Melvin Chen: Diabelli Variations

Ludwig van Beethoven; Anton Diabelli; Johann Nepomuk Hummel; Friedrich Kalkbrenner; Ignatz Moscheles; Franz Liszt; Franz Schubert; Carl Czerny (Composer), Melvin Chen (piano) (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Melvin Chen (piano)
• Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven; Anton Diabelli; Johann Nepomuk Hummel; Friedrich Kalkbrenner; Ignatz Moscheles; Franz Liszt; Franz Schubert; Carl Czerny
• Audio CD (April 1, 2006)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Bridge Records, Inc.
• ASIN: B000F1IO5C
• Also Available in: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #300,912 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

When composer and music publisher Antonio Diabelli invited a number of Viennese composers to write variations to a modest waltz theme of his own creation, no doubt he had little idea how the theme would be treated by Beethoven—and certainly not if he knew that Beethoven initially referred the waltz scornfully as a “Schusterfleck”—“cobbler’s patch”—for its bland repetitiveness. But Beethoven’s initial scorn somehow turned into creative frenzy, and he eventually ignored Diabelli’s request for a single variation, producing 33—nearly an hour’s worth of music. Diabelli published Beethoven’s masterful Op. 120 in 1823. The single variations of the remaining 49 composers—of which Melvin Chen performs examples by Hummel, Liszt, Schubert, Czerny, Moscheles and Kalkbrenner on this recording—were published separately in 1824.Melvin Chen, a native of Tennessee, has been recognized as a major young artist, with performances throughout the USA and abroad. Mr. Chen was selected! to be a member of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s “Chamber Music Two” after completing one of the most brilliant and unusual academic careers in recent memory. Chen completed a doctorate in chemistry from Harvard University, and also holds a double master's degree from the Juilliard School in piano and violin, where he studied with Seymour Lipkin and Glenn Dicterow, respectively. Previously, Chen attended Yale University, receiving a B.S. in chemistry and physics. During his tenure at Yale, he studied with Boris Berman, Paul Kantor, and Ida Kavafian. Mr. Chen is currently on the piano faculty of the Bard College Conservatory of Music, where he also serves as associate director. He was previously a member of the piano faculty at the Yale School of Music.Critic and annotator Keith Powers writes of “Melvin Chen’s adventurous reading of the Diabelli Variations (which) bears the mark of the great composer himself—fearless, eager for the extremes available in the score, yet rigorously true to the original."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bravo - A real treat, May 21, 2006

By 

Bradford Forrester (Boston) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Melvin Chen: Diabelli Variations (Audio CD)

As an avid concert goer, I have seen Mr. Chen perform several times in the States, Europe and Asia and was delighted to learn of the release of this CD. It exceeded even my own high expectations. Mr. Chen's treatments of variations 9 and 13, in particular, are a masterful and rare treat. I highly recommend this CD.

5.0 out of 5 stars Among the best, March 11, 2009

By 

R.Belville - See all my reviews

This review is from: Melvin Chen: Diabelli Variations (Audio CD)

In terms of technique and interpretation, the version of the Diabelli Variations ranks with the best available. Do not let the fact that Chen is a less well known pianist scare you away.

5.0 out of 5 stars "A Classic", July 22, 2006

By 

Lara Tiers (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Melvin Chen: Diabelli Variations (Audio CD)

As "The American Record Guide" recently remarked in its review of this recording(July/August 2006), "His [Chen's] Diabelli easily qualifies for that rarefied niche of performances that can be termed 'classic'." This intelligent, passionate recording is fantastic. I thoroughly recommend it.