Andreas Speer writes of this new album: “A soft knock at the door. Who is it? Could it be? - Hopefully it is! - Hidden feelings, longings arise, a sense of who and what it could be, and then the door opens, and it's him – rather than crashing in he enters cautiously, and the reality is even sweeter and more beautiful than imagined - Please excuse me giving rein to such unrestrained romanticism, but these are pretty much the associations running through my mind as I listen to this recording. The tapping motif in the timpani and the singing lover are as one: Beethoven's Violin Concerto is chamber music. Daniel Gaede plays unaffectedly without any soloistic pretensions and on the same wavelength as the Polish Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra under Wojciech Rajski. As a prelude rather than an encore, the three brothers in spirit, Daniel, Thomas and Sebastian Gaede play the Serenade op. 3.”

Born in Strasbourg, Elizabeth Sombart studied piano from the age of seven. She studied all over the world with various teachers, including Bruno-Leonardo Gelber, Peter Feuchtwanger, Hilde Langer-Ruhl and Sergiu Celibidache. Elizabeth received the rank of Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite in 2006 and then was awarded the Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2008, both in reference to her career in music. Elizabeth has a strong relationship with the RPO and will be continuing this Beethoven Piano Concerto cycle with them over the coming months. Beethoven is one of the single most influential figures in the history of Western music. Starting out with Mozart and Haydn as his spiritual mentors; he wrestled off the shackles of 18th century Classicism, forging uncompromising musical landscapes with a visionary intensity that left most musicians quivering in his wake. For centuries, music had lagged behind the other arts, but with Beethoven’s iron-clad will, it found itself at the cutting edge of social change.

Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos. 3 & 4

There is hardly a better way to approach Ludwig van Beethoven than through his piano concertos. Beethoven’s own instrument was the piano, and in his improvisations – which made him the darling of the Viennese salons – he merged virtuosity and unbridled expression. The piano concertos give a clear idea of these performances. At the same time, they are prime examples of Beethoven’s ability to create large orchestral works with seemingly endless arcs of tension. The complete recording of all five works with Mitsuko Uchida and Sir Simon Rattle was one of the most spectacular projects of the Berliner Philharmoniker during the Rattle era – and at the same time the highlight of the collaboration between the orchestra and the pianist, which began in 1984. The performances were given a rapturous reception in the auditorium and in the press – as one critic wrote, the audience was overwhelmed by a “collective sense of happiness”. With vibrant freshness, the performances brought the whole combative energy of these works to life. At the same time, they revealed Beethoven’s incomparable spirituality, which – according to Mitsuko Uchida – “allows us to see to the end of the universe”.

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REVIEW:

Uchida takes enormous care over articulation, clarity, voicing and dynamics. And this is true in the simplest passages as well as the most virtuoso. Uchida’s fastidious articulateness makes every stitch count, yet her phrasing is generous, so the detail always remains in its rightful place as part of a larger unfolding. What’s most valuable about these performances, I think, is their exploration of the music’s dramatic potential.

– Gramophone

Beethoven Project is John Neumeier's choreographic tribute to Ludwig van Beethoven, blending elements of Narrative and Symphonic Ballets. Based on the "Eroica Variations", Piano and Chamber Music, the "Prometheus" Ballet and the "Eroica" Symphony, John Neumeier describes his idea of the Beethoven Project: "My ballet - an attempt to give physical shape to the form and emotion of Beethoven's music. The music continues to offer me the most direct biographical material. But, my choreography does not aim to illustrate any historical picture. I'm rather interested in the contradictory aspects of our image of Beethoven. As a choreographer, I look for equivalents that are communicated by movements alone." (John Neumeier)

Selections recorded February 1-2, 1992 and February 3-5, 1993.

With this recording of chamber music composed by Beethoven at three key moments in his life, Alpha begins a collaboration with the WDR of Cologne and its various ensembles. Here a group of chamber musicians from the symphony orchestra presents the string quintets op.29 (1801) and op.104 (1817), thus linking Beethoven’s exuberant early period with that of the worry, discouragement and anguish caused by the conflict over custody of his nephew Karl. The album comes to a majestic conclusion with the Fugue, op.137 (1817).

Beethoven’s Missa solemnis is the one work the composer admired above all his compositions. It was written for his great patron and friend Archduke Rudolf of Austria at around the same time that he embarked on his Ninth Symphony and as the writer Donald Tovey noted, ‘there is no choral and no orchestral writing, earlier or later, that shows a more thrilling sense of the individual colour of every chord.’ This insightful documentary follows Frieder Bernius on a journey of discovery as he immerses himself in Beethoven’s monumental masterpiece in preparation for a recording.

Beethoven’s opus of 32 piano sonatas, known as “the New Testament of piano music,” is a landmark in piano literature. Spanning Beethoven’s entire life, the sonatas reflect his whole development as a human being and a musician, moving from one century into the next, from one epoch in music in to another. With the sonatas “Pathetique,” “Moonlight,” “Waldstein,” “Appassionata,” “Hammerklavier,” and the final sonata op. 111, the cycle contains some of the most known piano pieces of all time. Now, for the first time in its history the complete cycle was performed at the Salzburg Festival. For this challenge the Festival asked no less than the world-renowned and influential Beethoven expert and pianist Rudolf Buchbinder. With more than 45 performances of Beethoven’s complete sonata cycle in concert halls all over the world and his relentless drive to discover new details and facets in the sonatas through meticulous study of the scores, “Buchbinder has set new standards in the interpretation of Beethoven’s works.” (Bayerischer Rundfunk). As a bonus, this release includes a 36 minute interview with Rudolf Buchbinder about the Beethoven Piano Sonatas.

It would not be an overstatement to declare that Ludwig van Beethoven stands as one of the most significant figures in Western civilisation: a composer who shaped the course of music history through his mastery of rhythm, melody and harmonic exploration, pushing the boundaries of form and effectively bridging the gap between Classicism and Romanticism – and yet all the while continuously professing how difficult he found composition. Detailing his complete output – from his earliest years to his last, by which time he had almost completely lost his hearing – this 85CD box reveals an extensive palette of styles and mediums, rendered all the more obvious by the box's division into different genres (starting with the symphonies and ending with the large corpus of different national folk songs).

This box is the 2017 reissue of Brilliant Classics’ acclaimed Beethoven Complete Edition, with updates including Beethovenian pianist par excellence Alfred Brendel now in the complete cycle of Piano Concertos, Alessandro Commellato on historic fortepianos in brand new recordings of the 18 sets of ‘without opus’ piano variations, Emmy Verhey in the Violin Concerto and Romances and a definitive Mass in C from Stuttgart’s Gachinger Kantorei and Bach-Collegium.

REVIEW:

I found the music for wind ensemble to be one of the highlights of the box. The Ottetto Italiano are in excellent form and I must admit to have listened to the two discs featuring them (15 and 16) over and over again. Theirs is an exuberant performance, one that fills the music with life and a sense of enjoyment.

Jean-Pierre Rampal features in the following two discs featuring all the works for flute, not only those with and without opus numbers, but in the case of the Trio in G for three flutes, those which are highly doubtful. The performances are typical Rampal and although no recording details are given, I have a feeling that these to are from the Vox stable.

The Horn Sonata fares well with Farenc Tarjáni’s original Hungaroton recording being a real winner. Whilst the disc of piano quartets is another old friend, it presents the Cummings Trio and Anthony Goldstone in the wonderful recording they made for Meridian. </span>The piano trios take up discs 23 to 27, and whilst Trio Elégiaque are new to me, I was more than impressed by their performance. Included are all the arrangements for piano trio including those of the Symphony No. 2, the String Quintet Op. 4 and the Septet, here performed in a traditional piano trio format, which is good as it differs from my other version by the Guarneri Trio where the violin is replaced by a clarinet (PRD 350011). The performance of the Trio Elégiaque is first rate and highly enjoyable and is recommendable in its own right.

Of the string sonatas, I find that Timora Rosler and Klára Würtz are a well balanced and enthusiastic pairing in the works for cello and piano. Their performance, whilst it does not challenge my favourites, is enjoyable and would be a good introduction to the music. The string trios take up discs 34 and 35, and whilst the performance of The Zurich String Trio might not be the most exciting theirs is a very pleasing listen to indeed. Theirs is a performance of great subtlety and depth, one that places the emphasis on the music rather than the performers, old style Beethoven then, but enjoyable never the less.

The Suske Quartett were completely new to me and these recordings, the majority made for Berlin Classics between 1975 and 1980 are a real eye opener, even the Rasumovsky Quartets which were recorded in 1967 and 1968 have a presence that marks them out as another of the highlights in this box. Their performance reminds me of that of the Medici String Quartet on Nimbus (NI 1785), but unlike the Medici’s, the Suske ramp up the tension and the drama in the late quartets making theirs a more desirable set, I just don’t know how this has passed me by. The recorded sound is very good, even in the Rasumovsky’s, it is solid 1970’s but less reverberant than the Medici’s from the late 1980’s. this is a recording that I would be happy to recommend as a standalone set. The lesser quartet works are also well served, as are the string quintets. In the case of the quintets the The Zurich String Trio are joined by what seem to be regular colleagues as the Zurich String Quintet; they give an equally compelling performance here as the Trio did.

Again for the piano sonatas Brilliant turn to Alfred Brendel’s early Vox recordings, a series of LP’s I grew to enjoy when I started buying records in the 1970’s. Yes, this set may lack the enlightenment of Brendel’s later Beethoven recordings, and if we are to believe the rumours, Brendel himself tried to suppress these recordings, but they still have a lot to offer. Take the Hammerklavier for instance, one of my favourite of all the sonatas and the one presented first here, I have always rated this recording, and this despite my move towards fortepiano versions, it is a wonderful rendition, one that portrays the vibrancy of youth. It is coupled with the final sonata on this disc and this is given an equally compelling performance. Indeed, Brendel excels here in the later sonatas, and after listening to all 32, I still believe that the merits of this set warrants its inclusion in this set. The same can be said of his recording of the Opp. 34, 35, 76 and 120 variations, especially the Diabelli, and of the bagatelles.

What lies between the sonatas and the Diabelli however, might come as a bit of a surprise, as the three discs (CDs 54-56) present the sets of variations without opus numbers performed on a fortepiano. Alessandro Commellato has recorded these lesser known sets of variations seemingly especially for inclusion in this complete edition, and he has done it well. They are scheduled to be released separately in early 2018, and I would recommend picking up a copy if you don’t fancy the complete edition. I enjoy his tone and that of all the instruments employed here, a variety of instruments dating from between 1788 and 1823 are used, and whilst some might find the sound of these early instruments jarring, especially against the modern piano of Brendel, the sound is more than pleasing as are the performances. The smaller piano works, including the pieces with no opus number and those for piano four hands fare well too, here we return to modern instruments again and which are given performances that are more than pleasing.

Three of the four discs of songs presented here are old friends, indeed they have pride of place on the shelf, I have always enjoyed the performance of Peter Schreier and Walter Olbertz as they have a real sense of recital, and this despite their age, they were recorded between 1968 and 1970. These Berlin Classics recordings have been the go to recordings of the songs for me for a long time now, and I imagine they will remain that way too. The third of the four discs of lieder presents the baritone Florian Prey, the son of the esteemed Beethovian Hermann Prey, and the mezzo Anna Haase with Norbert Groh in the remaining songs, their performance compliments that of Schreier well.

The final six discs of the set present the folk song arrangements and are well known to me through their original release (94925). There are many settings of British folk songs, which fed the German hunger during the period for anything Celtic. They are not the most in demand music that Beethoven ever composed, but they have a certain charm that will bring delight to all but the most hardened of listeners. The performances are excellent throughout with all singers bringing the joy in these songs to the fore.

The presentation of this set is standard for all large Brilliant Classics’ large sets, individual discs in cardboard sleeves printed with the track information placed in a flip top box.

On the whole this is a very worthwhile set, which as I said at the beginning, is more than just a way of picking up those unusual works that are new to you and probably most other people too. The Edition contains some wonderful performances.

-- MusicWeb International

Beethoven’s 32 piano sonatas are frequently called “the New Testament of piano music.” The works span the composer’s life, and reflect his development as a person and composer. For the first time, the entire cycle has been performed at the Salzburg Festival. For this feat, Beethoven expert Rudolf Buchbinder performs. This recording includes two concerts which feature sonatas 3, 6, 7, 16, 19, 24, 26, 28, and 29.

Ori and Omri Epstein, best known for performing as part of the Busch Trio, make their Linn debut as a duo with a recording of Beethoven’s complete works for piano and cello. Considered cornerstones of the repertory, the cello sonatas illustrate all the creative periods of the composer’s working life. The two Sonatas Op. 5 are bursting with exhilarating effects. Written when Beethoven was focused on showcasing his own virtuosity as a pianist, they are nonetheless eloquent showpieces for the ‘accompanying’ cello which is used in a remarkable variety of ways. Pianist and cellist are treated as equal partners in the Sonata in A major, which is the most lyrical and improvisational of Beethoven’s sonatas. The cello’s versatility across rapid changes of register and function is especially well demonstrated here. The two Sonatas Op. 102 herald the concentration of Beethoven’s late style and are particularly technically demanding. Beethoven scholar Barry Cooper describes them as having “a transcendent quality that, even after countless performances, makes them always seem innovative and challenging

Complete Symphonies and Selected Overtures, from the legendary October-December 1939 NBC cycle. CD 1: Symphony No 1 in C Major, Op. 21 & Symphony No 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 55 "Eroica" (Studio 8H, 28 Oct. 1939. CD 2: Symphony No 2 in D Major, Op. 36; Symphony No 4 in B-flat Major, Op. 60 & Leonore Overture No. 3 (Studio 8H, 4 Nov. 1939). CD 3: Symphony No 6 in F Major, Op. 68 "Pastorale" & Symphony No 5 in C Minor, Op. 67 (Studio 8H, 11 Nov. 1939). CD 4: Egmont Overture & Symphony No 7 in A Major, Op. 92 (Studio 8H, 18 Nov. 1939); Leonore Overture No. 1 & Symphony No 8 in F Major, Op. 93 (Studio 8H, 25 Nov. 1939). CD 5: Leonore Overture No. 2 (Studio 8H, 25 Nov. 1939}; Symphony No 9 in D Minor, Op. 1(Jarmila Novotna, Kerstin Thorborg, Jan Peerce, Nicola Moscona, Westminster Choir, Carnegie Hall, 2 Dec. 1939). New 2013 digital transfers by Aaron Z. Snyder using the revolutionary harmonic balancing process. Notes: Christopher Dyment. Total time: 6 hrs 12 min. BUZZ: "With Chris Dyment's uncommonly informative notes, this release is essential for anyone who cares about Beethoven or Toscanini" --Mortimer H. Frank in Fanfare [on the previous edition] "a must for every experienced music lover... 5.0 out of 5 stars " --Peter Dietrich, amazon.com customer reviews [on the previous edition] "These are superb transfers... They give a great cycle its best sonic shout to date." --Rob Cowan, Gramophone [on the previous edition] "The NBC Orchestra is in fine form and the great conductor's sometimes controversial genius combines with that of Beethoven to produce dazzling and memorable performances." -- www.new-classics.co.uk [on the previous edition]

A WQXR-FM (105.9; NYC) Best Classical Recording of 2019!

International Classical Music Awards 2020 Winner - Recording of the Year

Principal Conductor Ádám Fischer has been affiliated with the Danish Chamber Orchestra since 1997. He remains a strong initiator of the orchestra’s work and concert activities both in Denmark and internationally. Together with him, the orchestra has developed a refined and energetic style of playing. Danish Chamber Orchestra insists on focusing on the social significance of music and is deeply committed to talent development, commucation and the development of new concert forms. The orchestra has a tradition of bridging between different musical genres and traditions and collaborates equally enthusiastically and professionally with artists in classical music as well as popular music, film music and shows. Danish Chamber Orchestra is dedicated to being an orchestra for everyone.

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REVIEWS:

With this gripping Beethoven cycle, Fischer has become the first conductor to record the complete symphonies of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven. This is no garden variety act of completionism—he drives his Copenhagen-based band with a fierce meticulousness that rivals Karajan, Kleiber, and other greats.

– WQXR-FM 105.9, NYC (Zev Kane)

The opening of the Seventh Symphony has never sounded so cleverly orchestrated, and Beethoven’s wittily humorous eloquence has never been on such continuous display. Tempo choices can and will surprise, like the slow opening of the Ninth Symphony’s second movement, but a few auditions place such decisions in perspective. The Danish Chamber Orchestra’s excellent playing ensures a set in which relationships, between orchestral groups, between sections of movements, and between symphonies, are thoughtfully and provocatively delineated. These renditions showcase Beethoven’s revolutionary side in a way few other sets even come close to managing.

– Fanfare

Adam Golka’s third album for FHR begins a wonderful journey in which he records all of Beethoven’s 32 Piano Sonatas. This first volume, released in Beethoven’s 250th anniversary year, includes one of the composer’s most celebrated works, the ‘Pathétique’ Sonata in C minor, alongside the contrasting Sonatas, Op. 10. All four sonatas were written 1796-98. Since first self-presenting and performing Beethoven’s 32 Piano Sonatas at the age of 18, Adam Golka has immersed himself in studying the master’s works. He has studied Beethoven under the guidance of masters such as Leon Fleisher, Alfred Brendel, Sir András Schiff, Murray Perahia, and Ferenc Rados. In 2011, Adam performed a cycle of all five Beethoven Piano Concertos with the Lubbock Symphony, with his brother Tomasz at the baton, and last summer, he made his San Francisco Symphony début at the Stern Grove Festival in Beethoven’s Fourth Piano Concerto. He will celebrate Beethoven’s 250th birthday in 2020 by playing the whole cycle of Beethoven’s 32 Piano Sonatas in multiple cities, which includes a self-produced video series named 32@32, made in collaboration with filmmaker Zac Nicholson and designed to be part of the concert experience.