import

Customer Reviews

Beautiful Bargan Reissue of ASIN: B00005RT4K...
.
The Pre-Raphaelite erotic cover art is beautiful: sunflowers were the first emblem of the English Aesthetic movement--until later replacement by Wilde's green carnation. Indeed, Wilde was accused in his Oxford days of having walked down Picadilly with a sunflower in his "midaeval hand"--saucy fellow! Live up to your blue china, will 'ya?

Disc is a nice bargan reissue of discontinued ASIN: B00005RT4K.

Features include the Beethovenian-Chopinesque early-Scriabin waltzes, nocturnes, mazurkas, etc. The Sonata in the rare key of eb-minor--(cf. Sebastian Bach's prelude in said key in WTC-1)--is especially fine; likewise, the Sonata-Fantasy in g#-minor.

Scriabin also favors the deliciously fragrant bright-orange key of Db-major, and the Romantically twilight purple & silver key of f#-minor.

Bonus.
.

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Conlon Nancarrow: Quartets and Studies

2008-12-18T04:12:00.000-08:00

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Conlon Nancarrow: Quartets and Studies
From Wergo

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #176592 in Music
Released on: 2007-01-01
Number of discs: 1
Format: Import

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Encores

2008-12-17T21:13:00.000-08:00

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Encores
From RCA

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #218852 in Music
Released on: 2006-02-07
Number of discs: 1
Format: Hybrid SACD

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Grieg: Piano Music, Vol. 14

2008-12-17T16:13:00.000-08:00

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Grieg: Piano Music, Vol. 14
From Naxos

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #243798 in Music
Released on: 1996-03-26
Number of discs: 1

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Rachmaninov: Piano Music (Box Set)

2008-12-17T09:13:00.000-08:00

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Rachmaninov: Piano Music (Box Set)
From Naxos

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #65898 in Music
Released on: 2000-08-15
Number of discs: 10
Format: Box set

Customer Reviews

Filled With Brilliant, Forthright And Warmly Expressed Playing!
This recording of Rachmaninov's complete solo piano music and concertos is indeed one of the most inspiring performances by the formidable piano virtuoso Idil Biret. The overall approach conveys an in depth and musically comprehensive understanding of Rachmaninov's dramatic and powerful style. The playing of the four concertos is absorbing and their musical priorities are warmly and compassionately expressed. Biret's choosing somewhat slower tempos does tend to allow for a greater communicative element of Rachmaninov's passionate and beautifully shaped lines. However, in the second concerto Biret tends to overdue, resulting in a considerable lack of forward motion within long phrases that must flow seamlessly through the bar lines during the more poetic themes that require absolute cohesion. Biret chooses the grander of the two cadenzas, yet in such careful hands it hardly seems challenging. On the other hand, Biret's ability to play at a slower tempo enhances the two sets of preludes with greater melodic texturing and tonal warmth, conveying heightened atmospheric levels in mood and various changes in character. The 'Etudes-Tableaux'Op.33 & Op.39 offers brilliant and warmly expressed playing that purely respects the musical priorities. Biret displays well drilled execution and her interpretations are always intelligent and tasteful along with playing notable for its drama, passion and finesse. When required to perform with virtuosity and command of the instrument, Biret conjures the desperation and urgency that keeps the rhythmic writing vividly apparant within the framework: "accents slam home without rupturing the texture." Her tempos are well judged, her dynamics wide ranging. The performance of the two Sonatas opens a door that reveals the varied emotions and handling of powerful and eloquent complexities she is superbly capable of. Layer-upon-layer-building takes place becoming more pensive, tragic and immensely communicative. The playing continues to be thrillingly combustible, imaginative and involving. The slow movements are filled with admirable clarity and confidence remaining clear-sighted and musicianly. Biret eases her way through both works with a deftness that belies their difficulties. The 'Variations on a Theme of Chopin' based on the well known Prelude in C minor, cast in a solemn mood is followed by twenty-two variations. Biret effectively conveys the varying complexities which explore contrapuntal embellishments, cross rhythms, characteristic romantic moods, tingling temperament and glowing ardor. Biret vividly defines the strongly marked rhythm as the work leads to its conclusion in chords. Throughout this recording Biret offers performances that are both incisive and refined in every department. She is eclectic, reflective and always powerful. Each performance is marked by remarkably clear textures and atmospheric ingenuity. Whether persuasive, compelling or infuriating the playing is always remarkable for its emotional scope, athletic agility, jaw-dropping delicacy and heart-warming magnificence throughout. Biret's way with these pieces is intense and probing, nearly always interesting and is among the most individual you will come across on disc or on the concert stage. She performs as an artist with ideas and the resources to execute them in grand style.

Author: Raymond Vacchino M.Mus. A.Mus. L.R.S.M. Licentiate (honorary)

Essential Rachmaninoff at a good price.
Buy this box set. Biret is great. She plays Rachmaninoff straight up and doesn't taint the compositions with any wild "interpretations." And the recording quality is five star, too. I bought this in order to snag some lesser known Rachmaninoff that I loved (Cinq Morceaux, Moments Musicaux, etc.) and I really got what I paid for. Take a look at the huge tracklist - this is the Rachmaninoff you've been missing out on.

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Schuman: Complete Piano Trios Vol. 2

2008-12-17T04:14:00.000-08:00

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Schuman: Complete Piano Trios Vol. 2
From MD&G Records

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #206028 in Music
Released on: 2000-08-22
Number of discs: 1

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Conlon Nancarrow: Studies for Player Piano (arranged for Chamber Orchestra) / Piece No. 2 for Small Orchestra / Trio / Sarabande & Scherzo

2008-12-16T21:14:00.000-08:00

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Conlon Nancarrow: Studies for Player Piano (arranged for Chamber Orchestra) / Piece No. 2 for Small Orchestra / Trio / Sarabande & Scherzo
From RCA

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #250816 in Music
Released on: 1993-07-13
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Beautiful
The previous reviewers said enough about Nancarrows history so that I won't touch on it. I like the orchestrated versions of the player piano pieces much more than the originals, they're more emotional, have greater dynamics, are less robotic (they swing at times) and the variety of timbres adds a lot to the listening experience. What were originally studies are now fully realized pieces. Perhaps not groundbreaking in the way the originals were, but so what. The beauty of Nancarrows' melodic and sometimes humorous music is really brought out by the orchestration. Very nice.

mostly worthless
I couldn't get into this CD. I've heard some of Nancarrow's piano pieces and found them interesting, but when taken to a larger scale with an orchestra or ensemble, it sounds formless, senseless, and lazy. The piano trio is alright, but not worth getting the CD for.

Something to behold
Certainly a departure from his work on the player piano, these are very delicious arrangements of some of his most interesting studies. It was one of my first forays into the world of "serious music" and i have, frankly, never listened to anything, anything, quite the same ever again. I had had no idea music could be like this, like what it sounds like inside my mind. If you are even looking at this page, there is some curiousness; become its slave, and buy this here cd. There is no way you could regret it, even if you do.

Grieg: Lyric Pieces; Peer Gynt Suite No. 2

2008-12-16T16:14:00.000-08:00

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Grieg: Lyric Pieces; Peer Gynt Suite No. 2
From Naxos

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #281521 in Music
Released on: 2000-10-05
Number of discs: 1

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Organ Encores

2008-12-16T09:15:00.000-08:00

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Organ Encores
From Dorian Recordings

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #277940 in Music
Released on: 1993-08-02
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

An envious organ student below I'd say......
How can one compliment Jean Guillou with one comment, and then tell buyers that these performances are "not authentic"?
Tell that dribble to Horowitz, Lizst, or Toscanini, because those are the kind of artists Jean Guillou ranks with.

Listeners, please explore the audio samples and discover one of our great living artists - Jean Guillou.

Historic Organs of Connecticut

2008-12-16T04:15:00.000-08:00

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Historic Organs of Connecticut
From Organ Hist. Society

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #272995 in Music
Released on: 1997-12-16
Number of discs: 4

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Fireworks (Box Set)

2008-12-15T21:15:00.000-08:00

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Fireworks (Box Set)
From Dorian Recordings

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #295576 in Music
Released on: 1996-01-23
Number of discs: 3
Format: Box set

Schumann, Bruch

2008-12-15T16:15:00.000-08:00

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Schumann, Bruch
From Cavi-Music

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #319249 in Music
Released on: 2008-06-10
Number of discs: 1

Editorial Reviews

Album Description
Sabine Meyer, a member of the Trio di Clarone, is a worldwide star on the clarinet. This release features lesser-known Bruch works for clarinet.

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Inaugural Recital

2008-12-15T09:16:00.000-08:00

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Inaugural Recital
From Delos Records

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #318947 in Music
Released on: 2002-01-08
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Top-rate Organ recording.
This is by far the best recording of an organ I have heard. Credit is due to four virtuosi: the organist, David Higgs, of course... but also the designer of the fabulous Fisk tracker, and Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, the architects of Dallas's Morton H. Meyerson Hall; and finally, but not least, the genius of the recordists in using (if I remember the notes correctly) only two microphones. All four components got it right - a feat that is rarely accomplished.

All the tracks are simply superb. Best of them all, however, is Track 9, The Primitives, from Calvin Hampton's suite of Five Dances. It is a scintillating masterpiece with a strong 16' reed component that revolves like a string of DNA -- and shows off in integrated perfection, the organist, instrument, hall and recording. It is a daring piece that could draw attention to and exaggerate flaws in the acoustics, but there are none.

Absolutely recommended.

You can't go wrong
The combination of instrument, music, and player is outstanding. This recording will give you hours of pleasure. I recommend it heartily!

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Player Piano 5: Conlon Nancarrow Vol. 3 - Studies 33-41c

2008-12-15T04:16:00.000-08:00

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Player Piano 5: Conlon Nancarrow Vol. 3 - Studies 33-41c
From MD&G Records

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #271636 in Music
Released on: 2008-01-08
Number of discs: 1

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Brahms: Theme and Variations, Sarabandes, Gavottes, Gigues, Canons, Rakoczy March, Impromptu, Landler, Scherzo

2008-12-14T21:16:00.000-08:00

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Brahms: Theme and Variations, Sarabandes, Gavottes, Gigues, Canons, Rakoczy March, Impromptu, Landler, Scherzo
From Naxos

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #332671 in Music
Released on: 1994-07-26
Number of discs: 1

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Schumann: Complete Organ Works

2008-12-14T16:17:00.000-08:00

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Schumann: Complete Organ Works
From MD&G Records

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #298249 in Music
Released on: 1996-03-19
Number of discs: 1

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Rachmaninov: The Early Piano Works

2008-12-14T09:17:00.000-08:00

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Rachmaninov: The Early Piano Works
From Hyperion UK

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #343819 in Music
Released on: 1993-11-12
Number of discs: 1
Format: Import

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Muzio Clementi: Piano Works, Box 2, Vols. 10-18 (Box Set)

2008-12-14T04:17:00.000-08:00

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Muzio Clementi: Piano Works, Box 2, Vols. 10-18 (Box Set)
From Arts Music

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #313944 in Music
Released on: 2003-01-01
Number of discs: 9
Format: Box set

Customer Reviews

A Lot of Charming Clementi
These days, Clementi seems best known for his six Op. 36 sonatinas, which are included in this collection (as disc 12). Long-forgotten is his role as virtually THE first keyboardist who composed exclusively for piano, as well as his later piano-building enterprise. Once deemed Mozart's equal in improvisation by an Emperor, and the editor and publisher of numerous works by Beethoven, this composer of 110 sonatas (think late Mozart sonatas, rather than Beethoven sonatas) is still largely ignored, even after some championing by Horowitz for a time.

This nine disc set, a companion to the nine-disc Vol. 1 also recorded by Pietro Spada, aims to change that and puts forth the second half of virtually everything by Clementi. As such, it is not possible to review all of the music here. Nevertheless, some broad remarks may be made.

First, it should be noted that the discs in this set are also available individually. So if $110 seems a daunting price, one may graze the discs separately. Each runs about an hour. Additionally, there are a number of piecemeal recordings of different sonatas out there, including some by Horowitz. But since there is nothing definitively famous by Clementi, except perhaps his six Sonatinas, there's something very much to be said about having a complete collection by a single performer.

Second, it must be noted that the sound quality is a bit spotty at times. There's a kind of stuffy-nose tone on Disc 11 that can be a bit obtrusive. For example, the op. 34, no. 2 sonata's opening movement sounds suspiciously tinny. Perhaps Disc 11 is not enough to be a deal-breaker for the whole set, but certainly audiophiles will not be able to "hear around it" to get at the admittedly not uninteresting sonatas included on the disc; definitely a shame that these pieces should perhaps go overlooked for that reason, since the Op. 34 sonatas may be precisely the ones Horowitz was referring to when he declared Clementi as sometimes equal to Beethoven at his best.

Musically, Clementi dwells, stylistically and happily, between Mozart and Beethoven, oscillating smoothly from Classical to Romantic (as Beethoven did, but less extremely so). His sonatas are certainly "meaty," and generally run around 15 minutes, with a broad range of pianistic sentiments, expressions and charm. But perhaps what makes them most enjoyable is their liveliness. While self-evidently "Classical era" music, this is not Northern European Classical per se (Mozart, Haydn, early Beethoven); the verve of late Italian Baroque is still very much felt here. It is, more precisely, a Classicism that has not entirely foregone affective musical elements in favor of form.

The music is also, comparatively speaking, very easy to play, while nevertheless being trickier than a lot of Mozart at times. This is one reason it is not much recorded, and certainly not in a complete cycle like this. In fact, the six Sonatinas are best known precisely because countless piano students have essayed one or all of them in their graduating difficulty.

Which brings up one of the most wonderful things about this collection. Spada performs these pieces with an immense degree of good sense. Or perhaps the truth is that this is as far in the piano repertoire as he can go. If so, then thank goodness for it, since it is completely wonderful to hear a pianist not trying to turn these pieces into grand concert hall works by applying warp-speed tempos and a too-precious technique. These are not virtuosos pieces, and needn't be played as such, for the same reason that Bach's tiny Minuet in G Major should not be turned into a virtuoso showpiece either.

This is nowhere so perfectly apparent as on Disc 12, which presents all six of the famous Sonatinas. Presented with grace, simplicity, and all of the charm of a student recital (in the best and most accomplished sense of the word), Clementi's most-played, least-recorded pieces are given a wonderful airing. If, indeed, the Sonatinas are the only pieces you know by Clementi, then the recordings here will not only be rewarding, but might certainly tempt one to check out the rest of his body of work.

Elegance without conceit, charm without gush, simplicity without simple-mindedness--Spada brings out the most elemental, basic joys to be found in music that Clementi himself wrote into his works. One cannot compare him to the titanism of Beethoven's loftiest sonatas, or the structural genius of Mozart, but neither was he aiming for it. There's a sweetness and fanfare to his music that is just plain good-natured, something like the kind of big-hearted humanness in Schubert (with the emotional outbursts in a more restrained register, however). Or, putting it another way, in almost fourteen discs (in Vol. 1 and 2), there are only three sonatas in a minor key.

Overall, while it's easy enough to imagine these many pieces being played better, it's very difficult to imagine them being played more ideally.

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Babbitt: Piano Music Since 1983

2008-12-13T21:18:00.000-08:00

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Babbitt: Piano Music Since 1983
From Composers Recordings

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #326451 in Music
Released on: 1997-05-20
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

thank you, martin (and milton!)
These are remarkable performances of stunningly beautiful pieces. Emblems and Canonical Form rank among high among my favorites. Stop reading, and just buy it!

12 tone music with a differance
Babbitt is 12 tone music with a differance.Every now and then an fmajor triad might pop out of the blue (tutti le corde, at 2:52) leaving the playful chatter reeling in a state of shock.it's delightful stuff,but difficult as well....you need to listen attentively and mr.Goldray is a superb guide,delighting in the delicate,playful interplay of lines.
The disc comes with blissfully humane programme notes by Fred Everett Maus, a reaction against the overly arcane writings of the composer himself, which have done so much to sabotage his success as a composer.

Let this music engage you. Beautiful or not, it may hook you
It is hard to disagree that beauty is in the ear of the listener or that not all art is about beauty. Either way, this music is not for everyone. I for one happen to love it and want to get to know it better. I do not read scores as I listen or know enough about music theory to distinguish one form of serialism from another. But when I *listen* to this music, it grabs my attention--demands it--and engages me. I like what I hear; it sounds something like this:

Canonical Form (1983): First, rumbling. Then scurrying in short bursts, forming a foamy kind of glowing, neon effervescence in a black sea. A series of island-like, long bundles of such effervescence with differing colors or forms of lights-I see a bundle of lights, brief blackness, another bundle, blackness, etc. Each island is clearly meant to be experienced as a separate movement or section within the piece. Intense, fine, spare beauty. A kind of Zen simplicity seems to emerge from these complex sets of brilliant dots of light.

Emblems (1989): Subtly different. A bit sharper, edgier, more demonstrative. More fidgety; less foamy display of lighted collectives of notes. Events feel more isolated from one another, harsher. As in "Canonical Form," this comprises more texture than line or harmony. Where "Form" had the feel of a filmy texture, this is more like a series of rips or tears in an underlying texture. But through the course of the piece, the edges of events tend to become softer. Events seem to grow closer to one another and, slowly, seem to run into one another more and more, creating ever longer segments of running notes. Such change is imperceptible at any point in the piece.

Preludes, Interludes, and Poslude (1991): Mischievous, coquettish, teasing. Sparkling needle pricks with warm, glowing auras around them. Spare, but overall, the music is more bright than dark. Energized, but without apparent movement or development. Crystalline, funkless jazz; very pure, as though concentrated.

Tutte le Corde(1994): Cells of timbre-color juxtaposed vertically and horizontally. Each cell is a flash of sound, a few notes in a brief, cool/quick or warmer/steady sequence. Spare, but total silence never occurs; resonances of one cell replace those of the cell before. No apparent movement or development. Overall effect is one of intense activity in silence, of heat surrounded by so much cool that you see the heat, but never feel it.

Maybe Kandinsky felt this way when he was trying to explain how his mid-career abstractions were simply visual analogs of the ultimate abstract art--music. This may not be everyone's cup of tea. But however Babbitt achieves these effects, I'll be back to get more. I'm hooked. Solo piano seems an ideal medium in which to experience them.

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Player Piano 3: Conlon Nancarrow Vol. 2 - Studies 13-32

2008-12-13T16:18:00.000-08:00

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Player Piano 3: Conlon Nancarrow Vol. 2 - Studies 13-32
From MD&G Records

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #271434 in Music
Released on: 2007-04-24
Number of discs: 1

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Organ Classics

2008-12-13T09:18:00.000-08:00

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Organ Classics
From Asv Living Era

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #489627 in Music
Released on: 2004-07-27
Number of discs: 1

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Robert Schumann: Complete Piano Works, Vol. 2 - Jörg Demus

2008-12-13T04:19:00.000-08:00

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Robert Schumann: Complete Piano Works, Vol. 2 - Jörg Demus
From Nuova Era

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #543763 in Music
Released on: 1999-06-15
Number of discs: 1

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Schumann: Piano Trios Vol.2

2008-12-12T21:19:00.000-08:00

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Schumann: Piano Trios Vol.2
From Naxos

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #381205 in Music
Released on: 2000-03-14
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Engaging performances, but the pieces are weak
For a great composer, Schumann has only a few works that rank as masterpieces among his chamber music output, principally the Piano Quartet and Quintet. Here, in their second CD of Schumann's Piano Trios, we get assured, relaxed readings from the Vienna Brahms Trio. But the main work here, Trio No. 3 Op. 110, dates from Schumann's drastic mental and physical decline. The first movement has moderate energy and a lovely theme, yet it doesn't develop with the power of imagination that early-to-middle period Schumann has. After that, things go downhill quickly. The slow movement is simple, centered around an almost-memorable melody, but the Scherzo is feeble and the finale downright weird--I defy anyone to figure out what Schumann intended.

Likewise, the Fantasiestucke are average works at best, nowhere near Schumann's inspired line of fantasy in his piano music, and the six Pieces in canonic form Op. 56, though not part of the composer's decline, are a bit academic, pleasant at best. I love Schumann, but these works didn't strike me as worth more than one listen.

More Great Chamber Music by Schumann
The Vienna Brahms Trio pick up where they left off, after recording Schumann's Piano Trios Op.63 and 80 (Vol.1). Volume 2 is also well-performed and recorded. Schumann surely wrote some lovely chamber music, as evidenced by the three works here. The Trio in G minor, Op.110, is a work of lyrical beauty. The other two works are equally delightful. No lover of the gifted Schumann would want to do without these modern digital recordings at a bargain price.

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Historic Organs of Baltimore

2008-12-12T16:20:00.000-08:00

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Historic Organs of Baltimore
From Organ Hist. Society

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #488497 in Music
Released on: 1995-09-26
Format: Box set

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Für meine Clara

2008-12-12T09:20:00.000-08:00

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Für meine Clara
From Winter & Winter

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #438102 in Music
Released on: 2006-02-13
Number of discs: 1
Format: Import

Editorial Reviews

Album Description
This CD presents two highlights of the German Romantic repertoire, works written by Robert Schumann for his beloved wife Clara. The quintet, dedicated to Clara, and the canons were part of the permanent repertoire she played until the end of her career. Especially in the quintet, with its difficult and almost solistic piano part, Clara could show her extraordinary skills as one of the most famous pianists of her time. The canons for three hands were the result of Clara and Robert studying both counterpoint and fugues by Bach. During Mendelssohn’s visit to the Schumann household in Dresden in 1845, the couple played the pieces to the great joy of Bach’s re-discoverer. Op. 56 is one of Schumann’s most unknown compositions. This may be due to the fact that it was originally written for a pedal pianoforte, a specially prepared piano for practicing organ pieces. Federica Valli and Lorenzo Ghielmi have recorded Op. 56 on a special Graf pianoforte at the Villa Medici. La Gaia Scienza is a chamber ensemble that has made numerous acclaimed recordings on Winter & Winter, performing on historic instruments in a historic building. Keyboardist Lorenzo Ghielmi began his international career with Il Giardino Armonico.

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Great Organ of the Stadkirche Winterthur

2008-12-12T04:21:00.000-08:00

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Great Organ of the Stadkirche Winterthur
From Oehms

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Amazon Sales Rank: #871434 in Music
Released on: 2005-12-27
Number of discs: 1
Format: Import

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Bach 2000: The Complete Bach Edition (Includes Commemorative Book) (Box Set)

2008-12-11T22:21:00.000-08:00

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Bach 2000: The Complete Bach Edition (Includes Commemorative Book) (Box Set)
Various performers, Various ensembles, Giovanni Antonini, Gustav Leonhardt, Ton Koopman, Harnoncourt, Alice, Gritton, Robin

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #417440 in Music
Released on: 1999-09-14
Number of discs: 153
Formats: Box set, Limited Edition

Editorial Reviews

Album Description
Volume 1, 15 Discs
Sacred Cantatas Nos. 1-14, 16-47; 15 CDs; Harnoncourt/Leonhardt

Volume 2, 15 Discs
Sacred Cantatas Nos. 48-52, 54-69, 69A, 70-99; 15 CDs; Harnoncourt/Leonhardt

Volume 3, 15 Discs
Sacred Cantatas Nos. 100-117, 119-140,143-149; 15 CDs; Harnoncourt/Leonhardt

Volume 4, 15 Discs
Sacred Cantatas BWV 150-159, 161-188, 192, 194-199; 15 CDs; Harnoncourt/Leonhardt

Volume 5, 11 Discs
Secular Cantatas App. Sacred Cantatas; 11 CDs; Koopman, Harnoncourt, Koopman, Goebel and others

Volume 6, 14 Discs
The Sacred Vocal Works Masses,Magnificat, Passions, Oratorios; 14 CDs; Harnoncourt, Koopman, Corboz and others

Volume 7
, 7 Discs
The Motets, Chorales & Songs Kirnberger Chorales,Schemelli Songs, Quodlibet

Volume 8, 16 Discs
The Organ Works; 16 CDs; Ton Koopman

Volume 9, 11 Discs
The Keyboard Works (I) The Well-Tempered Clavier, English & French Suites, Partitas etc; 11 CDs; Curtis, Ross, Wilson, Ruzickova

Volume 10, 11 Discs
The Keyboard Works (II) Goldberg Variations, Toccatas, Fugues, Italian Concerto, etc; 11 CDs; Staier, Barchi, Leonhardt, von Asperen, Baumont, and others

Volume 11, 13 Discs
The Chamber Music Violin Sonatas & Partitas, Flute Sonatas, Works for Lute, Art of Fugue, Musical Offering, etc; 13 CDs; Harnoncourt, Pianca, Tachezi, Brggen, Zehetmair, and others

Volume 12, 10 Discs
The Orchestral Works The Concertos & Orchestral Suite; 10 CDs; Il Giardino Armonico, Harnoncourt, Leonhardt

Amazon.com
The Bach renaissance--which began in earnest in the early 19th century thanks to the efforts of Felix Mendelssohn and others--inspired an endeavor of far-reaching significance. It led to the founding of the Bach Society in 1850, with the goal of gathering and publishing the composer's complete works, and thus set into motion one of the great projects of musical scholarship. That effort has continued and been refined throughout the 20th century, ultimately influencing not only our perception of how to perform early music but fundamental ideas of musical history, evolution, and reception as well.

Teldec's mammoth Bach 2000 box set represents a kind of culmination of that original attempt to come to terms with Johann Sebastian Bach's unparalleled legacy. This set brings together performances recorded over the last several decades--a small percentage of the recordings are previously unreleased--of all the extant works determined by modern scholarship to be authentic. There are also some pieces the authorship of which is still in question and a few now deemed "inauthentic" but familiarly associated with the composer. Bach was a prodigious reviser of his compositions, and alternate versions of a particular work have been included "where the changes seemed sufficiently important," such as the glorious Magnificat. No doubt manuscripts will continue to be unearthed here and there in various archives (Bach 2000 contains, for example, the "Neumeister chorales," which were rediscovered in 1984), but the set does not represent the many fragments of music that consist of just a few bars; however, there are some reconstructions of lost concertos (such as one for three violins reconstructed by Christopher Hogwood from an extant concerto for harpsichords).

Of course a truly comprehensive recorded edition of every note Bach wrote remains a utopian impossibility--about one-third of his cantatas, for example, have not survived. Even so, the dimensions of Bach 2000 are staggering. With its 12 boxes comprising 153 CDs, the set can be compressed into fewer boxes to save shelf space yet is still about ten times as long as the Ring cycle. (It should be noted that the packaging--using thin cardboard sleeves for the CDs--is distinctively unattractive.) That adds up to just under 160 hours of music--but a lifetime of discovery. Each box (grouped according to genre) contains a booklet with excellent notes on individual works and--for all the choral works--texts and translations. Tracking indexes are useful and thorough. Also included is a profusely illustrated hardbound volume of 24 Inventions, in which journalist Wolfgang Sandberger uses the composer's biography as a peg for some enigmatic and fascinating musings on the meaning of Bach today.

The presiding philosophy behind this project and its approach to musical interpretation can be largely ascribed to Nikolaus Harnoncourt, a true musical pioneer and galvanizing force of the "period performance" movement. Harnoncourt's epoch-making recordings of the sacred cantatas (using, for instance, boy sopranos and choristers according to the practice in Bach's time) with the Concentus musicus Wien and colleague Gustav Leonhardt comprise the first four volumes here (those who already own them can turn to the Bach 2000 Light edition, which contains everything sans the cantatas). These recordings--which were not remastered for this set--have long been controversial and are notably uneven, embracing some magnificent accounts as well as others that lack fire and seem clearly underrehearsed. But Harnoncourt is one of the most fascinating conductors of our era, and his interpretations amply bear out his assertion: "I have never felt that Bach worked in a routine manner, that he repeated himself in his works." Harnoncourt--who has articulated many of his ideas in his book The Musical Dialogue--displays his gifts as a cellist in a remarkably probing performance of the Cello Suites (originally recorded in 1965) and in his concertizing for a number of chamber works. For the St. Matthew Passion, you get Harnoncourt's groundbreaking earlier account from 1970, while his 1986 recording of the sublime B Minor Mass is also represented here (the St. John Passion included is Harnoncourt's 1995 acount).

Other artists included are colleague Gustav Leonhardt, whose thoughtful if occasionally dry harpsichord artistry is heard in the Goldberg Variations as well as in the concertos and chamber music. The harpsichord is in fact used throughout in preference to piano for the keyboard works. Ton Koopman (himself the conductor of an ongoing complete cantata series and of the Easter Oratorio included here) performs the organ works, including some newly recorded offerings, while Il Giardino Armonico's well-known high-energy account represents the Brandenburg Concertos. Violinist Thomas Zehetmair is exceptionally compelling in the unaccompanied sonatas and partitas, and the Concentus musicus Wien--again under Harnoncourt--perform a superb Musical Offering that richly repays frequent listening.

The result of Bach 2000 as a whole is an aptly encyclopedic grappling with the infinite legacy of this most compendious of composers, whose works are on one level a summation of all the styles available to him. Bach was once thought to represent a "terminal point" (to use Albert Schweitzer's famous formulation), the end of an era; today he is at least equally recognized as a fertile source of inspiration for composers since. To be sure, individual recordings of particular works will be found to be preferable, and it would be misguided to consider Bach 2000 any kind of "final" or "definitive" word. Instead, it's an indispensable starting point that represents a monumental achievement for our own contemporary understanding of Bach. --Thomas May

Customer Reviews

Bach is priceless
I believe, as another reviewer has stated, Bach's music may be the best ever written. Also, I think the cantatas are not where Bach placed his heart and soul. He was, after all, employed as a canter and in a position he did not wish for, but was forced to take to feed his large family. (I recommend "Bach and the High Baroque" lecture series by TTC.) What really stands out on this collection are all works in volumes 8 and above. Some of these works are hard to find and having them all in this collection and preformed on original instruments is great. Bach is priceless and so then is this collection.

Buy the works you like....
If you love Bach, which you must if you are looking at this particular item, you probably own a couple of his works already. Perhaps some of them are on the Teldec label. There is nothing wrong with Teldec if you are just getting into "classical" music. You will probably enjoy the music thoroughly. I know I did, as one of the first "classical" releases I bought was on Teldec, and it was Bach. I was amazed how great Bach was. Then my brother showed me the same recording, performed by another group, on another label. It had a lot more passion, and the instrumentalists were obviously of a higher level. Pardon my rambling, but what I'm trying to say is, the recordings found in this boxset are not the "cream of the crop." They are perfectly acceptable, easily listenable renditions of what many consider the greatest music...EVER. Take it from me, someone who has leapt into boxset land one too many times: Save your money, buy the individual albums. Take your time, talk to record store clerks (read Amazon reviews), do your research. If you are lucky enough to have a decent record store around, listen to multiple versions of the same work. No one said you had to buy it all at once. It can take a lifetime to fully realize the potency of this music, so enjoy the discovery as long as possible.

Poor Bach
In Antony & Cleopatra, Shakespeare wrote: "I shall see some squeaking Cleopatra boy my greatness...."

I am 99% in favor of original instrument performances, but there are limits. Just imagine if we had the same sort of thing going on with Shakespeare's plays -- men and boys playing all of the women's parts. And if we *really* wanted to be original, they would be squeaking boys "I' th' posture of a whore" (Shakespeare's words). Such performances would knock Monty Python
right out of business.

The Cantatas, which are the lion's share of this collection, are sung by boys, boys, boys. If you want to ruin boy choirs for yourself, then go for it. It might still be a novelty by the fifth CD but by the fiftieth, you will want to throw your [...] wig at the squeaking speakers, just as the exasperated Bach famously did with his own wig and his own boy choir. (For which he was reprimanded.)

Does Harnoncourt really, honestly think that Bach would have picked a boy choir if he could have had women? Does anyone seriously believe that Shakespeare would have preferred his parts played by boys instead of women?

If you buy this set, don't buy it for the Cantatas, unless (unlike Bach) you can tolerate immature voices with "wig-tossingly" inconsistent intonation. Hold out for Suzuki or Koopman. Stay away from the Richter performances, mostly because the recording quality is second and third rate by today's standards. Not that historical performances should be shunned, but you might want to think twice about 60 odd CDs worth of second rate sound.

Robert Schumann: Märchenerzählungen

2008-12-11T10:22:00.000-08:00

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Robert Schumann: Märchenerzählungen
From Hanssler Classics

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Amazon Sales Rank: #678175 in Music
Released on: 2004-08-01
Number of discs: 1
Format: Import

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Time Tracks

2008-12-11T05:22:00.000-08:00

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Time Tracks
From Albany Records

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #601414 in Music
Released on: 1996-11-19
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Admirable playing of an odd mix of music
Some programming courage was required for this disk,including this odd mix of Beethoven,Granados and Cardew all under one roof. Golan's playing is admirable and it's a shame she doesn't record more. There is no shortage of music. Cardew(who died mysteriosly in a road accident in December 1981) had an intimate realtionship with the piano,he played and recorded frequently himself. These pieces here are excerpts from his fascinating 1973 "Piano Album" a piece of conceptual subversion intended as materials to be played at political functions rallies,mass meetings and "duus" or parties.Cardew limited his imagery to Chinese and Irish revolutionary material to either arrange or impart original commentary. It is indeed a revolutionary idea in music to create in this way."Father Murphy" refers to a priest when the French occupied Ireland around 1789,he was a sympathizer and Cardew has a simple B-minor melody that is put through one single virtuosic variation of broken triadic triplets. "The Croppy Boy" refers to the young Irish revolutionists who closely cropped their hair,as a symbol of their rebellion,not unlike the spiked multi-colours today,here the music has gorgeous rolling chords from the lower depths,where the melody slowly emerges from these thick blankets of sound. These pieces are like miniature tone poems. Golan's Beethoven is well refined, and again it is odd to have this mix."For Cornelius" again was a in memorium piece by Alvin Curran, an American now living in Italy. This is Satie-like,almost as if Curran had lived in the north of London for a while to absorb the strong influence of Satie and Morton Feldman,prevalent amongst British composers.

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Historic Organs of Pennsylvania

2008-12-10T21:22:00.000-08:00

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Historic Organs of Pennsylvania
From Organ Hist. Society

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Amazon Sales Rank: #761127 in Music
Released on: 2005-12-27
Number of discs: 4

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The Early Scriabin

2008-12-10T16:23:00.000-08:00

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The Early Scriabin
Stephen Coombs

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #498032 in Music
Released on: 2001-12-11
Number of discs: 1
Format: Import

Customer Reviews

A Very Fine Disc.
This is a superb disc of exquisite music expertly realized. Yes, some early Scriabin is Chopinesque yet wholly original--and in some instances better still. Echoes of Beethoven also abound. Really, one can't go wrong with this disc on the gourmet Hyperion label. Love the Victorian erotic cover art, too.

Oh Please!
I agree with Meray Wastwater's expert opinion. This stuff is just awfull and Coombs stinks.

O! Keep in the middle of the road?
Seeing as no-one else will ever review this CD, I have decided to do so. People interested in this CD will probably be pianists so I address this review towards pianists. So if you are not a pianist with a particular soft spot early scriabin, you are excused from this page.

The pieces here are Chopin-esque. The waltzes in particular sound as though Scriabin realised how similar they were to Chopin and shifted a note up here and down there to make it his own. They are charming trifles.
...

But now I am stuck. For I can't remember much about the rest as it was not memorable. God knows why Coombs took on the Etude which apparently makes one temporarily 'feel like God'. Just listen to Pletnev, Richter... I can imagine Rachmaninov snorting at him for being too 'musical', a euphemism he used for people disguising lack of technique with 'musicality.' If you find the programme appetising or you're Coombs No.1 fan, then maybe you'll want this. Otherwise, try Hamelin's complete Scriabin sonatas instead.

101 Piano Masterpieces

2008-12-10T09:42:00.000-08:00

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101 Piano Masterpieces
From ZYX

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Released on: 2008-02-26
Number of discs: 10

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The Complete Piano Music of Sergei Rachmaninov

2008-12-10T04:42:00.000-08:00

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The Complete Piano Music of Sergei Rachmaninov
From Hyperion UK

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #312852 in Music
Released on: 1993-09-01
Number of discs: 8
Formats: Box set, Import

Customer Reviews

Endless pleasure
Fortunately for my pocketbook, I listen to these recordings now mostly from my iTunes library or on my iPod. I say fortunately because I would have long since worn them out. Few of my hundreds of CDs have given me as much pleasure over many years as these. I don't doubt that one can find individual performances of many of these works that may top Shelley's, but for sheer, consistent quality in both interpretation and sound this set is hard to beat. While I have many Rachmaninov recordings by Russian performers, I find myself coming back to Shelley's by preference most of the time. Only in the case of Alexis Weissenberg's characteristically manic DG performance of the two piano sonatas do I find myself regularly drifting from Shelley.

Shelley's recordings of the piano concertos with Bryden Thomson and the Scottish National Orchestra are likewise solid and thoroughly enjoyable as are his three recordings, with various singers (notably Sergei Leiferkus), of the wonderful Rachmaninov Lieder.

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Nancarrow: Pieces Nos. 1 & 2; ¿Tango?; String Quartet No. 1

2008-12-09T22:06:00.000-08:00

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Nancarrow: Pieces Nos. 1 & 2; ¿Tango?; String Quartet No. 1
From Naxos American

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #145239 in Music
Released on: 2005-06-21
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Nancarrow without the player piano: an essential addition to our knowledge of the composer
This is the reissue of a recording made in 1989 and first released in 1991 by Musicmasters. See my lengthy review under the original release (Continuum Performs Nancarrow). It is an essential addition to our knowledge and understanding of Nancarrow, as it documents most of the (very few) pieces he wrote for for "normal" instruments, e.g. live performers, as opposed to the mechanical player piano for which he belatedly became so famous. Other than, perforce, the pieces he composed subsequently to the present recording (such as the Canons for Ursula Oppens or the third String Quartet), absent are the two remaining movements of the early (1942) Trio for Clarinet, Bassoon and Piano whose first movement is featured here: they were considered lost and were rediscovered shortly after the recording was made.

It is also best heard in company of Conlon Nancarrow : Lost Works, Last Works published by Other Minds, which in part documents the transcriptions for Player Piano that Nancarrow made of some of these compositions, just in order to be able to hear them (they were nearly unplayable by human performers, and anyway he lived in Mexico, isolated from the music world): the "Prelude", "Blues", Sonatina, the two outer movements of the String Quartet and, much later, the second part of the Piece for Small Ensemble No. 2 (Study # 50). The difference is not only the obvious one of timbre (especially in the Quartet and Piece for Ensemble), but also, dramatically, of tempo. One understands what Nancarrow had in his "mind's ear" when composing these pieces and hence, why he grew dissatisfied with human performers. The String Quartet played on four strings sounds like, well, just any other string quartet, one that possibly Milhaud (the dynamic bounce, the polytonal impression) or Krenek (the stern canons) and many other 20th century composers of mildly modernist ilk might have written. It its player piano transcription, it sounds like a dazzling, demented study for machine-keyboard. Still, in their version for live performers the pieces are echt-Nancarrow, full of the customary awesome canons and demented boogie-woogies.

Other than original Nancarrow compositions, the disc also features two transcriptions made by Yvar Mikhashoff: the Sonatina, originally for one piano and here played on piano four-hands (a version Nancarrow reportedly came to prefer, even over his own player piano transcription), and player piano Study # 15. And while pianists Cheryl Seltzer and Joël Sachs (who joins her in the four-hand pieces) are no match to the machine in the Prelude, Blues and Sonatina, their fingers are still quite impressive for human appendixes and make a convincing case for the pieces in "live form". It is even a tribute to the two pianists' awesome virtuosity that in Study # 15, they do match the machine. Gary Kasparov is not alone to face Deep Blue.

My only regret have is that each piece individually is so short, as well as the disc overall (44:36). But at Naxos' prices, this is not detrimental.

A good budget introduction to Nancarrow's "live" music
Conlon Nancarrow (1912-1997), one of the greatest of the American musical mavericks, is primarily known for a huge collection of studies for player piano (available on Wergo) which were a significant influence on major later 20th century figures such as Ligeti. This disc (which originally appeared on Musical Heritage Society) is a sensible choice for Naxos to reissue on their American Classics series, as by concentrating on music for live instruments it helps round out the image of the composer, as well as providing an accessible introduction to his work for those who don't want to drop $60 on the player piano studies. Much of the music on this disc is early Nancarrow, but Naxos do score by including two late works, the piano piece Tango? and the Second Piece for Small Orchestra, which was written for Continuum, the ensemble performing on this disc.

The First Piece for Small Orchestra dates from 1943, and is not atypical of the American music of that time. Containing references to jazz--an enduring influence on Nancarrow--as well as occasional neoclassical figurations, it is energetically populist, and appealing if not particularly deep. The Toccata for Violin and Player Piano is a 1980s revision of a 1935 work, with the turbocharged piano line played by player piano to allow for faster performance. Also from 1935 is the Prelude and Blues for piano, with an energetic polyrhythmic Prelude (hinting at the directions Nancarrow's work would take) followed by a rather less individualistic Blues. In this performance, the Prelude has been arranged for piano four hands by the performers--one assumes due to the severe technical difficulties in the original.

Also included on the discs are two transcriptions for piano four hands by the American experimental music specialist Yvar Mikhashoff. The 15th player piano study--a ferociously complex canon--would be unplayable live with two hands, and though while the brief three-movement Piano Sonatina is possible to play, it's understandable that this performance uses Mikhashoff's transcription. Meanwhile, Tango? contrasts quizzical canonic writing and exuberantly populist styles, while the Trio Movement for clarinet, bassoon and piano is an intriguing fragment from 1942 (some more of the trio has since been discovered, and it would be interesting to hear more of the piece).

The two most important works on the disc come at the end of it. The First String Quartet already has minor-classic status, having been taken up by both the Kronos and Arditti Quartets. Written in 1945, it was to be Nancarrow's last work for live performers for nearly 40 years (the difficulty of his music had lead to few performances, mostly unsatisfactory). In a three-movement fast-slow-fast form, this quartet contains much of Nancarrow's mature style, if in only partially-developed form: contrapuntal complexity, simultaneous playing of multiple lines in different meters, and the constant influence of jazz. These preoccupations are summed up in the 1986 Second Piece for Small Orchestra, a vigorous bipartite exploration of virtuoso ensemble playing that will inevitably remind many of a more tonal Ligeti.

It's unfortunate that these 45 minutes of music is all there is on the disc, as there are a number of late Nancarrow works--mostly written after this recording was made in 1989--which are either unrecorded or near-impossible to find. Still, the price is certainly right, and it's hard to see lovers of contemporary music wanting to pass this disc up.

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Robert Schumann: Complete Piano Works, Vol. 11 - Jörg Demus

2008-12-09T21:42:00.000-08:00

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Robert Schumann: Complete Piano Works, Vol. 11 - Jörg Demus
Robert Schumann, Jörg Demus

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Amazon Sales Rank: #557131 in Music
Released on: 2000-05-16
Number of discs: 1

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Grieg: Lyrische Stücke

2008-12-09T16:43:00.003-08:00

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Grieg: Lyrische Stücke
From MD&G Records

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Amazon Sales Rank: #619148 in Music
Released on: 2004-11-23
Number of discs: 1

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Forever Methuen

2008-12-09T16:43:00.001-08:00

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Forever Methuen
From Pro Organo

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Amazon Sales Rank: #517459 in Music
Released on: 2000-12-19
Number of discs: 1

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Brahms: Complete Piano Music

2008-12-09T16:07:00.001-08:00

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Brahms: Complete Piano Music
From Nimbus Records

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #111133 in Music
Released on: 1995-04-16
Number of discs: 6
Format: Box set

Customer Reviews

Brahms Complete Piano Music
Brahms composed an astounding amount of piano music. Variations were a Classical form that long fascinated him. His most famous are The Handel Variations Opus 24, and the difficult Paganini Variations in which he shadowed the style of Liszt. Today this work is often compared with Bach's Goldberg and Beethoven's Diabelli Variations. Some of his shorter works include his Intermezzos,Romanzes, Rhapsodies,Caprices,and Fantasies. To me these are Brahms's most most important and expressive pieces he composed. My favorite pieces are Intermezzo 116 No. 4 and Intermezzo 118 No. 2. He brought these short forms to a new level of eloquence and expression. The first Intermezzo of Opus 118 is the very essence of Brahms's unmistakable sound and complexity in his music. I'll confess, I bought this set to fill the gaps in my piecemeal Brahms cd collection. Martin Jones' playing grows on me, much the same way Brahms music itself does. A word of warning if you are someone who likes pianists who play music slowly and passive. Yes, Martin Jones does play fast, but not always. He's generally fastest in the earlier works, where a case can be made for doing so. This applies to the first 2 sonatas, and the Paganini variations. Why would anything associated with Paganini lack virtuosity? The main thing is,it works. Every track is worth hearing. Martin doesn't put in a bad performance in the whole set.

Worthwhile, especially if you like Brahms
Johannes Brahms was one of the key figures in Romantic Piano Music. His output for the instrument was varied and large, and this four-disc set is ample testament to that output. As it was with their complete Beethoven Sonatas set (by Bernard Roberts), so it it here: Nimbus have enlisted a fine artist with a good command of the piano to record all of Brahms' solo piano music, and whilst I am not a Brahms addict myself, I am sure it will give great pleasure to collectors and serious Brahms fans.

I could offer a critique of all the works on these discs, but it is enough to single out a particular highlight. Martin Jones is particularly stunning with his rendition of the Hungarian Dances (which in their piano solo versions are not easy at all). The recording quality throughout is superb, enhancing the subtleties of Jones' performance.

All in all this is a worthwhile purchase. If anything, it is perfect for discovering Brahms in perhaps his most 'comfortable' genre. I should say that I came across this recording in the course of studying Romantic Piano Music for A-levels, and for that purpose it was invaluable.

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Bach Edition: Complete Works [Box Set]

2008-12-09T16:05:00.001-08:00

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Bach Edition: Complete Works [Box Set]
From Brilliant

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #113174 in Music
Released on: 2006-01-01
Number of discs: 155
Formats: Box set, Import

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Louis Moreau Gottschalk: Piano Music

2008-12-08T13:08:00.000-08:00

See it

in Store

Louis Moreau Gottschalk: Piano Music
From Naxos American

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #78586 in Music
Released on: 2003-05-20
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Great Music for the 4th of July
Even though the majority of the pieces on the CD American Classics/Louis Moreau Gottschalk/Piano Music with Cecile Licad are Caribbean/Spanish in theme, one should not spend the 4th of July without playing "The Union, Paraphrase de concert on the national airs Star Spangled Banner, Yankee Doodle, and Hail Columbia, Op. 48." Let the crowd on the mall in Washington ooh and ah over the 1812 Overture, but Cecile Licad playing Gottschalk is the way to celebrate the fourth. "Le banjo" is my favorite, but then I'm prejudiced, because I am a banjo player.

This interpretation is not for everybody, but it surely does it for me
Cecile Licad's weaving and interweaving of colors and impressions in Gottschalk's music is just totally modern and highly virtuistic. Gottschalk is the Chopin for the Creoles and just like with interpreting Chopin, the liberty for expression is just almost limitless. This is Gottschalk interpretation for the 21st century. I'm not saying that it tries to stamp out the traditional views of his music, but however risky was Licad's direction in this, it pays off as a fresh vibrant work brought once again back to life.

Licad's reading is often not the preferred style for the one's who're satisfied with the Gottschalk sound over a hundred years ago. I believe that her reading is how Gottschalk himself would have played his music should he still be alive today.

As we know, Gottschalk music was way ahead of its time with jazz impressions even half a century to a century in advance.

I like Licad's Gottschalk. It's forward looking, progressive and playing for the ages.

Beautiful, beautiful music!
Listening to this Gottschalk CD hs been a truly rewarding experience. We listen to it everyday, so I'm sure we will be purchasing more of his music.

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Story Of Chopin In Words And Music

2008-12-08T10:08:00.000-08:00

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Story Of Chopin In Words And Music
From Vox (Classical)

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #52405 in Music
Released on: 1995-04-16
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

UNDISPUTED , GREATEST COMPOSER FOR PIANO EVER: POLISH ICON: FRYDERYK CHOPIN
Chopin is the most famous composer for the piano. Did you know that Chopin is Polish and that he created the modern piano style! He also change the nature of the piano, making the piano what it is today. Mr. Chopin wrote over 200 pieces for the piano. Chopin is the true classical pioneer of the piano. As the CD says, Chopin kept the spirit of the Polish people alive through all the wars and invasions from Russia and Germany and others. Chopin was a gentle intellectual musician, and would help his beloved Poland with his music, as it has done to this day.

The story is mixed with his story and music. As you listen, you'll say, "I didn't know Chopin wrote that!" At the end of the story, some of Chopin's greatest pieces are played by Ingid Haebler; soooooooooo moving and beautiful! This is a superb learning tool and a very classy gift idea. Classy, academic, fun learning and just superb! Vamos a Escuchar!

BEAUTIFUL MUSIC/WAY TO LEARN ABOUT CHOPIN & HISTORY
The music is so wonderful, perhaps a better description is that the music is so beautiful that it almost seems surreal - Wow! So breathtaking, so Chopin!!! Add to the music, a great written biography on Chopin's life and you've got one incredible hour of enjoyment/learning. The first 1/2 hour mixes Chopin's story with his music; the second 1/2 hour is some of Chopin's greatest works! Great for that long drive in the car, or doing stuff around the house - you are learning! The whole family will have fun learning about Chopin's music, history, Poland, France, Liszt Etc. Just a wonderful way to learn. The CD and music are well done and recorded. Chopin's music is performed by world renowned pianist Ingrid Haebler(Chopin would be very pleased). A must for every piano teacher and Chopin enthusiast! It's just amazing what Chopin went through, and still be able to become: "The greatest composer for piano in the world!" Well done; Bravo!!!

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Norton Recorded Anthology of Western Music, Fifth Edition, Volume 1: Ancient to Baroque (6 CDs)

2008-12-08T07:08:00.000-08:00

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Norton Recorded Anthology of Western Music, Fifth Edition, Volume 1: Ancient to Baroque (6 CDs)
From W. W. Norton

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #98805 in Books
Published on: 2005-07-11
Released on: 2006-01-01
Formats: Audiobook, Classical
Original language: English
Number of items: 1
Binding: Audio CD

Editorial Reviews

About the Author
J. Peter Burkholder is Professor of Musicology at Indiana University. He is the author of previous editions of the Study and Listening Guide for A History of Western Music and Norton Anthology of Western Music. In addition, he has written or edited four books on Charles Ives and has written numerous articles on topics spanning from the Middle Ages to the twentieth century for The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Journal of the American Musicological Society, Journal of Musicology, 19th-Century Music, Music Theory Spectrum, and other journals. He has served as president of the American Musicological Society and on the board of the College Music Society, and his writings have received awards from the American Musicological Society, Society for American Music, and ASCAP.

Customer Reviews

Poor packaging results in defective CDs
The CDs in this set are not packaged in standard jewelboxes nor even in cheap sleeves, but are mounted directly atop a printed surface. As a result, when I purchased the set from my school bookstore, I found that several of the CDs had dried flecks of ink on the data side that made it impossible to play or rip certain tracks. Beware.

Great and accurate.
I received these cds well on time, and upon discovering they were the wrong cd set the return also took place quickly.

The Standard
If you're a music student at almost any major school (I just finished my undergraduate at Indiana University, for example) you'll most likely need to take a course that uses these CD's as part of its history survey. For that purpose, this set is an excellent collection. These, with their companion Norton Anthology of Western Music, and in conjunction with Grout/Palisca's History of Western Music, make for a thorough survey of the roots and history of Western music. Both the History and the Anthology use these CD's, and make constant references to them. (At least, up until 1750, after which you'll need the second volume)

Having said that, however, i'm afraid that these CD's are limited to their intended purpose. Obviously, there would be absolutely no way to have a comprehensive collection of music and text be affordable to an average college student. As it is, the Grout, Norton, and CD's total about $200 total. However, for that cost they provide an extremely good survey of Western music. A student can follow historical developments through the music, and learn an enormous amount from these CD's. They provide a fairly good cross-section of different styles of major composers, and even a few examples of lesser known composers. One is far less likely to criticize the music of the twentieth century, for example, if one finds that Gesualdo (of the late 16th century) was writing music that was MUCH stranger than anything before the turn of the twentieth century.

For someone outside of the music school (who will most likely be required to buy these anyway), these are also an excellent (and comparatively affordable) way to survey the mainstream and less-mainstream trends in Western music. The recordings are all relatively high-quality, often using historical instruments and interpretations (something important to a student of musical history) and providing a good introduction to classical music.

For that reason, then, i recommend these to the casual listener as a good introduction to Western music. If you seek a "greatest hits" album, these are not that; go buy those Time-Life things they advertise on television. This is rather a serious collection of music from as many different styles as allowable while still maintaining some depth. The only thing that keeps the fifth star empty is the lack (by necessity, though i must admit) of a more wide-ranging selection of music. Despite that, they are still an excellent buy. The casual listener of classical music should find these to be a valuable introduction to the well known, and also the more obscure realms of early music.

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Jean-Yves Thibaudet - Debussy · images, études ~ complete works for piano, vol. 2

2008-12-08T04:08:00.000-08:00

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Jean-Yves Thibaudet - Debussy · images, études ~ complete works for piano, vol. 2
From Decca

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #55408 in Music
Released on: 2000-05-09
Number of discs: 2

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Jean-Yves Thibaudet is not a pianist to be pigeonholed. Alongside the recordings of his fellow countrymen Debussy and Ravel, he has recorded a tribute to a jazz giant, Conversations with Bill Evans, and he plays on the soundtrack of the film Portrait of a Lady. Perhaps this catholic approach accounts for the freshness of his Debussy playing. Not for him the "stick the pedal down and make an impressionistic wash of sound" approach. His playing is clean and refreshing without losing any of the voluptuous sensuality of Debussy at his most beguiling. There are lollipops to be found among the extensive repertory on these two discs, including the celebrated "Clair de Lune" from the Suite Bergamasque and the "Golliwogg's Cake-Walk" from Children's Corner. The mainstay of the release is the two sets of Images and the two books of Études, 12 studies whose demands are not for the faint of heart. Luckily for us, Thibaudet's heart is strong. He offers virtuosic, thoughtful performances of pieces that, while written to help develop pianists' technique, stand up magnificently as music to be listened to. --Keith Clarke

Customer Reviews

Exceptional! As with Vol. 1, this set SHINES!
Again, thank you to my Amazon friend Amy for another exceptional recommendation.

Jean-Yves Thibaudet, the virtuoso pianist, was awarded his country's highest musical award in 2007, France's prestigious Victoire D'Honneur, a lifetime achievment award in what is, essentially, France's Grammy Awards. And rightfully so; he is a wonder, a masterful performer and a passionate interpretor of the works which he plays.
Here, Thibaudet completes Debussy's repetoire of solo piano work by following up Complete piano works, Vol. 1 with the remaining works for solo piano composed by Claude Debussy, one of the master French Impressionsists.
Offered on this double disc set are 16 (13 were included on Volume 1) compositions by Debussy. All are amazing and the collection is worth every penny. Any fan of Debussy, the impressionists, late romantic classical or turn of the century (20th) classical, should own both this and Volume 1. It is necessary to hear Thibaudet perform his countryman's pieces flawlessly and with such passion and vigor.
Debussy was a non-conformist and a lot of what he did, although it could have been labeled in a standard manner, was classified in a strange or contrary fashion. For example, his 'Piano Concerto' was called 'Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra'. Most of what he wrote could be considered tone poems, but he never used that moniker; Debussy sought to place pictures or scenes in the mind of the listener, using just music; he wrote tone poems. But, yes, he was unorthodox.

This disc contains several compositions which contain more than one piece or movement and they are:
---Images, Serie 1 (Set 1) - 3 pieces, all amazing. I 'Reflets dans l'eau' ('Reflections on the Water'), evocative of a dancing water fountain with it's distorted shapes and ripples; lovely, soft, with ascending and descending cascades of keystrokes; II Homage a Rameau is a succulent, if not somewhat atonal, soft and reverent "tip o' the hat" to Rameau for his tragic opera 'Castor et Polux'. III Mouvement is, as the title suggests, active; quick on the keys and intense in it's use of high and low chords in contrast.
---Images, Serie 2 (Set 2) - 3 pieces, again, amazing. I Cloches a travers les feullies ('Bells heard through the leaves') has a very chilly fell to it; it feels like autumn. II 'Et la lune descend sur la temple qui fut' ('And the moon descends on the temple that was' or 'Descent of the moon upon the temple which used to be') is somewhat dark and eerie but hauntingly beautiful. III 'Poissons d'or' ('Goldfish') sparkles brightly, a sprite and joyful tune.
---Children's Corner Suite - 6 pieces. These are tunes about children, not composed for children to perform. They are a treat. I 'Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum' is a jest towards Clementi's 'Gradus ad Parnassum' ("Steps to Parnassus", a reference to the mythilogical Mount Parnassus where the godesses of the arts resided), a series of instructional pieces for piano. It is a fast-paced romp on the keyboard, light and fun. II 'Jimbo's Lullaby' is, in my humble opinion, the best of the 6 pieces; it is a beautiful, melancholy piece which is punctuated with dissonance, but it is enjoyable and, towards the end, contains a sublime melody. III 'Serenade for the doll' is, like movement II, punctuated by dissonance, but wonderful and soothing. IV 'The snow is dancing' evokes just that picture; it is a soothing dance on the keyboard; IMHO, second only to movement II in beauty. V 'The Little Shepherd' is light, dissonant and as playful as the rest of the pieces. VI 'Golliwogg's Cakewalk' is a piece for dance (a cakewalk) that is based upon a French mythical creature known as a Golliwogg. The piece is best known for it's reference to the 'Tristan Chord' from Wagner's 'Tristan und Isolde'. If you listen, you can hear (first at 1 minute 25 seconds, then repeated again throughout) the 'Tristan Chord' played then followed by mimicking laughter from the piano.
---Suite Bergamasque - Debussy's most famous piece probably comes from this Suite in the 3rd movement. I Prelude is lovely, almost somber but contrastingly still uplifting. II Menuet is true to title, a dance, tranquil and melodious. III Clair de Lune ('Moonlighting') is probably Debussy's most famous work. It has also been orchestrated and is used in movies, tv shows and commercials ubiquitously. But it is staggeringly radiant and remains my favorite classical piece. IV Passapied ('moving feet') is a dance piece; it is fast and breezy, quite enjoyable.
---Etudes, 12 pieces (in 2 books). All are studies for learning to play but, despite the fact that studies might seem prosaic, they are enjoyable to hear, impressive and substantial.

The remaining pieces are individual pieces for solo piano:
---'Le Petit Negre' (the title is quite offensive and I don't understand the purpose behind it) is beautiful, despite the title. It opens quickly, slows to a soft melody, and returns to its opening, quick theme.
---'La plus que lente' is one of my favorite pieces by Debussy. It is delicate and the melody is quite breath-taking.
---'Valse romantique' is much like 'La plus que lente'; perhaps slightly less melodious, but still lovely.
---'Ballade slave' is another of my favorite Debussy pieces. It is a graceful and melodic piece, supple and warm.
---'Tarantelle styrienne' is a piece for ballet, played at a quick pace and I feel it may be more enjoyable were it played slower.
---'Mazurka' is just that; a dance, slowly played but at a quick time. It is a bit awkward sounding, but still somewhat enjoyable.
---'Hommage a Joseph Haydn' is alluring; soft and slow with flourishes and harsh chords. I rather like the piece.
---'Elegie' would be one of the last pieces composed by Debussy for solo piano before his death in 1918. As the title suggests, the piece is somber, played slowly, a reflection on sorrow.
---'Berceuse Heroique' was written in response to the German occupation of Belgium; in fact, it was written for the king to honor his defense of the country. The title literally means 'heroic lullaby'. It is a gloomy and oppressive piece that occassionally references the Belgian national anthem. It communicates its intended theme thoroughly and is stunning.
---'Page d'album' (subtitled 'Piece pour le Vetemente du blesse' or 'Piece for the clothing of the wounded') A piece written, again, in response to the monstrous German regime. It is slightly lighter in makeup than the associated 'Berceuse Heroique' but does still carry a darker undertone.
---'Etude retrouvee' (subtitled 'Pour les arpeges composes' or 'for composed arpeggios'). Retrouvee means 'recovered' or 'found' and, as the title indicates, the piece was never published (heck, Debussy never let anyone know it existed). The subtitle being the same as the 11th Etude suggests a connection, but the piece was apparently discarded by Debussy only to be discovered in 1977. The pieces do not resemble each other, making this a unique and enjoyable find for Debussy fanatics; a dead piece, reborn.

Excellent performance and great recording make this disc a MUST HAVE!!!

Jean Yves Thibaudet plays Debussy
Like Chopin, Debussy asks the pianist to give him everything, from strength and quickness to the most delicate poetic playing. Jean Yves Thibaudet is one of the few that I know of who can do all this. Like the French painters and poets, Debussy can make you feel different moods, as the titles of his works suggest, Reflets dans l eau(Reflections in the Water), Nuages(Clouds), and Les Sons et les parfums tournent dans lair du soir(Sounds and Perfumes Swirl in the Evening Air). He was inspired by writers and painters, and his music sounds improvised. His way of making the piano sound like flowing waterfalls and running water is what made him famous. This cd collection is a wonderful set, it includes the popular Suite Bergamasque and Children1s Corner as well the two great sets of Images,and the Etudes. This is Vol. 2, there is also a Vol. 1 by Thibaudet also. If you are interested in a complete set of Debussy piano works definitely get Vol.1 too.

Superior recordings and performances
The Penguin Guide to CDs and DVDs has Thibaudet's sets of the complete Debussy solo piano music at the top of the digital recordings, and this is certainly high quality.

We have several recordings of the Preludes and some other works, but there is nothing to come close to Thibaudet for great performances and superior recording quality.

The liner notes are very helpful, and in the first set you get different articles in English, French, German and Italian. Great if you are multilingual, but only of marginal interest to me. The second set has one article and translations, not separate articles.

Well worth purchasing.

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Grigory Sokolov: Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Brahms [Box Set]

2008-12-08T01:08:00.000-08:00

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Grigory Sokolov: Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Brahms [Box Set]
From Opus 111

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #7578 in Music
Released on: 2005-10-18
Number of discs: 5
Format: Box set

Customer Reviews

Out of this world
Mr. Sokolov is THE Pianist. He is a poet with a stand apart from all others in the past and at present. If you have rarely heard his name or think he might be just another classical fully trained pianist, you are mistaken. If you have not heard him play, you have not heard how a piano is an instrument of music. Both this and the other five sets contain pure live recorded accounts of excellent compositions. Recordings make you feel you listen to a live performance. When listening to a good interpretation it should knock your head off. This gentlemen does it so many times that one loses the count.

Get anything Grigory Sokolov recorded
Grigory Sokolov is definitely one of the most underrated pianist for the past few decades, and I truly believe he is the best still around.

Currently there are two CD boxes( each contains 5 CDs)and one DVD (Live in Paris) available in the market. This is one of the CD set, including some previously single release. Because of his reclusive personality and unwilling to record (perhaps due to perfectionism) , he never had contract with major labels and therefore lots of people were not aware of him. However, the one single DVD is good enough to do him justice--you have to see it to believe it.

He is one of the best classic pianists ever, along with Gilels, Richter, etc----definitely the best still around. If you have not heard of him, get both CD sets and DVD--that will be the best investment for your classic music collection and years of enjoyment. And if one of us get lucky, we might still be able to see him one stage one day.

Grigory Sokolov - The (Almost) Unknown Major Pianist
One of the best-kept secrets in the piano world is the amazing Grigory Sokolov, a man in his fifties who won the Tchaikovsky Prize in 1966 at the age of sixteen. He has been somewhat reclusive. tending to play in Europe only, and has generally not made studio recordings, but among the cognoscenti his recitals are sought after and often sold out. All the music recorded in this five-CD box has been released on single CDs before (and as a box from Opus 111), and is here offered at budget price. I have owned three of the five previously. Earlier this year I also reviewed a marvelous DVD of a recital he gave in the Châtelet and filmed by the redoubtable Bruno Monsaingeon. Since Amazon has not yet included the contents of this box (or even told us how many CDs are included) I will list them now:

CDs 1 & 2: Bach: Art of Fugue; Partita No. 2

CD 3: Beethoven: Rondos in C Major and G Major, Op. 51; Rondo, 'Rage over a lost penny,' Op. 129; Sonata No. 4 in E Flat Major, Op. 7; Sonata No. 28 in A Major, Op. 101

CD 4: Chopin: 24 Préludes, Op. 28

CD 5: Brahms: Ballades, Op. 10; Sonata in F Minor, Op. 5

Possibly the most marvelous thing about Sokolov's playing is his variety of touch. He can play in a tiny whisper, with a lightning fast leggiero, with deep-in-the-keys but never clangy fortissimo. His legato is legendary and he tends to obtain it more by finger technique than with pedaling. One can argue with his interpretive choices but never with his musicianship or sincerity, and certainly not with his almost inhuman virtuosity.

All five CDs were recorded live in recital and in gorgeous sound. There does not appear to be much in the way of editing. There are a very few dropped notes, but on the whole the playing is incredibly accurate as well as being musicianly. His 'Art of Fugue' is rather a combination of some Romantic gestures coupled with a purity of tone that depends more on touch than on pedaling. His Brahms is a bit more Romantic but is not sentimental -- something is that is not easy to avoid in the Ballades particularly. His Beethoven is much the same. 'Rage over a lost penny' is the most exciting performance I've ever heard since I heard Brendel play it live in the 1960s. Sokolov, like Michelangeli (to whom he has been compared), does not play many of the Beethoven sonatas, but the ones he plays are his utterly.

The Chopin is the glory of this set. It sings, whispers and roars as need be. It is ultraromantic and yet is not maudlin or sickly sentimental. This is masculine Chopin.

At this bargain price this set is a must-have, I should think, for those who enjoy masterful playing and are willing to become acquainted with a heretofore unknown pianist sometimes called 'the new Sviatoslav Richter.'

Scott Morrison

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Essential Chopin

2008-12-07T22:09:00.000-08:00

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Essential Chopin
From Decca

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #79541 in Music
Released on: 2003-07-01
Number of discs: 2

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Debussy: The Complete Works For Piano

2008-12-07T19:09:00.000-08:00

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Debussy: The Complete Works For Piano
From EMI Classics

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #43569 in Music
Released on: 1997-01-21
Number of discs: 4

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording
These classic performances belong in the collection of anyone who cares about Debussy's piano music. Walter Gieseking's career was a troubled one--his pandering to the Nazi party cast a shadow over his last years, but the greatest irony of all was that this German nationalist turned out to be the greatest exponent of French music of his era. His Debussy playing marries an effortlessly subtle control of the keyboard to a real sense of fantasy. The music truly shimmers in his hands, and despite the limited range of the mono recording, the ear quickly adjusts. This is, in short, one of those classic recordings that critics and music lovers have enjoyed for nearly 50 years. So should you. --David Hurwitz

Customer Reviews

Happy to be the first 1 star.
I should probably qualify my distate for these albums by saying that, like many piano players I don't particularly care for, the playing is not bad, is in fact even fine, but I can't stand the style; the recording quality itself was only a minor issue for me, as sometimes I like the sound of an older recording, it gives it more weight, more dream quality.

I bought this set about 10 years ago, for about $60, which at the time was an exorbitant amount (being a broke college student). I knew and loved many of Debussy's pieces, and liked none of them here. I was so dissappointed that I didn't buy another classical cd for about 9 years, the next actually being the BCO's awesome recording of Suk's Asreel Symphony.

I now own Thibaudet's Debussy, and while I'm stile not completely satisfied there, that set goes up from the 1 star here to 3 stars, and is enjoyable enough that I don't mind having spent the money.

This set, however, will forever mark itself in my mind as the archnemesis of that other iconic Purple album - Jean Francois Paillard's 'The Pachelbel Canon', which is the only one to own (well, the second one to own - the ultimate recording being on the disc with the two Fasch trumpet concertos).

Murky
I have to agree with the reviewers complaining about the sound quality on these CD's. I first discovered Debussy's piano music through these recordings when I was left my grandfather's record collection and I was obsessed. I bought this hoping to get back that vinyl magic but this is a murky compressed sounding thing, with none of the charm it should have. Boo.

Debussy and Gieseking
Historical 1950s recordings that demonstrate Gieseking's well attested shades of piano sound that are unique and outstanding.

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Chopin: Piano Sonata No. 3; Ballade No. 4; Waltzes; Mazurkas; Barcarolle

2008-12-07T16:09:00.000-08:00

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Chopin: Piano Sonata No. 3; Ballade No. 4; Waltzes; Mazurkas; Barcarolle
From Angel Records

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #10412 in Music
Released on: 2008-04-29
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

THE EXCELLENCE OF INGRID FLITER: ELEGANT, SENSITIVE, BRILLIANT CHOPIN
Five WONDERFUL Stars!! Award-winning virtuoso classical pianist Ingrid Fliter (FLEEter) has recorded a marvelous group of well-known Romantic pieces by Polish classical genius Frédéric Chopin. When one is dealing with such familiar musical territory, the interpreter must be on their 'A-game' and Ms Fliter, who grew up in a home where Chopin was heard and played often, has great mastery of this maestro's musical world. The Argentina-born pianist won the silver medal in the prestigious 2000 Chopin International Piano Competition (to Yundi Li's gold) and the prestigious (and lucrative) Gilmore Artist Award, which is awarded every four years to a pianist of "truly exceptional quality". Based on this performance and video performances that I have seen, she is worthy of all of those accolades.

The 'best of the best' begins with the wide-ranging "Ballade No. 4" which is a performance of pure beauty allowing demonstration of both her sensitivity and pianistic firepower on one of Chopin's most wonderous compositions. "Impromptu in C-Sharp Minor" which is more nuanced than others I have heard (Arrau for example) especially in the beginning of the A section where her main theme flows out of the left hand figurations rather than springing immediately to the front: much more organic. The superior interpretation of the B section, which is the basis of the popular theme "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows", has more 'wonder' to it than is usually heard. Ms Fliter is giving her insights into the song based on her extraordinary technique, while retaining the intent of the composer and the Romantic spirit. The "Barcarolle" conjures up the boat-ride theme wonderfully and "Grande Valse Brillante" is just that and more. Likewise "Minute Waltz" and the Opus 59 Mazurkas are excellent with Fliter's subtle shadings conjuring up Chopin's remembrance of his beloved Poland from a foreign land. Ingrid Fliter demonstates a deep understanding of Chopin and gives an enjoyable, insightful, and crisp interpretation of each work. HIghly recommended. Five ROMANTIC Stars!!
(This review is based on an iTunes download, with booklet in English, French, and German)

Very fine Chopin recital!
I wasn't overly familiar with Ingrid Fliter's work. She is an Argentinian pianist who has come to international renown in the last couple years. On Martha Argerich's urging, she continued her musical career in Europe and tours globally.

Her Chopin is wonderful - full-sounding yet sensitive, emotional but strong. The Ballade is terrific - one of the best I have heard (my favorite is Maurizio Pollini's version). The other pieces are equally beutiful and competent - remniscent of Vladimir Ashkenazy; very clear, beautiful playing. Check the sound samples here for yourself, or check out some videos of her on youtube.

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Complete Classical Music Library: The Piano, Vol. 1

2008-12-07T13:09:00.000-08:00

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Complete Classical Music Library: The Piano, Vol. 1
From Topics Entertainment

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #47745 in Music
Brand: TOPICS DVD
Released on: 2007-03-08
Number of discs: 8
Platforms: Windows XP Professional, Windows XP Home Edition, Windows 2000
Format: Box set
Dimensions: .55 pounds

Features

A new worldwide audio standard forical music! The High Definition Classics recordings produce an indescribable depth of sound. Enoy the lushical sounds and dynamic interpretations of The Piano, an innovative 8-disc audio collection for listeners of all ages. From mazurkas to Minute Waltz No 1; ballads to Bagatelles, The Piano on audio compact disc is an indispensable addition to yourical music lib

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Debussy: Complete Works for Piano, Vol. 2

2008-12-07T10:24:00.000-08:00

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Debussy: Complete Works for Piano, Vol. 2
From Chandos

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #9440 in Music
Released on: 2008-01-15
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Playing Filled With Atmospheric Vision!
It is not idle to inspect the long and powerful movement, mostly German, which first establish the fact that the Romantic movement, by the time of Debussy's adulthood, had passed its culmination, exhausted its powers temporarily at least, and was branching afield to try to renew its tarnished glory and exasperated energies. Debussy was quick to realise this situation and to grasp both its dangers and challenges. In this CD performed by Bavouzet, we find a truly French artist demanding clarity and logic as a basic aesthetic consideration which makes him discard the romantic tradition, all chaos in structure and the amount of subjectivity. In the Ballade, Bavouzet furnishes the obvious stimulus to a Slavic ballade which contains the basis of the theme Debussy was later to use in "La plus que lente." Melodically the Ballade is unduly repetitious, yet Bavouzet provides a performance that is eclectic, incisive in thought and offers certain aspects of Russian melodies and modulations that convey pianistic instrumentation. The sketch of "D'un Cahier D'esquisses" was not really intended as a piece. It is however, a very rich sketch from the notebook of a genius. When Debussy wrote it, he was under the charm of "The Sea," and Bavouzet truly does not fail to find many of the tonal impulses which are at the core of the score of "La Mer", and contains the seeds of the thematic material of the great orchestral poem. The first performance of "Estampes" was given on January 9th, 1904, and follows the development of tonal texturing. Bavouzet perceives its ever increasing richness, the ability to transform into music the most abstract vision in an amazing way. He conveys the exact modal colour, the exact rhythmic counterpoint, and the most telling architecture to compel us to share Debussy's vision to the utmost. It is strange to reflect that only three of the six "Images" are performed with any degree of frequency and that these do not enjoy the remarkable popularity which they should. In performance, Bavouzet brings a demanding element of imagination and a greater transformation from ordinary events,, their appeal is considerably richer, but also the less easily accessible. Time and thought will remedy this factor, as it will do so also in the case of the "Etudes." "L'isle Joyeuse", is one of the most orchestrally conceived piano works. Bavouzet takes a more modern approach which represents an equivalent to the Lisztian endeavor in piano literature. He makes use of modern texturing and it is indeed imbued with the gaiety, animation, and sensual atmosphere of the Watteau painting. It is indeed probable that "Masques", was primarily intended to be a part of the "Suite Bergamasque." Bavouzet successfully reflects the necessary freshness and youth along with obvious thoughts of the personages of the Italian comedy and mischievous characters. "Suite Pour Le Piano", is a major landmark in the history of piano literature, and perhaps one of the most significant masterworks in this form. Bavouzet's playing is crowning throughout. It is playing that is freed from empty mechanistry, stuffy display, but does not fall into license. He recaptures gaiety, fluency, and charm, rhythmic life and novel harmonic energies. In "Danse (Tarantelle Styrienne)", Bavouzet conveys his highly creative individuality from the standpoint of melody, voice-leading, harmony, and rhythm the "Danse" is already definitely stamped by Debussy's personality. "Valse Romantique," indicates a very early time, perhaps even earlier than any of the other pieces considered here. Bavouzet conveys the influence of Chopin to a certain extent. It is somewhat experimental as to harmonic colour, but Bavouzet's inventiveness and imagination brings sufficient magnitude of the future compositions to come.
This recording is totally enjoyable with each performance marked by remarkably clear textures and atmospheric character. The melodies are refined reflecting the outstanding acoustic qualities, finesse, revelatory clarity, and compelling persuasiveness throughout. Bavouzet's playing is impeccable and his innate understanding of the idiom is miraculously true.

Author: Raymond Vacchino M.Mus. A.Mus. L.R.S.M. Licentiate (honorary)

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Brahms: Works for Solo Piano

2008-12-07T07:24:00.000-08:00

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Brahms: Works for Solo Piano
From Decca

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #40397 in Music
Released on: 1997-11-11
Number of discs: 6
Format: Box set

Customer Reviews

Superb Brahms Set
An excellent set that I've gotten much listening pleasure from, and will certainly continue to do so. Definitely 5 stars!!

Dazzling Brahms from an underrated artist
While there may be recordings of individual works in this set that equal these by Katchen (by the likes of Richter, Michelangeli, Gilels and Arrau), you would be hard pressed to find any that clearly surpass them. In other words, Katchen plays Brahms like Rubinstein played Chopin - that is, better than everyone else. That, of course, doesn't mean these should be the only versions of these works you need, but it is the perfect place to start. Katchen does take the sonatas at a slightly faster tempo than Richter, but each line is still clearly articulated. Most box sets have their peaks and valleys, but this one is fairly even throughout. Also highly recommendable for Brahms fans are Katchen's violin sonatas with Josef Suk and piano trios with Suk and Janos Starker.

the finest set of Brahms solo piano music
A British musician once said to me "American musicians don't understand European music." I was so stunned that I could only think to reply, "But what about Murray Perahia?" To which she responded, "Murray Perahia? He's British." I then explained that while Perahia may live in London, he was raised in New York City, where he attended the Mannes School of Music. She seemed sceptical. Of course, after we parted I subsequently thought of scores of American musicians who have performed "European" music with great understanding, but unfortunately, I never saw her again.

All this to say that I have always wished I mentioned Julius Katchen that day. Although I don't suppose that she would have known about the remarkable recordings Katchen made with the great Czech violinist, Josef Suk, of the Brahms violin sonatas, or the equally fine recordings he made of the Brahms piano trios, with Suk and cellist Janos Starker. Nor would she have known about this set of the complete Brahms solo piano music, which is overall the best set that I have ever heard. Listening again to Katchen's utterly beautiful playing of the late Brahms Intermezzi Op.117, I am reminded of just how outrageous her comment really was. Katchen was a pianist of real intellect, who possessed a deep emotional understanding of this very "European" music, and he was from Long Branch, New Jersey. In fact, I can think of only a handful of pianists that I would put in his same class for the playing of Brahm's solo piano music: they would include Radu Lupu, Dmitri Bashkirov, Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli--whose "Four Ballades" surpass everyone, even Gilels--and historically speaking, Walter Gieseking and Wilhelm Backhaus. (Emil Gilels, Sviatoslav Richter, and Annie Fischer were all exceptional in Brahms solo piano works, but they didn't record much of it.) I also have a very special fondness for a double CD set of late Brahms piano music played by the Russian pianist Dmitri Aleexev on the EMI label. (Of the more recent crop of pianists, I have enjoyed Nicholas Angelich's recordings on the Virgin label, Ivo Janssen, Helene Grimaud, and I am very much hoping that Nelson Freire will get around to recording some of the solo works, after his brilliant recent recording of the piano concertos.) But as complete sets go, this Katchen set is definitely the one to get, and is essential for any lover of the music of Brahms.

The sound is mostly analoque, and is generally very good. My only complaint is that it is a little recessed--although be warned that I have an earlier Decca Ovation release, and not this later release--so, mine may be a little different. There were times when I felt forced to turn the volume up in an effort to hear the quieter, more ruminative passages, which Katchen plays so tenderly--then, when he launched into the more thunderous passages it was a little jarring, and I had to jump up to turn the volume back down. Part of this is simply due to the wide range of emotions inherent in these compositions, and will be a problem no matter which recording one is listening to. But it is also partly due to the difficulty of transfering a very decent analogue piano recording from the LP days into a digital CD format. I am fortunate enough to have a Decca LP boxed set of these recordings from the early 1980s, and I don't remember ever having this sound problem. That set also included the violin sonatas with Suk, which likewise sounded more natural and life-like than on the various CD incarnations that I have purchased over the years.

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Most Romantic Classical Music in the Universe

2008-12-07T04:24:00.000-08:00

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Most Romantic Classical Music in the Universe
Francisco Tarrega, Gabriel Faure, Felix Mendelssohn, Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky, Fryderyk Chopin, Franz Liszt, Erik Satie, Robert Schumann, Antonin Dvorak, Gustav Mahler, Sergey Rachmaninov, Leos Janacek, Cesar Franck, George Frideric Handel, Jules Massenet, Sergey Prokofiev, Catalan Traditional, Various Artists

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #23344 in Music
Released on: 2004-01-13
Number of discs: 2

Customer Reviews

Great music to unwind to!
I bought this CD to play while I am putting my infant son to bed. Every night I give him his bottle, read him a story and like to have soothing music playing in the background. This was a great choice! It makes for a great alternative to lullaby CD's. I highly recommend it if you are looking for a nice relaxing blend of classical music.

very romantic to make love by
The music is seductive and promotes an atmosphere of feeling uninhibited when you are making love.

Great Mood Music
This is a great CD to compliment any romantic situation. A meal by candle light, champagne on the veranda, or a Jacuzzi for two! Very soothing.

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The Ultimate Most Relaxing Classical Music in the Universe

2008-12-07T01:25:00.000-08:00

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The Ultimate Most Relaxing Classical Music in the Universe
From Denon Records

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #28856 in Music
Released on: 2007-02-27
Number of discs: 2

Editorial Reviews

Album Description
This collection features more than two hours of relaxing Classical compositions to help you kick back, unwind and relax.

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Grieg: Lyric Pieces / Emil Gilels

2008-12-06T23:25:00.000-08:00

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Grieg: Lyric Pieces / Emil Gilels
From Deutsche Grammophon

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #45011 in Music
Released on: 1997-03-11
Number of discs: 1

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Emil Gilels' personal selection of favorite lyric pieces is one of his most praised and best recordings. The pianist obviously selected the pieces with which he felt the strongest identification, and he plays them lovingly, with sprightly rhythms and a rich, singing tone. Gilels was the one who identified himself as second to Sviatoslav Richter--"If you think I'm something, wait until you hear Richter," he supposedly said. But this collection is just as beautiful in its way as Richter's lyric collections. Along with some of his Chopin playing, this Grieg set reminds us that Gilels was a major Romantic pianist. --Leslie Gerber

Customer Reviews

Pleasant but nothing more...
I know that many reviewers find this to be one of the greatest piano discs ever recorded, so I hope that readers will be open to a contrary and somewhat heretical point of view.

I never heard these pieces until I bought this CD. They are basically nice salon pieces: charming, melodic, lightweight. I notice that several reviewers have pointed out that Gilels does not play up the sentimentality in these pieces. Perhaps that's what I find lacking in these performances. I guess I am saying that I would prefer to hear frankly sentimental compositions such as these played with a great deal more sentiment.

Please be aware of the very real possibility that you will find this music boring. The music has grown on me over a period of several months of frequent listening, but I prefer to listen to a few pieces at a time and then put the disc away for a while. It also makes very pleasant background music! (More heresy!!)

Caveat emptor.

Warm and delicate
Why did I wait so long to buy this disc?! These are tranquil pieces played to perfection by Emil Giles. His lyrical expression is hypnotic. If you like classical piano at all, buy this disc.

Outstanding in every way.
This rendition of Grieg's Lyric Pieces by Emil Gilels put simply is outstanding. The sensitive playing of Gilels coupled with some of Grieg's loveliest music combines to make this CD a must to have for a "desert island" qualification.

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Brahms: 10 Intermezzi for Piano; 4 Ballades

2008-12-06T20:43:00.000-08:00

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Brahms: 10 Intermezzi for Piano; 4 Ballades
From Sony Bmg Europe

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #16324 in Music
Released on: 2002-09-30
Number of discs: 1
Format: Import

Customer Reviews

Wow!
Gould delivers. He has a right style and attitude to give power to Brahm's late keyboard works. The sound is excellent. I hear every keystroke clearly.If there is humming, which I doubt, it never reaches the listner. This "oldie" will is still solid gold.

Hear this, love Kempff!
Reading through all the reviews here, I noticed no one specifically refers to the one recording of the Intermezzi and Rhapsodies that to me is an indispensable reference point and to which one will return to again and again for a lifetime to nurture one's heart and soul: Wilhelm Kempff's earlier one from the 1950s on Decca (especially the Op. 116 Fantasias and Op. 117 Intermezzi from 1950).

Having said that, I love Gould and find his Brahms, with the exception of the 1st Piano Concerto elsewhere and the Op. 76 Intermezzo in A major here, very much worth listening to, the Ballades (and among those, the Second that Gould starts off as if awakening from a dream) in particular. They certainly form a worthy alternative to Michelangeli (the 1981 studio recording on DG, or as part of the 1973 Lugano recital on Music & Arts) - that is, assuming you, like me, like listening to alternative versions instead of only one.

If Gould intended Op. 76 Intermezzo to function like a strategically placed shock effect on this disc, that wears off in no time, and what remains is jarring and honestly confusing - as others have said here, this wonderful piece does not deserve being treated like this.

Greetings from Switzerland, David.

Lyricism + sobriety + lucid tune = Majestic sonority!

The gallant mood, the aristocratic flair, marvelous expressive poetry non romantic and tune's delicacy will surprise you. Gould assumes another idiomatic perspective, and convinces us about his enormous sense of expression and temperament. His astonishing fingering not only gives us another facet around these Brahms works but besides an indication Brahms has been absolutely misunderstood due an awful misconception of his artistic intentions.

One of the most pyramidal musical achievements of Mr. Gould.

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50TH Anniversary Harmonia Mundi

2008-12-06T17:43:00.000-08:00

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50TH Anniversary Harmonia Mundi
From Harmonia Mundi Fr.

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #19474 in Music
Released on: 2007-10-09
Number of discs: 30
Formats: Box set, Enhanced, Import

Editorial Reviews

Album Description
To celebrate its 50th Anniversay, harmonia mundi presents 50 masterworks in the development of Western classical music, performed by undisputed masters in their field. This set features over 36 hours of music (all complete works, no excerpts) of music in audiophile-quality sound, elequently packaged in a deluxe boxed set and offered at a very low price. Whether you are an inquisitive novice or a discerning connoisseur, you will be thrilled to experience the sonic triumphs of the world's most innovative independent label.

Jeff Simon, Buffalo News (Oct 14, 2007)
" . . . I don't know if you could better convey the label's independence and purity than this huge and often fascinating set does. " 3 Stars

Kyle MacMillan, Denver Post
" ... Harmonia Mundi has earned kudos year after year for its impeccable standards, independent spirit and unusual repertoire. This imaginative collection offers exceprts from some of the label's most memorable albums, featuring such artists as William Christie, Isabelle Faust, Rene Jacobs, and Andrew Manze. "

Customer Reviews

Massive box set includes numerous delights
Let me state upfront that I did not buy this set as such. I received it as a gift when I recently made a pledge to my local classical music station (WGUC here in Cincinnati) during their pledge drive. Imagine my good fortune, and surprise, when this arrievd at my house!

"Harmonia Mundi 50" (29 CDs, plus 1 CD-Rom; about 36 hours of music) is so massive and overwhelming that I will admist I haven't yet listened to every single piece of music yet. I have been picking out and listening to CDs that immediately appealed to me, either because of the composer, or the orchestra/artist playing it, or the venue where it was recorded (there are several CDs that have a Belgian connection, and I am from Belgium originally). But rest assured, I will make my way through all of the other CDs as well, as I am intruiged to discover what else is in here.

In all, this is quite the treat for any fan of classical music. Would I have bought it as such? I don't know. I've not seen this set in any music store that I go to regularly as this is an import, but if you do see it (or find it here on Amazon), I highly recommend it, you won't be disappointed.

eclectic review
I have found this interesting and informative. I was unfamiliar with most of the performers and with some of the content. I am pleased to have by this route broadened my experience. I recommend it.

Fantastic Value
Wonderfully varied selection of works, a treasure trove - everyone will discover something new, about 90% was new to me. The performances and sound are consistently outstanding.

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The Chopin Ballades & Scherzos [Hybrid SACD]

2008-12-06T14:43:00.000-08:00

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The Chopin Ballades & Scherzos [Hybrid SACD]
From RCA

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #11250 in Music
Released on: 2004-09-14
Number of discs: 1
Format: Hybrid SACD

Customer Reviews

3 Channel Sound is Good, Not 5.1
I recently bought an SACD player and thought this CD would be great to try it out. Because the recordig is old, 1959, it is improved via SACD to a 3 channel output (left, eight, center speakers). No surround. I guess I was expecting to be enveloped by sound. This did not happen because all the sound comes from teh front and being used to suround, it is noticeable. As a fan of Chopin, the music is naturally superb. Rubensteins rendition is classic. The clarity of the clarity of teh sound is noticeable and very refined. NO background hissing, feedback, or anyting else. It is completely pure piano.

a good collection of classical music.
If you enjoy piano music, you should have this CD.

As Good As It Gets
Rubinstein was in his prime when these versions of the Chopin Ballades and Scherzos were recorded in 1959. Curiously, although this was his third version of the Scherzos, he had never before recorded the Ballades.

Rubinstein was temperamentally well suited to these works, moreso than in the Mazurkas and Preludes. The narrative aspect of the Ballades suited his intuitive sense of structure well. At this point in his career, Rubinstein had known these pieces for six decades. It is no wonder, therefore, that he performs them more convincingly than, say, Kissin does on his recent recording.

The Scherzos are outright virtuoso works. Rubinstein would occasionally perform all four in concert, back-to-back. Any other pianist would have been exhasted by the effort. Not Rubinstein, who posessed a seemingly inexaustable reserve of energy. The pianist is just as on top of these pieces, technically, as any of his colleagues, and much more attuned to them musically.

The sound, made from original three channel tapes produced by RCA's legendary Jack Pfeiffer, is spectacular in this new SACD edition--sounding every bit as lifelike as the best of today's digital recordings.

This is the one to get!

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BRAHMS: Edition - Complete Works

2008-12-06T11:44:00.000-08:00

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BRAHMS: Edition - Complete Works
From Brilliant Classics

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #19388 in Music
Released on: 2008-05-13
Number of discs: 60
Format: Box set

Customer Reviews

Definitely a COMPLETE EDITION!
A wonderful CD collection indeed! I have bought all of the Brilliant Classics Complete Collections and have not been upset with any set. The only thing I didn't like about this set (and only because I can compare with my others), the information was on the outside instead of the inside. Meaning that all of the works were located on the outside box instead of on the flap like Mozart, Beethoven and Bach.

The set is much more colorful than the last couple also. You can see how much time they spend on making it look "brilliant". Definitely a wonderful deal for the price... and you should not even give it a second thought.

Enjoy a few weeks with Brahms
As with Brilliant's Mozart, Bach and Chopin complete sets, the 60 CD Brahms set represents excellent value, particularly if you can land it from one of Amazon's European sites, which often offer Brilliant sets for far less than shown here. I obtained mine in early 2008 from Amazon's French site, at a considerable discount (as a foreigner I didn't have to pay sales tax, which offset most of the shipping costs).

The quality of the performances is generally high, comparable to Brilliant's complete Beethoven set. But unlike the Beethoven set, where Brilliant reached back to the 1950s to fill out some of the piano and chamber music repertory, these Brahms recordings are all modern. Some of the concertos are weak spots, but these are among the works you're most likely to already have in your library. The symphonies come in the form of recent recordings by Jaap Van Zweden and the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra (replaced in the Second by the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra of Holland). These interpretations have been highly praised by some (Christopher Howell's review at MusicWeb) and more modestly praised by others (Michael Cookson's review on the same site). Do read those reviews. I'll add that I find the performances quite interesting, with the Third and Fourth the most compelling, and the Second suffering somewhat from the inferior intonation of its performers (e.g., the wind chord concluding the third movement). There are some interesting points of emphasis. For example, Van Zweden takes the opening of the First Symphony notably faster than most conductors -- justifiably so, since it's marked "un POCO sostenuto" (not "molto maestoso"). Somewhat odder is the contrabassoon fetish evidently possessed by either the engineer or the conductor (its entrances in soft woodwind passages are often quite prominent). The bottom line: it's a worthy addition to some well worn territory, perhaps not definitive (after all, you're up against the world's best with this repertory), but you'll definitely hear a few new things in these interpretations.

I find the chamber music to be quite good. The string quartets are handled by the Tokyo String Quartet (the Vox recordings from 1986). The all-important piano quintet and horn trios are compelling (Nash Ensemble). A nice inclusion is the original two-piano version of the piano quintet (Op. 34b), which I had not heard previously. The solo piano works shouldn't disappoint either. The most important of these (the Ballades, Rhapsodies, Op. 76 pieces and late masterworks Opp. 116-119) are handled by Håkon Austbø, who is also featured on Brilliant's Grieg Centenary Edition set. They are to be praised for making quality performances of all of Brahms' incredible chamber and piano music available at this price.

Interestingly, over one-third of the set consists of vocal and choral music, including more than a dozen CDs devoted to songs with piano accompaniment, a genre that was well worn by Romantic composers eager to supplement their income streams, but which in Brahms case ended up being completely overshadowed by his orchestral, chamber and piano music. Aside from the famous Lullaby, none of Brahms's songs are well known in North America. The bulk of his a cappella choral music, which occupies several more CDs, is likewise obscure, perhaps understandably given their didactic origins (to be "sung, not listened to"). The recordings of these vocal and choral works make up perhaps the most consistently praised part of Brilliant's set. Most of this music isn't vintage Brahms, but you won't regret the performances.

All this said, there are some unfortunate flaws that I hope don't presage a slackening of Brilliant's production standards. Missing from the "Complete Works" are the arrangements of the horn and clarinet trio for violin/viola/piano and viola/cello/piano respectively (note the unusual piano trio configuration with a viola replacing an expected string instrument). Then there's the following:

1. CD 4, Track 1 (Academic Festival Overture): two bad glitches at 4:04 and 4:07, at the entrance of the bassoon theme. These sound to me like clipping at the mastering stage (they don't register as errors on my CD playback equipment)
2. CD 9, Track 1: glitch right at the opening of the Violin Concerto. This sounds like dropout rather than clipping, so I'm guessing this is a duplication error
3. Most embarrassing of all: on CD 22, the last four tracks purport to be Brahms long-lost A major piano trio (Op. Posth.). In fact what's presented is Schumann's F major trio, Op. 80. Ouch

Perhaps these technical flaws will be corrected in a subsequent release. Per the comments received to this review, others have noticed these flaws too, so they're not confined to my copy of the set (and I've not gotten a response from Brilliant Classics).

So where does that leave us? Lovers of Brahms and art music, and CD collectors, will be interested in this set, even if only to fill out gaps in their libraries. At a bargain price like this, you could reasonably throw away half the CDs and keep the rest if you're so inclined. If you haven't yet heard much of the music in the set, including the more obscure vocal music, then it's certainly worth the price. The packaging is attractive: you get color-coded stiff cardboard sleeves like in the Bach complete edition, rather than the paper sleeves of the Mozart edition. Points off for a few lame recordings (e.g., the string concertos), and the technical flaws. I'll give it four stars. Snap up this set, and enjoy a few weeks with the man who is possibly the 19th Century's second greatest composer.

Good budget set.
Having spent additional time with this set, I'm updating my review. I'd say I've listened to about half of it.

Orchestral music: The symphonies are okay, although there's better performances out there. The Double Concerto isn't bad... but the rest of them are uneven, especially the Violin Concerto, with sluggish playing. I'll be supplementing the concerti with other recordings. The smaller orchestral works were hit and miss, with the overtures coming out the worst. The Haydn Variations were lovely though.

Chamber music: The Cello Sonatas are the weak link in this set but the rest are very solid, especially the the Piano Quintet, Horn Trio and Piano Quartets. There's some additional two-piano/four handed material at the end which sounded fine to my ears (although none of it is really top-drawer Brahms).

Piano music: Mostly good. The piano sonatas are all a little sloppy but everything else is well-performed (especially the sadistically challenging Variations).

Vocal music with orchestra: I didn't listen to much of the Requiem but it sounded okay (aside from a shrill soprano soloist). My favorite Brahms work (the Alto Rhapsody) was taken at a tempo far faster than I prefer but I'm slowly getting used to it and the soloist is good. The smaller choral works are good, if just a tad under-reheared.

Choral music: This set has been released separately and it is *very* strong. No complaints here.

Lieder: Aside from the EXTREMELY irritating way this music has been programmed (completely out of order, with duets and solo songs interspersed randomly through 13 CDs), these mostly underrated pieces come off pretty well. There are undoubtedly finer performances with bigger name singers (and pianists) but no one embarrasses themselves (admirable given that *ALL* of these songs were recorded very quickly last year). As a sidenote, there are a few songs that are missing and I'm not sure why as otherwise, this set is very complete (including a fair amount of the works without opus number).

Organ Works: Just one disc for these. They sounded okay but I'm not the best one to judge, as organ music isn't my forte.

Overall, I don't consider this set as consistent as the complete Mozart edition... but as a performer, I've always found Brahms harder to pull off and none of these performances are ghastly. For the price, it's a great deal and you can supplement the performances you don't like with other ones.

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My Favorite Brahms

2008-12-06T08:44:00.000-08:00

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My Favorite Brahms
From RCA

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #20134 in Music
Released on: 1999-11-09
Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Gorgeous recording, not overdone
I'm a former classical musician who doesn't listen to much classical music anymore. That said, I adore Brahms piano music, and this is a wonderful recording. Beautifully performed, not overly sappy or sentimental, Van Cliburn has a wonderfully balanced approach to Brahms' stunning romantic music. For those of you who have mixed feelings about classical music, this is a wonderful alternative to the "New Age" piano music so popular right now (and which I enjoy as well). Perfect backdrop to a romantic dinner for two, sipping wine on the veranda - give it a try!

Van Cliburn is the best Brahms Pianist
There are, of course, many wonderful interpreters of Brahms piano music. Rubenstein is also good. I think Glen Gould is the worst. Van Cliburn captures a tenderness that I don't hear in any other performances. there is no loss of structure or phrase shaping in his playing he simply plays Brahms as if it were late romantic piano music. Which, of course, it is.

Van Cliburn is simply the best!
I played some of these pieces and especially love Van Cliburn's interpretation of the Ballad in G Minor as well as the Intermezzo in E.

Van Cliburn makes this piano music sound so easy. It is very difficult and well played with expression and appropriate rhythm.

The sound and tonality of this piano is excellent and well recorded.

I highly recommend this for anybody who wants a top performance of Brahm's piano music.

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Horowitz Live and Unedited [includes Bonus DVD]

2008-12-06T05:44:00.000-08:00

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Horowitz Live and Unedited [includes Bonus DVD]
From Sony

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #37345 in Music
Released on: 2003-09-30
Number of discs: 3
Formats: Enhanced, Live

Customer Reviews

Horowitz Live and Unedited
Horowitz Live and Unedited [includes Bonus DVD]
The sound is simply astonishing, as if it were recorded on 21st century equipment instead of forty years ago. If you enjoy classical piano, this is an essential for your collection. Horowitz at his best.

Horowitz Live and Unedited, with bonus DVD
I am a pianist, and a piano teacher, who has admired Horowitz, since my college days in the 80's. I purchased this item, mainly for the DVD, to share with my piano students in a group class, so they will know about the tremendous ability of Horowitz. I was a little disappointed that the DVD was only about ten minutes, and not longer, but greatly enjoyed the CD's with mistakes actually left in! It was fascinating to hear the great Horowitz make a few, mistakes, and encouraging to other pianists, who know that concerts do have mistakes at times-no one's perfect.

Horowitz Plays again in public for first time in 12 years
This is a MUST for all Horowitz fans. The Horowitz technique is unparalleled, and you must hear him play in front of an audience after 12 years.

I think it is one of his best performances -- maybe because I like the way he played things I've heard at other Horowitz performances.

But, I like all of his music, and a new performance of the same piece is a little different than others -- but all very interesting.

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Ultimate Classical Piano

2008-12-06T02:44:00.000-08:00

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Ultimate Classical Piano
From Decca

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #20253 in Music
Released on: 2007-09-24
Number of discs: 5
Format: Box set

Editorial Reviews

Album Description
The most popular composers of all-time now offered at an incredible price. FIVE CDs for the price of ONE--who could resist! Collections of the essential works of the most popular composers and their greatest hits! Outstanding artists and recordings from the Decca and Philips Classic's catalogues. Each package is a slipcase loaded with FIVE jewel boxes. That's over 5 HOURS of great music in each boxed set. VARIOUS/ULTIMATE PIANO CLASSICS Five discs of the greatest piano classics of all time.

Includes: Beethoven: "PathÃ©tique" Sonata, Moonlight" Sonata, "FÃ¼r Elise", Brahms: Lullaby, Hungarian Dance No. 5, Chopin: "Minute" Waltz, Grande valse brillante, "Raindrop" Prelude, Funeral March, "Heroic" Polonaise, Fantaisie-Impromptu, Debussy: Clair de lune, Arabesque No. 1, Golliwogg's Cakewalk, The Girl with the Flaxen Hair, DvorÃ¡k: Humoresque, Grainger: Country Gardens, Grieg: Wedding Day at Troldhaugen, Liszt: Liebestraum No.3, MacDowell: To a Wild Rose, Mendelssohn: "Spinning Song", Mozart: "Sonata facile" (allegro), Rachmaninov: Prelude in G minor, op. 23 no. 5, Rimsky-Korsakov: The Flight of the Bumble-Bee, Rubinstein: Melody in F, Satie: GymnopÃ©die No. 1, Schubert: Moments musicaux No. 3 , Schumann: TrÃ¤umerei and much more!

Featuring Vladimir Ashkenazy, AndrÃ¡s Schiff, Alicia de Larrocha, Julius Katchen, Pascal RogÃ© Joseph Cooper, Radu Lupu, Ivan Davis, Shura Cherkassky and Jorge Bolet .

Customer Reviews

good for my son
I bought it for my 4-year-old son to listen in our car when driving. Hopefully he will play piano well in the future.

Sheer Listening Pleasure at a Great Price
Where else can you find such excellent value offered by this 5 CD boxset which is packed with great piano classics and featuring outstanding artists such as Vladimir Ashkenazy, Alicia de Larrocha, Julius Katchen, Joseph Cooper, Radu Lupu, Ivan Davis, Shura Cherkassky, Jorge Bolet etc.

It's 5 hours of sheer listening pleasure which includes all time favourites such as Beethoven's Fur Elise, Moonlight Sonata, Chopin's Nocturne no 2 in E flat op 9, Heroic, Grande valse brillante, 12 Etudes, op 10 no 3 in E "Tristesse", Mozart's Piano Sonata no 11 in A K331 "Alla Turca", Brahms' Hungarian Dance, Dvorak's Humoresque, Debussy's Arabesque no 1 etc.

There are also the popular Thekla Bardarzewska's The Maiden's Prayer, Isaac Albeniz's Espana op 165-2 Tango, Enrique Granados' Spanish Dance, Camille Saint-Saens' Le Carnaval des Anemaux-Le Cygne and much much more. This is truly an Ultimate Classical Piano collection at a great price.

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Chopin: The Piano Works

2008-12-05T23:45:00.000-08:00

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Chopin: The Piano Works
From Decca

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #53296 in Music
Released on: 1997-06-24
Number of discs: 13

Customer Reviews

(-) The Second-Best Complete Chopin Piano Works Survey
Having discovered Chopin's unique musical treasures in my pre-teens through Naxos discs featuring Szekely, Szokolay, Zaritskaya and Biret (readily available in my small home town), I acquired this Ashkenazy set in my teenage years--that is more than ten years ago--and considered it the definitive way to Chopin's music for years. As time went by, I noticed that I returned increasingly more seldom to this set, rather ending up playing Chopin recordings by Argerich, Demidenko, Kissin and Pletnev. In other words, before I discovered the Chopin playing of Ohlsson, Moravec and Pogorelich--in my opinion, the three greatest living Chopin interpreters.

All the same, Askhenazy's (near) complete survey of Chopin's solo piano works (though inexplicably excluding the Andante spianato and Grand Polonaise) is indeed a valuable investment at around $100 (even if some shopping around will pay off on this item--I actually paid the equivalent of some $150 back in the late 1990s), offering a great deal of pleasurable returns. Ashkenazy is a master pianist when it comes to technical effortlessness, tone production, legato playing and pedaling. However, more often than not--just as Rubinstein in his stereo Chopin recordings--he lacks the individual imagination that elevates the very greatest Chopin playing of the above three pianists.

As a consequence of the aforementioned, it should come as no surprise that Ashkenazy is most at home in the Etudes, Rondos, Polonaises, Waltzes and Scherzos (save the First). His generally straightforward approach pays numerous dividends here--the Etudes in fact displaying a rather unique combination of effortless brilliance and poised poetry. Conversely, his Preludes, Sonatas and, even more so, Nocturnes and Mazurkas are fairly pale placed next to those of Ohlsson, Moravec and Pogorelich. Nonetheless, some out-and-out five-star performances are hiding within the 13 discs: the Op 37 Nocturnes, Op 42 Waltz, Opp 26 & 53 Polonaises, Op 56/1 Mazurka, Op 73 Rondo, Bolero, Second Ballade, Allegro de concert, Polonaise-Fantaisie and Op 25/1 Etude--the greatest performance of this heavenly creation (Chopin's most beautiful?), second only to Ohlsson's.

A problem throughout this set is the sharp, metallic piano sound Decca insists on producing (indeed weird compared to the label's demonstration sound in opera and orchestra productions), recorded at seven different venues in London over a 10-year period (1974-84), analogly as well as and digitally. Having said that, the sound is remarkably consistent. (As a matter of curiosity, can you hear the chirping birds during the C major Prelude?)

From an investment point of view, this Ashkenazy set appears expensive when compared to the 11-disc Rubinstein collection at less than $30 (The Chopin Collection)--not to mention the reference Ohlsson cycle soon to be reissued on 11 November by Hyperion as a 16-disc boxed set (Complete Works), available at a lower price than this set (at least in the UK). The minus in brackets pertains to the sound and price tag.

It's good to get all the Chopin in one place but...
This is a great set to own to get a good feeling for the entirety
of Chopin's output. However, I feel (with appropriate respect to all
the other reviewers here) that one needs to dig a little deeper
for truly benchmark performances of these little miracles.
For example, try Demidenko for the Ballades and the third sonata,
check out Pollini for the Nocturnes and show Chiu a little love
for the Mazurkas and Etudes.

The bar has been set for all solo Chopin collections
This is an absolutely fantastic set. I was lucky enough to acquire it for less than $45 when I was still a member of the Musical Heritage Society a few years ago; so Amazon's price here can definitely be beaten if one looks around.

Ashkenazi's playing is stunning, handling not only the well-known (if not overly well-known) pieces that are staples of the modern repertoire but also the obscure pieces. Chopin is notoriously difficult for even the most accomplished virtuosi, but Ashkenazi handles it all with a grace and ease. He also avoids the mistake that so many interpreters make (from amateurs to the biggest names): the tendency to play Chopin as though it were either a mathematical exercise or a dexterity contest (something Bach interpreters can also fall prey to). In other words, squeezing the depthless pathos out of the music and leaving behind only sterile--if note perfect--reproductions. (Rather like wax-work figures.)

That's not an issue here. It doesn't take too much imagination to close one's eyes and transport one's self back to an early 19th century drawing room, listening to the Master himself play his own works.

I've listened to the entire set (one of the first things I did was rip the whole set to my iPod) and the Ballades, Scherzi, Waltzes and Mazurkas are my favorites.

The Preludes, long my favorite works by the Franco-Polish maestro, are excellent, but they don't quite equal a Naxos recording by an obscure Polish pianist, named Irina Zaritzkaya, which I discovered when Naxos first debuted in '89 or '90. I've yet to hear anyone top Ms. Zaritskaya's performance and highly recommend it. (Naxos #8.550225; though it appears to be out of print, if you can find it snatch it up! It's popularity can be judged by it's "used" price on Amazon: $22, for a disc I bought for $3.99 in 1990).

Though the individual discs were recorded over a period of 10 years (from 1975 to 1985), there is a uniform quality of sound & performance that equals Mr. Ashkenazi's playing. (No wonder Brezhnev and the Politburo gave Ashkenazi his freedom, they didn't want to chase him off to the West.)

If you're a Chopin fan, this set is the bar by which all single-performer collections must be judged.

Decca's packaging is also superb. The outer box is made of thick, tough cardboard. One could also wish for comprehensive liner notes as opposed to the rather brief essay included in the track list booklet. Why Decca didn't commission a written intro from Mr. Ashkenazi himself is mysterious to me. But that the only real complaint I have about this set. A DVD would have been a nice touch, especially at nearly $100, but these are gentle complaints at worst.

The only way to really have improved on this set would have been to have made the disc SACD Hybrids, but that would have almost certainly raised the price. A good surround-sound system can get you pretty close to SACD quality anyway.

One FYI note: some people seemed to be very concered with the SPARS code (for a complete description see the en.wikipedia.org article) of art music CDs. One shouldn't be. Even the creator of the system has disowned it. The primary reason is that while digital tape recorders are relatively inexpensive, digital mixing boards are still extremely pricey. So much so that most CDs recorded digitally are mixed on analogue boards and the mastered digitally. So many CDs should have codes that read DAD. So do yourself a huge favor and simply ignore that SPARS codes altogether. Either rely on your own ears, word-of-mouth or the more intelligent Amazon.com reviewers, of which, at least for art music, there are a great many.

Unlike the assertion by one reviewer, nowhere does this set claim to be the "complete" solo piano oeuvre by the composer (I have the boxed set in front on me as I write this). It's simply titled, "The Piano Works."

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