Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 2

PIANO CONCERTO NO.1

BEETHOVEN: Piano Sonatas Nos. 14, 17 and 25

Classical Music

Classical Music

Beethoven is extremely fastidious from the first bar to the last one. This is a kind of musical material that will not surrender to the pianist easily and therefore should not be oversimplified. If a musical interpretation does not involve any risks, it will not make a lasting impression on the audience, says D�nes V�rjon, the soloist of the recording, whose fascinating play is accompanied by the Concerto Budapest conducted by Andr�s Keller. Dedicated to the Memory of Annie Fischer. All five piano concertos in one new release. D�nes V�rjon is one of the most exciting internationally renowned pianists. As a chamber musician, D�nes V�rjon enjoys an unrivalled reputation and has worked with great instrumentalists. Andr�s Keller has enjoyed a varied career as soloist, concertmaster and chamber musician at the highest international level. Concerto Budapest is one of Hungary's most prestigious orchestras with a long and rich history.

Beethoven's Sonatas for Fortepiano and Cello or Horn clearly demonstrate the connection of the transition from Classicism to Romanticism - they were composed throughout his entire creative career and tell a continuous story, a musical and historical testament, of maturity and change. The three sonatas on this CD were created in three different phases - the young, the struggling and the mature Beethoven in an intense and lucid performance.

Classical Music

Beethoven’s piano concertos impressively reflect the personality and creativity of the revolutionary composer. They are a challenge for each pianist. In this recording of the second and third concertos, the legendary pianist, conductor, and teacher Leon Fleisher and his star pupil Margarita Hohenrieder, who has also gained international recognition, show their personal relationship with Beethoven. At two unusual concert locations- the Zollverein World Heritage Site in Germany’s Ruhr area and the famous Max-Littmann-Saal in Bad Kissingen, which is known for its acoustics- the two discerning artists perform the two concertos together with the Kammerphilharmonie Amade and the Wurttemberg Chamber Orchestra Heilbronn. Also included is a bonus film of Leon Fleisher and Margarita Hohenrieder in rehearsal as well as speaking about these works.

Ludwig van Beethoven and the stage: this is the story of a predominantly unhappy love affair with an unexpected happy ending - the late breakthrough of Fidelio. If this paean to husbandly love had not triumphed at the third attempt, there would be little more left in the dramatic field, apart from some very fragmentary operatic attempts, than the festival music for The Ruins of Athens and King Stephen, Hungary's First Benefactor, which Marcus Bosch and the Capella Aquileia have already recently recorded for cpo. Of course, the "more" also includes two pieces for dance theatre: the cute music for a knight's ballet written in Bonn's time and - far more weighty - the extensive score for the work by the famous choreographer and dancer Salvatore Viganò, which premiered under the title The Creatures of Prometheus at Vienna's Burgtheater on 28 March 1801. What the audience saw was a rather idyllic excerpt from the wildly eventful life of the disobedient titan. He has just formed his creatures out of clay, but they cannot get beyond mindless emotions. In his anger, Prometheus at first wants to stomp them out, but then he takes them to Parnassus, where the Muses teach them basic knowledge and artistic behavior under the eyes of Apollo. A general dance performance brings the predominantly cheerful, charming event to a close.

Classical Music

More than 200 years after its premiere at the Gewandhaus in Leipzig, Isabelle Faust, Jean-Guihen Queyras and Martin Helmchen have congenially mastered the artistic challenge of Beethoven’s gemstone. Under Herbert Blomstedt's sensitive direction, the soloists unite chamber musical intimacy together with virtuoso sophistication – and prove once again that the Triple Concerto is an unduly underestimated, much too rarely programmed masterpiece. With the composer's 5th Symphony, Blomstedt succeeds in achieving an entirely new perspective of this work. In the culmination of his three-year, intensive reenactment of Beethoven’s cosmos, the impressive sound that characterizes the Swedish grand seigneur's conducting is heralded by transparency rather than showmanship, relevance instead of pathos, and tenderness in place of sentimentality.

In his Sixth Symphony, the “Pastoral”, Ludwig van Beethoven conveys his musical message in such a way that lets the listener literally “see” images of beautiful nature, tempestuous storms, and shepherds singing in the fields, whereas in his Seventh Symphony, Beethoven lets the music speak for itself. The performances of these works by the Gewandhausorchester under its conductor laureate Herbert Blomstedt give the uplifting feeling that the intentions of both composer and performers are united in serving the musical message. In the lively, subtly differentiated interpretation of the works, sincere happiness, deep respect, piety, joyful serenity and an affinity to nature as well as passion, vitality and spirit can all be felt. This is what the "authenticity" of making music is all about. The humanist and musician Herbert Blomstedt embodies this truth in a unique way, creating an atmosphere where the wonders of music all become true.

Classical Music

Sunwook Kim came to international recognition when he won the prestigious Leeds International Piano Competition in 2006, aged just 18, becoming the competition's youngest winner for 40 years as well as it's first Asian winner. He has appeared as a concert soloist with some of the world's leading orchestras, including the London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and many more. On this release, Sunwook Kim performs Beethoven's Waldstein and Hammerklavier piano sonatas. Beethoven's piano sonatas came to be seen as the first cycle of major piano pieces suited to concert hall performance.