Beethoven: Violin Sonatas

Advantages: a new take on a familiar warhorse
Disadvantages: is it worth full price?

...It's unlikely that any music lover who has a good recording of Beethoven's violin concerto on CD (say: Perlman, Grumiaux or Szigeti) would ever say to him or herself: 'boy, I wonder what that sounds like on the clarinet'. In fact, the only people who might would be clarinetists, for they tend to feel (mistakenly, as it happens)that there just isn't enough original repertoire written for their instrument. So here, spanking new, is a Deutsche Grammophon CD offering us an original work in Mozart's Clarinet Concerto and an arrangement of the Beethoven prepared by Russian pianist/conductor Mikhail Pletnev. The soloist is Michael Collins, who plays the familiar Mozart on his basset horn with all the joy and panache we expect. The Beethoven is a different cup of tea. It's difficult to listen to the famous melodies without hearing the fiddle (or... Read review

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Advantages: Thrilling, daredevil chamber music performances from the legendary Martha Argerich and partner-in-crime Gidon Kremer.
Disadvantages: Violinist Kremer occasionally on the mannered, spastic side; only forty-three minutes of music.

...unenlightened hierarchy of classical music preferences. To me, the performers are having more fun than the listeners (me, specifically) when it comes to chamber music. Well, leave it to Martha to upset another bias of mine. Here she teams up with her good friend, Latvian violinist Gidon Kremer, to play a couple of sonatas by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827). (The CD represents only part of their recordings of Beethoven’s sonata cycle for piano and violin.) Once again, Argerich’s formidable talent is in full display. Violinist Kremer, a frequent chamber music partner of hers, proves an able and equal partner. The Sonatas for Piano and Violin. The works on review are the Sonata no. 4 in A minor, and the Sonata no. 5 in F major ("Frühlings-Sonate" ["Spring"]) for Piano and Violin. For comparison, I chose the Anne-Sophie Mutter-Lambert Orkis version... Read review

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Advantages: Some great music
Disadvantages: Compilations!

...Cave is off Mull and Iona in Scotland and the music was inspired by his visit there, although I'm sure he didn't visit in the midst of a winter storm as it is very beautiful music, and the very famous Piano Concerto No 2 by Rachmaninov (yep, him again and I can't play this one very well either!) You will know this, as the music was practically lifted note for note to create the song 'All by Myself' which opened Bridget Jones diary. The complete list for this one is: 1. Bruch Violin Concerto No 1 in G minor, 3rd Movement 2. Beethoven: Piano Sonata No 23 2nd Movement 3. Tchaikovsky: Rose Adagio ( The Sleeping Beauty) 4. Mendelssohn: Fingals Cave Hebrides Overture. 5. Brahms: Symphony No 3 3rd movement 6. Tchaikovsky: Dance of the Reed Flutes (The Nutcraker) - Everyones a fruit and nutcase Arrrghh, 7. Elgar: Cello concerto 1st and 2nd... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: a new take on a familiar warhorse
Disadvantages: is it worth full price?

...It's unlikely that any music lover who has a good recording of Beethoven's violin concerto on CD (say: Perlman, Grumiaux or Szigeti) would ever say to him or herself: 'boy, I wonder what that sounds like on the clarinet'. In fact, the only people who might would be clarinetists, for they tend to feel (mistakenly, as it happens)that there just isn't enough original repertoire written for their instrument. So here, spanking new, is a Deutsche Grammophon CD offering us an original work in Mozart's Clarinet Concerto and an arrangement of the Beethoven prepared by Russian pianist/conductor Mikhail Pletnev. The soloist is Michael Collins, who plays the familiar Mozart on his basset horn with all the joy and panache we expect. The Beethoven is a different cup of tea. It's difficult to listen to the famous melodies without hearing the fiddle (or... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Thrilling, daredevil chamber music performances from the legendary Martha Argerich and partner-in-crime Gidon Kremer.
Disadvantages: Violinist Kremer occasionally on the mannered, spastic side; only forty-three minutes of music.

...unenlightened hierarchy of classical music preferences. To me, the performers are having more fun than the listeners (me, specifically) when it comes to chamber music. Well, leave it to Martha to upset another bias of mine. Here she teams up with her good friend, Latvian violinist Gidon Kremer, to play a couple of sonatas by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827). (The CD represents only part of their recordings of Beethoven’s sonata cycle for piano and violin.) Once again, Argerich’s formidable talent is in full display. Violinist Kremer, a frequent chamber music partner of hers, proves an able and equal partner. The Sonatas for Piano and Violin. The works on review are the Sonata no. 4 in A minor, and the Sonata no. 5 in F major ("Frühlings-Sonate" ["Spring"]) for Piano and Violin. For comparison, I chose the Anne-Sophie Mutter-Lambert Orkis version... 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

..., but Beethoven restrains this from happening. The music gets more harmonised in the winds, moving in a rising progression, culminating on a C flat major triad. The music turns agonizingly slow as we approach the recapitulation, that is followed by the famous "wrong" horn note. As the violins tremble on B flat and A flat, a lone horn sounds the first notes of the main theme before the orchestra gives us two strong measures of the dominant seventh. The horn has therefore begun the recapitulation as the strings are still only preparing for it. During rehearsals, Beethoven's pupil Ferdinand Ries exclaimed: "You blasted hornplayer! Don't you know how to count? That sounded terrible!" Beethoven was left furious to Ries for a long time to come. The recapitulation doesn't present anything really significantly different from the exposition, except... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful