Beethoven: Piano Trios 3 & 4

Advantages: A new way to hear Beethoven
Disadvantages: Surpassed by some later period cycles

...depiction of a trio of birds, a village band and a thunderstorm. The Seventh brought a completely new emphasis on the use of rhythm, something that had never been heard of before at this scale, while the Eighth proved that little is sometimes more with its witty and humor-filled attitude completely off-setting the greater Seventh. And finally there came the Ninth Symphony that not only out-scaled the Eroica, but also introduced human voices in a symphony. The addition of a chorus and soloists in a profoundly instrumental work would be much explored by the Romantics that followed. In essence and deed, Beethoven was one of the greatest (if not THE greatest) influences in the way music evolved through the Classical era to the Romantic. And, of course, his influence also effected many other genres like piano sonatas, chamber music, concertos, etc... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: A work that changed the way we look at symphonies
Disadvantages: none whatsoever

...There have been (and still are) moments in every art form that have somehow broken the accepted norms and created something revolutionary, pointing a clear path towards the future and serving as an influence to a number of other people that follow. In music one of the greatest innovators of all time must be Ludwig van Beethoven. Emerging in the late 18th century as a brilliant piano virtuoso and composer who was first seen as an heir to Mozart, but who soon showed his individual and highly original character, writing music that was more openly emotional, turbulent and less decorous than people were used to. However, Beethoven's promising career seemed almost to terminate before it had even begun as he started to loose his hearing, beginning in the early 1800s. This lead to a tremendous crisis in the composer's life and he seriously... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Beautifully hypnotic music from the master of floating ambient piano
Disadvantages: It is a very short CD indeed

...Effortlessly graceful and dreamlike, Music for 3 Pianos is quintessentially Harold Budd. Admittedly his two partners in music should not be ignored but it is clearly Budd's input that is the greatest: the floating, hauntingly minimalist piano style and lyrical drift is his alone. I have nothing by either Ruben Garcia or Daniel Lentz, though Lentz has recorded on the Cold Blue Music label (as I believe did Budd briefly in the early 80s), the music of which mirrors Budd's slightly in its haunting simplicity and minimalist approach, with soloist often multi-tracking their recordings (similarly they are usually about 20 minutes per CD). In many ways Music for 3 Pianos sounds like a multi-tracked album. The three pianos could often be Budd's playing overlaid on two base recordings to generate additional depth. Thus the sound... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful