Emphasizing it's reputation as probably the greatest of all violin concertos, Perlman has described Beethoven's masterpiece as "classical and transparent", saying "You can't hide behind it". In this live recording, made with with Daniel Barenboim and the Berliner Philharmoniker, his playing is as fearless and authoritative as it is beautiful.

For his first album with Warner Classics, Lahav Shani conducts the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra in Symphony No. 7 and plays Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 4: two pieces which come from Beethoven's so-called middle period. The classical harmonic tension contributes to the drive of the music as much as the rhythmic propulsion. This music features a clarity of texture and, above all, a unity between the melodic motive and the accompaniment. Acclaimed for his 'instant chemistry' with the orchestra, Lahav Shani is considered the shooting star amongst conductors - as Der Tagesspiegel puts it: 'The young maestro is simply sensational'.

Classical Music

Classical Music

Alto finally releasing a worthy version of this cornerstone of the repertoire. When it was first released the Sunday Times was rapturous; "a magnificent Ninth, done with total commitment under Haitink's inspiring leadership... with splendid chorus and soloists in full cry, and orchestra in blazing form"the slow third movement... moves along at a pace few conductors would have employed fifty years ago. Yet it never sounds hurried, and the dramatic brass interruptions towards it's close have an appropriately apocalyptic ring. The extraordinarily vivid recording, in which the basses are caught to stupendous effect - especially in their passages of recitative... before welcoming the 'Ode to Joy' theme - adds hugely to the effect." (BBC Music magazine)

dark and intense Eroica, with urgent allegros... The LSO responds with bite and refinement. Excellent bargain (Penguin 3 stars) "Fiery, noble, and imposing was how I described Wyn Morris' earlier recording... and this remake has those qualities and even finer playing and modern recording. [I had dubbed Morris our Celtic Furtwangler, a phrase that later appeared in adverts!]... but the fact remains, Morris knows his Beethoven and conducts it (like Burton speaking Shakespeare) with an ardour and love of tonal splendour that is close to that old revered school of German interpretation: closer than anything we are likely to get nowadays" (Gramophone)

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Beethoven: Sym 3 / Mihul: Les Amazones - Overture - Les Siecles / Francois Roth -Xavier - HARMONIA MUNDI 2021 release.

This boxed set collects all 9 discs in fortepianist Kristian Bezuidenhout universally acclaimed Mozart Keyboard Music cycle. Praised by Gramophone as "interpretations of today" and BBC Music Magazine for bringing "out all the drama and intensity," this survey is now the benchmark standard for these works.

Édouard Herriot once said, "In Beethoven, everything comes from within. His model is not the rule of the schoolroom." This is particularly true of the late sonatas, which contain elements of both an intimate journal (Romain Rolland saw in Op.101 "a day in the inner life" of Beethoven) and total experimentation (the variations of Op.109) before attaining the mystical serenity of the very last sonata, Op.111. Here is Nikolai Lugansky's powerful vision of this pianistic Everest.

This release, part of harmonia mundi's series celebrating the Beethoven year, pairs the composer's iconic and much-loved Symphony No.5 with the far less well-known Symphony In 17 Parts by Francois-Joseph Gossec. The dramatic power and intensity of Beethoven stands in sharp contrast to to the cheerful and gallant music of Gossec. Les Siècles, led by François-Xavier Roth, apply their usual virtuosity and keen insight to both works in performances that are sure to delight.

 

REVIEW:

 

It is hard to recall a more relentlessly driven performance of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony than this newcomer...especially in the outer movements. It is not that it sets any new land-speed records, though it is certainly brisk. Rather, Roth elicits a consistent and persistent sense of forward momentum that, allied to a willingness to accentuate the coarser aspects of the period instruments, places this symphony as an irruption of the Classical era rather than a blueprint for musical Romanticism.

 

– BBC Music Magazine

 

 

A fantasy that turned into a symphony? First and foremost, this double album enshrines the exemplary work of an ensemble whose designation 'Baroque Orchestra' by no means limits it's excursions into later repertories: under the watchful eye of a gifted conductor, the 'Freiburgers' (and co.) offer us a profoundly renewed vision of the Ninth, that myth among myths, that touchstone of a genre in quest of the absolute - and the direct descendant of a much earlier 'Choral Fantasy'. The latter work showcased one of Beethoven's most extraordinary talents: improvisation. Kristian Bezuidenhout has joined forces again with his concerto partners to let us experience this little-known score as if it had just been premiered... then transcribed by Beethoven himself! 2020 release.

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The Larghetto and Allegro in E flat major is mature Mozart - contemporary with Idomeneo and Die Entfu¨hrung - but remains incomplete. Tomer Lev has finished the job brilliantly, making it the perfect companion for Mozart's official multipiano concertos.

The great "Eroica" variations are the centerpiece of this program, which ends with two amusingly anglophile tributes, and contains some surprisingly under-appreciated Beethoven. This is an indispensable pendant to Angela Hewitt's ongoing survey of his piano sonatas.

One of Europe’s most sought after pianist Homero Francesch (b. 1947 in Montevideo, Uruguay) has made a series of recordings for Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft for which he was awarded the Deutscher Schallplattenpreis of 1978. In 1991 Francesch performed all of Mozart’s sonatas in several recitals and recorded them for Kontrapunkt (KPT 32092/96). In the same year he also performed and recorded all 27 piano concertos with Orchestre Philharmonic de Nice for Kontrapunkt.

Pianist Homero Francesch (b. 1947 in Montevideo, Uruguay) is best known for his numerous recordings for Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft for which he was awarded the Deutscher Schallplattenpreis of 1978. In 1991 Francesch performed all of Mozart’s sonatas in several recitals and recorded them for Kontrapunkt (KPT 32092/96). In the same year he also performed and recorded all 27 piano concertos with Orchestre Philharmonic de Nice for Kontrapunkt.

This is the seventh volume of our Mozart piano concerto series recorded during the Mozart year in Nice, France. Nice Philharmonic Orchestra dedicated the whole 1991 season for the entire piano concertos. Uruguayan Homero Francesch is one of the most popular pianists in Europe and has made numerous recordings for Deutsche Grammophon. Among the many Mozart concerti recordings, INTUNE magazine chose this series as “highly desirable”.

Piano Concertos No. 17 & 18

Piano Concertos No. 1, 2, 3 &

Complete Piano Sonatas