Customer Reviews

Beethoven: Piano Concerto No.3; Choral Fantasy

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This cycle of Beethoven Piano Concertos was recorded at Cleveland's Masonic Auditorium in the 1980s. The Choral Fantasy, which is somewhat less commonly heard than the Concertos, is included.

In his many years as a pianist Ashkenazy earned a reputation as a straightforward, technically admirable, somewhat unimaginative pianist. Ashkenazy is primarily a conductor these days. In these recordings, we get to hear him in both roles, and he conducts like he plays. He's the ideal musician for those who want a normal interpretation - and since he's recorded nearly all the standard repertoire, the collector can acquire, via Ashkenazy, standardized performances of just about everything. Such is the case here: Ashkenazy follows nearly all of Beethoven's tempo and dynamic indications - except with regard to the sustaining pedal, which almost no one follows. It's all very well played. But there are times, particularly in the beginning of the Choral Fantasy (a long improvisatory-like solo piano passage), when I was left wanting more imagination.

Incidentally, in the G major Concerto, Ashkenazy does not play the extensions in the high treble that have become customary - he plays the passage as originally written by Beethoven to accommodate the smaller range of contemporary pianos. Also, in the B-flat Concerto, Ashkenazy provides his own cadenza - which is interesting and fits the Concerto as a whole. In the First Concerto's opening movement, he plays the least virtuosic of Beethoven's three cadenzas. I wouldn't have objected if Ashkenazy had written cadenzas for the first four Concertos (Beethoven specifically forbids a cadenza in the Emperor Concerto). Beethoven, who always improvised his own cadenzas, would probably be astonished to learn how regimented cadenza playing has become.

The Cleveland Orchestra's playing is spotless (they could probably play these works in their sleep), but lacking that last ounce of inspiration that comes from a great conductor with undivided attention. (To hear them at their best, check out the Fleisher/Szell set listed below.)

As for the sonics, the piano is placed somewhat forward of the orchestra, although individual instruments appear to have been spot-miked. The dynamics are also rather constricted. This set would make a good candidate for SACD remastering to open things up.

In sum, this is a well played and solid - but hardly inspired - set of Beethoven Concertos, in good - but not outstanding - sound.

Recommended sets:
Kempff/Leitner: Beethoven: 5 Klavierkonzerte
Fleisher/Szell: Beethoven: The 5 Piano Concertos/Mozart: Concerto No.25

None of the above sets have the Choral Fantasy.

Recommended individual Concertos:
Concerto 1: Richter/Munch Piano Concerto No 1
Concerto 2: Kapell/Golschmann Beethoven: Concerto No. 2
Concerto 3: Rubinstein/Leinsdorf Rubinstein Collection 57
Concerto 4: Rubinstein/Beecham Rubinstein Collection, Vol. 9
Concerto 5: Casadesus/Mitropoulos Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5; Violin Concerto
Choral Fantasy: Serkin/Ozawa Piano Concerto 3 / Choral Fantasy

In its best passages, this recording achieves true greatness. In particular, the slow movement of the Emperor is a perfect dream, into which Ashkenazy draws the wonderful Cleveland players. Who needs a conductor when the musicians know the notes by heart and when unity can only be achieved in any case by careful listening to the soloist and to each other, not by following a conductor's second-hand intuition of where the soloist is going. There is a downside of not having a conductor, however, namely that during the solo passages the orchestra lacks a force driving it to huge fortissimos and dynamic changes in the interwoven accompaniment. While one has to assume that Ashkenazy's dynamic interpretation won out overall, the result is a somewhat restrained execution. But Ashkenazy's playing is wonderfully expressive throughout, and this set can be recommended for definitive performances free from the idiosyncratic excesses of some other renditions.

This CD features two flawed but grand works of Beethoven. Beethoven's piano concerto no. 3, opus 37 and his choral fantasy opus 80 have much in common besides their C minor key. Both are large, ambitious works for piano and orchestra which show Beethoven in transition. The third piano concerto shows a Beethoven on the cusp between his early style and his second "heroic" style of composition; while the choral fantasy show Beethoven using the orchestra, piano and chorus in a manner prefiguring the Ninth Symphony. In addition to these similarities, critics over the years have pointed to certain structural flaws in both works. Be these flaws as they may, the third concerto and the choral fantasy constitute powerful and compelling music that wear well with time. They both constitute part of my earliest experiences with Beethoven.

Rudolf Serkin (1903 -- 1991) recorded both works several times, and this recording dates from late in his career with Seiji Ozawa and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. The performances here are virtuosic and emotional. They capture the range of contrasts -- from the flamboyant and heroic to the lyrical and reflective that Beethoven poured into his scores.

The third piano concerto probably dates from 1803 (although some scholars date it earlier). It was premiered in that year with Beethoven at the piano. In this concerto, at least in the first movement, Beethoven took as a model Mozart's C minor piano concerto, K. 491. Beethoven's opening theme in this work sounds much like the opening theme of Mozart's concerto, and there are many parallells throughout the opening movement. Beethoven both tried to emulate the K. 491 concerto and to show that he could produce a work in his own style and voice as good as or better than its model. Whether the third concerto equals Mozart's work is a debatable, probably unanswerable question. The work is rough around the edges and lacks Mozart's polish. But there is a passion and sweep to the third concerto that is Beethoven's own. As his music characteristically does, the third concerto pulls the listener and performer in, as does the music of almost no other composer, and makes them participants in the emotion of the score.

Beethoven's third concerto opens with a long, highly symphonic orchestral introduction which his great admirer, Donald Tovey, found "dangerously close to a mistake" because its structure and harmonic changes drew attention away from concerto form of the work. The movement features two contrasting themes, a short abrubt opening phrase and a lyrical second theme. When the piano at length makes its entrance in three rising scale passages, it engages in a duel with the orchestra, contrasting lyrical, reflective, and fluttering themes with the sterner, heroical cast of the first theme. The movement alternates between the virtuosic and the lyrical; and in its drive and passion, works in the end, notwithstanding its difficulties.

The second movement of this work is all Beethoven's own. It is a glowing largo in the key of E major, a highly distant key from the C minor of the opening. The key change gives the music a remote, etherial cast as the piano sings a soulful theme frequently accompanied by the cellos. Beethoven makes another startling change at the end of the movement, where the final loud chord is appropriated with a jolt to become the beginning of the rondo finale, in a lengthy rondo theme begun suddenly by the piano with a wind echo. The finale includes a lovely clarinet solo, fugal passages, and a stirring prestissimo conclusion. The third is a work of great emotional power, and I return to it frequently.

Beethoven composed and premiered his chorale fantasy in 1808 at a concert which also featured performances of his fifth and sixth symphonies and fourth piano concerto. Critics have not treated this work kindly, in that it moves in a relatively brief 20 minutes from a fantasia piano opening, through a chamber-music like section in which each voice of the orchestra is introduced in turn, through a series of variations to a close for chorus and soloist presaging the Ninth Symphony. But inspired music the choral fantasy remains with its deep slow, piano opening, and flamboyant passages for orchestra, piano, and soloist. The chorale fantasy is a thrilling, convincing work when taken seriously, and Serkin throughout his career made it his own. Listen particularly to the scalar passages with which he accompanies the chorus late in the work and to the delicate accompaniment he brings to the various wind soloists following the opening fantasy.

The third piano concerto and the choral fantasy make an excellent pair, especially when combined with the artistry of Rudolf Serkin.

Robin Friedman

...And this fact only helps his interpretations of Romantic music, starting first and foremost with Beethoven. Each one of these concertos (and the "Choral Fantasy") receives a definitive rendition in this set, both for the orchestra and for the soloist. As conductor _and_ performer, Ashkenazy is at his best-ever with this material; the dynamics are perfect, the tempi are "right on," and the instruments are crystal clear - I can only imagine that Beethoven himself would be much impressed with these performances. The recorded sound wins equal merit - _every_ little bit and detail is captured superbly, something which seems to be lacking in a lot of recent classical recordings. Need I say more?

Vladimir Ashkenazy's account of Beethoven's five Piano Concertos and the Coral Fantasy is pleasing on almost all accounts: he is brilliant and poetic in his interpretations; technically his performance is quite flawless, and the Cleveland Orchestra's orchestral sound is great. The Coral Fantasy is an especially entertaining piece of music, much like the finale of the Ninth Symphony, and the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus is excellent. Ashkenazy's introspective style lends itself naturally to the slow movements of the concertos, and these come off marvelously- masterfully even. However, he seems hesitant to show any kind of energy or gusto in the forte or fortissimo passages. As a result, the bravura we expect from these concertos is missing. This being said, his rendition of the fourth piano concerto is the most successful of the five, due to the more restrained quality of the work itself; conversely, the "Emperor" concerto suffers most from Ashkenazy's lack of bravura. It's as though he's afraid of harming the piano by playing too hard. Other than that, these are very satisfying recordings, and I would be able to recommend them wholeheartedly if it weren't for this one deficiency.

I am clearly an amatuer regarding such matters, but I have never for a second regretted purchasing this set and find the performances and the recordings to be flawless. The Choral Fantasy was an unexpected bonus. I was not familiar with it when I bought this set, but now it is one of my favorites.

I can't imagine anyone not being pleased with these recordings.

I listen to this selection every day and it still amazes me. The Cleveland Orchestra and Ashkenazy were right on target with their interpretation of Beethoven's piano concertos. The recording quality is excellent and the piano has a nice crisp sound to it. Ashkenazy performs these selections like no other, it is a must buy!

This 1988 recording is the third set of the Beethoven concertos Ashkenazy has taken to the recording studio and for me his best. Anyone who doubts his Beethovenian qualities needs only to listen to this set with an open mind, perhaps supported by his much earlier set of the piano sonatas. We can listen to any number of the Mozart concertos directed from the keyboard but those of the Beethoven concertos come along only occasionally, mainly because the "Emperor" is such a mountain for aspiring concert pianists to climb. In these recordings Ashkenazy is ably supported by what looks (from the photographs) and sounds like a hand-picked subset of the Cleveland musicians with winds as Beethoven scored and about half the orchestra's string players. He chooses tempi carefully, not too breathless but far from dragging. and the Cleveland's orchestral lines are beautifully articulated. I would pick out the G major concerto (No. 4) as the high point of the set, and the Choral Fantasy is a delightful bonus, particularly as the vocal lines are as Beethoven intended with three male and three female soloists. All in all a set that comfortably ranks alongside even the most exacting competition.

Goes is damaged or if, I was worried about how bad the condition of the disk, I received the order of the state. Thank you.

I am very pleased to listen to this Beethoven 's masterpiece played by one of the greatests pianists.
Very interesting.