Beethoven and Mozart: Piano Quintets

Advantages: Classic Brendel, good sound
Disadvantages: Classic Brendel

...After having spent quite some time, both in the studio and the concert hall, concentrating exclusively on the Beethoven Piano Sonatas and Piano Concertos, Brendel, whilst always being limited to some, (not inconsiderable, it seems) extent by physical problems in and around the areas of his back and arms, is now free to explore other music avenues. This is the second disk of Brendel's Mozart with which we have been presented over the recent past; the other being his account of two of the concertos. Here we have performances of 3 of the unaccompanied sonatas. Brendel has long been considered as being a Mozartian of zest and insight. But, for me at least, his interprtations of this Master can seem a little quirky. Its as if he doesn't, in some way, relate to the personality and musical language of Mozart with quite the same success... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful

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

...INTRODUCTION Beethoven's nine symphonies cover one of the major cornerstones of symphonic literature along with the likes of Haydn, Brahms and Sibelius. Beethoven was born in turbulent times when the common people's dissatisfaction toward the ruling monarchs in Europe was reaching new heights which finally culminated in the French Revolution in 1789. Against this came Beethoven, who was born into a family of musicians in Bonn in 1770. His father wanted to coin in on the child prodigy market created by Mozart whose father had exploited his genius in a similar way. But Beethoven was no Mozart. He wasn't born a child progidy and his performing skills were nowhere near as natural as they were with Mozart. Still he made rapid progress as a piano virtuoso and an amateur composer. He was even supposed to take some lessons with Mozart in Wien... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Haunting, passionate music to get lost in.
Disadvantages: It's classical and this puts people off before they even try it.

...’t discuss it technically (hardly know the difference between a major and minor) and so you will have to forgive me this lack of knowledge and trust to my intuition that this is great stuff. But I can say that this is music to get lost in. It has so much variation in mood and imagery that it is as if Schubert has poured his very life into it, the good, the bad and the ugly of his outstanding genius, his syphilis and deep melancholic depressions interspersed with highlights of joy, passion the shine out as proof they exist. Much of what Wagner said of Beethoven can be also said of the Quintet. I find some classical music is useful for housework – I put on cordless headphones and rouse myself into action accompanied by Mozart, other music I can use as background music but this quintet deserves full attention and I find it too emotional to let... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful