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Mozart: Piano Concertos, Vol. 2 - K. 449 & 459; Divertimenti / Bavouzet
Chandos

Mozart: Piano Concertos, Vol. 2 - K. 449 & 459; Divertimenti / Bavouzet

$21.99

Details

Composer
MOZART, W.A.
Artist
Bavouzet, Manchester Camerata, Takacs-Nagy
Format
CD
Label
Chandos
Released
Sep 15, 2017
Catalog #
CHAN 10958
UPC
095115195826

About

The effervescent and communicative energy of Bavouzet and Takacs-Nagy is encapsulated again in this second volume of their Mozart series. These exhilarating interpretations of Mozart’s piano concertos of 1784, faultlessly supported by the Manchester Camerata, follow highly praised concerts as well as a first volume which was “Editor’s Choice” in Pianist. The two concertos presented here are among the six that Mozart composed in Vienna in an extraordinarily productive year. As Bavouzet states in an exclusive personal note, they “share their association with operatic and symphonic styles. The contrasts of mood in their first movements relate them more closely with music for the operatic stage, while their finales are conceived in purely instrumental terms and make reference to the symphonic domain. On the other hand, these two works are complete opposites as far as their use of wind instruments is concerned. In KV 449 their inclusion is ad libitum, whereas they very often play the principal role in KV 459.”

REVIEWS:

Led by Adi Brett, the ensemble is ideally sized for this repertoire, especially in the string department. Because clearly only players of the highest calibre are engaged, the character here is much more akin to the intimacy of a chamber group ensemble than a true symphonic ensemble, the clue, of course, partly being in the name. But that is not to say that there is not power-a-plenty when called for. The very opening of the E flat Concerto, in fact, says it all in a nutshell: absolute precision in the ornaments, great clarity of line where any instrument that has something important to say at any one point stands out, but never dominates the texture, and the impressive attack as the music goes into the relative minor (C minor, and one of the composer’s favourite keys for drama) around twenty-five seconds into the exposition. These all mark out this performance as something special, even before the soloist has made his own telling first contribution. It is clear that both sheer dynamism and enthusiasm in the orchestral playing emanates from the man at the front, Budapest-born Gábor Takács-Nagy, who also works just as hard to nurture the more lyrical side of the music. That is something he is more able to do by forsaking the baton, and itself something perfectly feasible for this size of ensemble.

But when Bavouzet makes his first appearance, he takes over exactly where the Camerata have left off, attesting to a great feeling of empathy between soloist and conductor. All too often, the soloist’s body language can suggest a degree of displeasure at the way the orchestra deals with the opening themes that the soloist will then make use of in the ensuing solo exposition.

In discussing his previous Mozart CD, Bavouzet explains his choice of the Yamaha CFX instrument: “When considering a piano for this project I immediately thought about a Yamaha. The wonderful comfort of the keyboard action, the refined sound, and the natural balance between bass and treble were qualities that made my choice obvious and perfect for the Mozart Concertos.” Although a life-long Steinway aficionado, I have to agree with his comments, in as much as the piano-sound on this new CD is concerned, enhanced, of course, by the outstanding fidelity of the recording as a whole, and the warm acoustic of the venue.

With the added generosity of two well-known and much loved Divertimenti—in D major, KV 136, and F major, KV 138, respectively—where the Manchester Camerata really comes into its own with some stunning playing, there can be little doubt that this new CD is the perfect successor.

-- MusicWeb International

Tracklist 12 tracks

  1. 1 I. Allegro vivace 08:33
    Track
    1
    Title
    I. Allegro vivace
    Duration
    08:33
    Composer
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Performer
    Jean-Efflam Bavouzet
    Ensemble
    Manchester Camerata
    Conductor
    Gábor Takács-Nagy
  2. 2 II. Andantino 06:14
    Track
    2
    Title
    II. Andantino
    Duration
    06:14
    Composer
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Performer
    Jean-Efflam Bavouzet
    Ensemble
    Manchester Camerata
    Conductor
    Gábor Takács-Nagy
  3. 3 III. Allegro ma non troppo 06:15
    Track
    3
    Title
    III. Allegro ma non troppo
    Duration
    06:15
    Composer
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Performer
    Jean-Efflam Bavouzet
    Ensemble
    Manchester Camerata
    Conductor
    Gábor Takács-Nagy
  4. 4 I. Allegro 03:57
    Track
    4
    Title
    I. Allegro
    Duration
    03:57
    Composer
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Ensemble
    Manchester Camerata
    Conductor
    Gábor Takács-Nagy
  5. 5 II. Andante 05:41
    Track
    5
    Title
    II. Andante
    Duration
    05:41
    Composer
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Ensemble
    Manchester Camerata
    Conductor
    Gábor Takács-Nagy
  6. 6 III. Presto 02:43
    Track
    6
    Title
    III. Presto
    Duration
    02:43
    Composer
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Ensemble
    Manchester Camerata
    Conductor
    Gábor Takács-Nagy
  7. 7 I. Allegro 03:42
    Track
    7
    Title
    I. Allegro
    Duration
    03:42
    Composer
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Ensemble
    Manchester Camerata
    Conductor
    Gábor Takács-Nagy
  8. 8 II. Andante 04:08
    Track
    8
    Title
    II. Andante
    Duration
    04:08
    Composer
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Ensemble
    Manchester Camerata
    Conductor
    Gábor Takács-Nagy
  9. 9 III. Presto 02:00
    Track
    9
    Title
    III. Presto
    Duration
    02:00
    Composer
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Ensemble
    Manchester Camerata
    Conductor
    Gábor Takács-Nagy
  10. 10 I. Allegro 12:11
    Track
    10
    Title
    I. Allegro
    Duration
    12:11
    Composer
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Performer
    Jean-Efflam Bavouzet
    Ensemble
    Manchester Camerata
    Conductor
    Gábor Takács-Nagy
  11. 11 II. Allegretto 06:07
    Track
    11
    Title
    II. Allegretto
    Duration
    06:07
    Composer
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Performer
    Jean-Efflam Bavouzet
    Ensemble
    Manchester Camerata
    Conductor
    Gábor Takács-Nagy
  12. 12 III. Allegro assai 07:26
    Track
    12
    Title
    III. Allegro assai
    Duration
    07:26
    Composer
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Performer
    Jean-Efflam Bavouzet
    Ensemble
    Manchester Camerata
    Conductor
    Gábor Takács-Nagy