Latest / The Piano Maven with Jed Distler / Beethoven's 32 Sonatas with 64 pianists: Op. 10 Nos. 1, 2 & 3

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Beethoven's 32 Sonatas with 64 pianists: Op. 10 Nos. 1, 2 & 3 · The Piano Maven with Jed Distler

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  This is Jed Dissler and welcome to the Piano Maven, your friendly podcast guide to piano
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  recordings.
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  This is the third installment of a mini-series where I am recommending recordings for each
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  of the 32 Beethoven piano sonatas.
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  sub stack page in order to cover production expenses which are crucial to keep the Piano
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  So let's keep going with my survey of recommended recordings for each one of the 32 Beethoven
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  piano sonatas and my goal is number one not to repeat a pianist throughout this long list
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  and number two I want to have each sonata represented by two recordings.
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  One modern stereo or digital recording and the other recording is historic in nature
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  which means a recording originally issued on 78s or on a mono LP or a recording that
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  is archival in nature like a live performance or radio broadcast that was not originally
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  intended for commercial release yet eventually does get released or there will be a few instances
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  where a performance that may not have been commercially released yet is so unique and
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  interesting and is easily accessible in download format or in music trading circles we will
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  consider those so that will make 64 different pianists considering that we don't repeat
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  an artist.
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  We have arrived at Beethoven's three sonatas opus 10 and we're going to discuss all three
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  on this episode so this is packed with information.
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  The sonata number five in C minor opus 10 number one showcases Beethoven at his most
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  daring for that period in his life and his pupil Carl Czerny described this piece very
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  accurately as decisive and manly most profound sentiment and delicacy and he also used the
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  phrase imaginative humor.
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  The two recordings that I've picked for this sonata to recommend display rather antipodal
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  approaches.Volter Gieseking's mono recording from the 1950s is a model of classical proportion
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  and Apollonian symmetry.
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  It may seem to be contained and chased on the surface.
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  I mean chased like C-H-A-S-T-E not like chased like you chased a rabbit but I do have to
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  say that the pianists control and his sheer equilibrium really impress me and they begin
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  to hit home after you've listened a few times but by total contrast for the modern recording
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  I've picked Igor Levitt.
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  He addresses the brash and hard-hitting side of Beethoven and his finale is a true prestissimo
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  not the approximate prestissimo that you often get.
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  He tears through these outer movements with total concentration and musicality.
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  I mean this is alpha virtuosity but it's alpha virtuosity at the total service of the composer.
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  Oh by the way there is a newly released historic recording that was not available to me when
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  I was first researching this mini-series and it's too late to include it on my official
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  list but I do want to mention it anyway.
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  It's a radio archive performance from Basel Radio in Switzerland from 1962.
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  It features the pianist Alain von Bahrensen and it's a terrific and even fiery performance
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  and it was released in a nine CD set from Mellow Classic which is a label that's been
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  bringing out all kinds of fascinating archival material with pianists who are both famous
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  and not so famous and I probably will discuss this box in itself in a future podcast episode.
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  Back to the Beethoven sonatas and we have the F major sonata, Opus 10 No. 2.
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  I love this piece for its creative wit and its many harmonic surprises and for my historic
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  choice I have a recording that I'm recommending by the great Russian pianist Maria Grinberg
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  from around 1950.
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  This is not to be confused with the stereo remake that was part of her complete Beethoven
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  cycle.
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  This is her earlier performance that I'm talking about.
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  For the modern edition of this performance I love the crispness and the humor and the
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  top to bottom clarity that Seymour Lipkin brought to this sonata.
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  He made two recordings of it.
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  One is more readily available.
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  It was the one that was part of his complete Beethoven cycle for the Newport Classics label
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  and it also was issued in MP3 format and there was a CD-ROM that contained the entire cycle
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  in MP3s and you probably can find this very easily in streaming format.
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  I think you can find the MP3s to download much more easily than the physical CDs.
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  But he also recorded this sonata on the Audiophon label coupled with a really good hammer clavier
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  by the way and both of these recordings are comparable interpretively although I think
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  the Audiophon sonics are better.
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  So there's no real difference between the Audiophon and the Newport Classic Seymour
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  Lipkin recordings of Opus 10 No. 2 in terms of interpretation.
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  I'd say whichever one of these you can find, you're in good shape.
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  Opus 10 No. 3 in D major is a sonata where we find Beethoven in full flower and here
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  we have one of his most moving and heartfelt slow movements.
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  And there's also the humorous question and answer mood of the finale.
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  This sonata hardly lacks for great recordings.
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  I would have nominated for my stereo modern edition Claudio Arau's wonderful 1960s version
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  on Phillips but instead I'm going to choose Arau in the sonata for my historic choice
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  and go back to his 1951 recording for the British Columbia label that was reissued in
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  the Complete Warner Recordings box set of Claudio Arau's recordings.
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  I mean what am I saying?
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  The Complete Claudio Arau Warner Recordings which contains everything he did for HMV and
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  EMI and that includes this 1951 Opus 10 No. 3.
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  It's a marvelous performance.
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  And by putting Arau in the historic category here, that frees me up for a stereo pick that
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  I really wanted to include which is the 1959 recording by Vladimir Horowitz.
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  I love this performance.
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  He really scintillates in the first movement and he beautifully sings out the slow movement
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  and it's true some of his bel canto like phrase tapering may not be considered quote unquote
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  stylish, you know, but like by Harris Goldsmith standards but you know come on.
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  It's so musical and it is so tastefully dramatic and I return to this recording often with
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  pleasure.
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  It may be Horowitz's best solo Beethoven recording aside from his 78th version from
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  1934 or something like that of the 32 variations in C minor.
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  And I do think it's fitting to have a pianist of Horowitz's stature and importance among
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  the 64 pianists we're discussing in this miniseries.
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  So next time we're going to be talking about the Sonata No. 8, the Pathetique Op. 13.
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  That's a big hit and I know you are not going to want to miss that episode on the Piano
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  Maven, your friendly podcast guide to piano recordings.
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  This is Jed Dissler and I look forward to being with you next time.