Customer Reviews

Ax, Stoltzman, Ma : Brahms, Beethoven, Mozart : Trios for Piano, Clarinet, Cello

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

Listening to this buoyant and refreshing recording of the three major trios for clarinet, piano and cello confirms the fact that ensemble playing is best served when the performers of like mind. It is nothing short of a joy to hear Emanuel Ax, Richard Stoltzman, and Yo-Yo Ma sit down to join spirits in chamber music. The results are infectious, in keeping with each composer's work, and played with meticulous detail and warmth.

While most people will find the Brahms trio (opus 114) the most fully realized of the three, on this recording the Beethoven trio #4 (opus 11) is the most illuminating performance of the three. The phrasing is crisp, with one instrument taking up the leading melody and passing it graciously to the other instruments. It is a cohesive work, splendidly played. Our triad of great musicians obviously enjoys every moment of bringing this wonderful work to life. That is not to say that the Mozart trio (K 498) is not superb - it is just that this work is played so often that familiarity results in less attention to the performance.

This recording is highly recommended not only for those multitudes of fans of these three extraordinary musicians (and friends!), but also for lovers of chamber music of all forms. Grady Harp, August 05

I bought this on a whim. I respect Richard Stoltzman as a fellow clarinetist. I do not agree all the time with his interpretations of music. This is a good recording. Stoltzman tends to overdo the vibrato a little too much. That is a comprimise I will take. The pieces are fantastically done. I agree with the Amazon.com writer, the Brahms seems to be the best understood. The others are played well also though. The players play seemingly well together. They are all technically wonderful, kudos to Mr. Ax he by far had the most difficult music, the composers being pianists and all. The only piece I had a hard time with is the Mozart. It is originally for clarinet, viola, and piano. Mr. Ma plays wonderfully through-out but I do not think it does justice to the cello(the piece). I mostly refer to the first and third movements. He plays it fine, but you can hear the cello struggle in that viola range to project like a viola. Overall this is a very good c.d. I would not recommend it be the only recording of these pieces one owns, but it does add too any collection.

I'm not usually one for collections of classical music "greats."

But this Sony Classical CD isn't an instance of the "usual" such affairs. Rather the performances of the 18th Century Mozart and Beethoven and 19th Century Brahms trios were recorded at a concert series at New England Conservatory of Music in Boston from June 27 to June 29, 1993.

I'd love to have listened live. Having once attended a concert there, I can attest that its main performance chamber is an acoustical gem. But hearing a CD of these three master musicians --- Emmanuel Ax (piano), Richard Stoltzman (clarinet) and Yo Yo Ma (cello) --- is a very fine substitute.

I don't understand the supposed few flaws others hear in these performances. All three pieces make wonderful chamber music, and both the works and the musicians are perfect together.

Maybe musicians are usually good critics, but concerning this CD, the plain old-fashioned music listeners call it best. Count me a simple music-listener --- and a fan of this CD.

When I looked at the reviews of this album and found that quite a few of them were negative, I couldn't believe it. This CD features musicians that could hardly be better who blend marvelously. I have always considered this album to be a wonderful collection of chamber music, and I want to try to express some of my feelings for it here.

The opening work on this disc, the Brahms, is by far my favorite piece on this CD. It contains a wonderful sense of melancholy and resignation. The opening movement is one full of restlessness, contrasting moments of sublime beauty with ones of stress and strain. The following movement, the Adagio, has a moonlit melody that develops with intimate conversation between the soloists. There's no stress here. The third movement is one full of passionate melody. And in the finale, we're back to the storm and stress. But even here, it goes straight to the heart. Ax, Ma, and Stoltzman are in top from throughout the entire work. They capture the necessary detail and expression without going overboard.

The following work by Beethoven is a youthful one. From the very beginning, we are met with a jolly, carefree romp that characterizes the whole work. The first movement, in spite of its youthfulness, is surprisingly mature. Ax, Stoltzman, and Ma are especially good here; they take the listener on a thrilling journey. The second movement, the Adagio, has a wonderful, resigned quality that strongly contrasts the opening movement. And then the finale, well, it's all fun.

The Mozart, like the Brahms, was written near the end of the composer's life. It too has a world all its own. It is much more relaxed and resigned than one normally gets from Mozart. Indeed, the opening movement is an Andante, in place of the usual Allegro. The following Minuet, while being livelier, still is quite laid-back and reflective. And the finale, and Allegretto, is dreamy and soothing, a bit melancholy, in fact.

I do not hesitate to say that the negative reviews of the CD are unfounded. Please buy this CD and give it a chance. You'll almost certainly fall in love with it.

If you don't have this recording you are really missing something. The combonation of these three instruments the clarinet, cello, and piano is really something. It is unthinkable that these wonderful pieces of music should be played any way else. Brahms wrote an alternate viola part to replace the clarinet and Beethoven wrote and alternate violin part to replace the clarinet. It is facinating to see the evolution of this kind of trio. Beethoven's trio is one of his early works written as an experiment with these instruments. The Brahms on the other hand is a mature masterpiece that every one should be familiar with. Pick this one up you won't regret it.

Ax, Stoltzman, Ma: Brahms, Beethoven, Mozart: Trios for Piano, Clarinet, Cello

The easiest and most direct descriptions to these trios is: Beethoven is bold, Brahms is beautiful, and Mozart is marvelous. These trios were written in different stages of the respective composer's lives, Beethoven when he was young, Brahms came from retirement, and Mozart nearing the end of his life. If you listen carefully you can hear the rhythmic flow that is common to all three of these trios.

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) Trio for Piano, Clarinet and Cello in A minor, Op.114

1. Allegro 8:15
2. Adagio 8:49
3. Andantino grazioso-Trio 5:13
4. Allegro 4:24

Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770-1827) Trio for Piano, Clarinet and Cello in B flat Major, Op.11

1. Allegro con brio 9:10
2. Adagio 5:57
3. Tema: Pria ch'io l'impegno. Allegretto 6:55

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) Trio for Piano, Clarinet and Viola (cello) "Kegelstatt" in E flat Major, K.498

1. Andante 6:11
2. Menuetto-Trio 6:00
3. Rondeaux. Allegretto 8:55

The total time for this CD is 69:38

Listening to this CD all three men knew their respective parts well, exhibited excellent musicanship and technical mastering of the music. My favorite trio is probably the Brahms as the clarinet has some serious, romantic, and soulful, almost haunting at times, parts to this trio. I played the clarinet, so I'm partial to the sound of this instrument. Stoltzman's sound is full, round, and sonorous as he plays the A clarinet, not the more common B flat. If you have played the clarinet there is a subtle difference between the two instruments. Both Beethoven and Mozart used the B flat clarinet in their respective compositions. I could hear the difference. The A clarinet is mostly used in symphony orchestras, this type of clarinet is longer than the B flat clarinet and is pitched one-half note lower, apparent in the Allegro of the Brahms trio. This is common in Brahms' music, but Mozart used it also.

This is well-engineered Sony Classical SBM CD. This is 20-bit recording giving the listener a high definition sound.

The principals are: Emanuel Ax, Piano Richard Stoltzman, Clarinet Yo-Yo Ma, Cello


The music is pleasant, easy to listen to, and very enjoyable. I highly recommend this CD.

I think this CD has some great moments, and a few that could use a little work. My main complaint is that at some times, Stoltzman often sounds overly-excited, both in his phrasing and his tone quality. The final movements of the Beethoven and Brahms both suffer from this occasionally.

I find that Stoltzman excels on the more delicate music, and accordingly the Mozart Trio and slower movements of the Brahms are absolutely beautiful.

Because of the few flaws (plus the fact that some pieces are transcribed from trios originally featuring viola), this CD shouldn't be your standard versions of these pieces, but this CD certainly makes an interesting and fun addition to CD collection.

It seems to me that these trios were put together with an absolute minimum of rehearsal time. Phrasing is often not quite together, the voices do not consistently pass one to another, and the Brahms in particular seems to be rather disorganized. It's obvious that all three performers have deep understandings of the music, but the conflicts in their interpretations were apparently not addressed or resolved in the pre-session rehearsals. All you have to do is listen to a couple of the transitions points in the Brahms to realize that these performers are solo artists, not ensemble players.

Additionally, these recordings were seriously marred by Stoltzman's performance. While it is true that Muhlfeld, the clarinettist for whom the Brams Trio was written, did use vibrato, it's unlikely that he played with the Glen Miller sound. Stoltzman's awful tone is hugely responsible for my distaste for this recording.

I don't particularly care for the Beethoven or Mozart trios, but they were better executed than the Brahms. The Brahms is a much more sophisticated piece than the other trios, and it deserves a much better treatment than the one afforded here.

It's truly unfortunate that these three great performers did not put together an equally great performance.

These gentleman play the trios in the manner I think the composers would have wanted. This is a quality recording.
Prompt and well packed item from this seller. I would buy from the seller again.

This cd is of a wonderful Brahms, Beethoven and Mozart trios with Yoyo Ma, Emanuel Ax and Richard Stoltzman. It is reasonably priced and a joy to listen to.