Beethoven: Piano Concerto No 5

Zinman (Artist), Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 14, 2006)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Arte Nova Classics
• ASIN: B000J3EBLC
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #24,410 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #78 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Vocal Non-Opera > Cantatas
  • #78 in Music > Classical > Historical Periods > Classical (c.1770-1830) > Vocal & Song > Cantatas

Track Listings

1. Piano Concerto No. 5 in E flat major ('Emperor'), Op. 73: 1. Allegro

2. Piano Concerto No. 5 in E flat major ('Emperor'), Op. 73: 2. Adagio un poco mosso

3. Piano Concerto No. 5 in E flat major ('Emperor'), Op. 73: 3. Rondo: Allegro

4. Fantasia for piano, chorus, and orchestra ('Choral Fantasy'), Op. 80

5. Meeresstille und glückliche Fahrt (Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage), cantata for chorus & orchestra, Op. 112

Editorial Reviews

"An Emperor which offers increasing musical dividends - an unmissable bargain ... There are plenty of big-name Emperors around, but this latest entry holds its own against any competition. Yefim Bronfman's touch is light and fleet, while he, David Zinman and the Tonhalle Orchestra form a warmly responsive partnership." - GRAMOPHONE EDITOR'S CHOICE

Born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan in 1958, Yefim Bronfman immigrated to Israel at the age of thirteen and later to the U.S., where he pursued his training at the Juilliard School and the Marlboro and Curtis Institutes under Rudolf Serkin, Rudolf Firkusny, and Leon Fleisher. Bronfman celebrated his international début in 1975, accompanied by the Montreal Symphony Orchestra under Zubin Mehta. He soon acquired an excellent reputation as a pianist on the stages of the world's major concert halls. Highlights of recent years include concerts with the Berlin Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Staatskapelle Dresden, the Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzig, the Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam, and the Vienna Philharmonic. Yefim Bronfman also gives regular piano recitals in the leading concert halls of the United States, Europe, and the Far East. As a chamber musician, he has collaborated with the Emerson, Cleveland, Guarneri, and Juilliard Quartets. Other long-term musical partners include Emanuel Ax, Yo-Yo Ma, Joshua Bell, Lynn Harrell, Shlomo Mintz, and Pinchas Zukerman. Born in 1936, American conductor David Zinman has risen to the pinnacle of his career in the last decade. After bringing the Baltimore Symphony to major status, he became musical director of the Aspen Music Festival and then took the helm of Zurich's beloved Tonhalle Orchestra. Zinman's discography of some one hundred recordings has won five Grammys and two Grands Prix du Disque. Ever since 1999, when the Tonhalle Orchestra was awarded the German Record Critics' Award for its seminal recording of all Beethoven's symphonies, the oldest symphony orchestra in Switzerland has been the focus of international interest. Under the leadership of David Zinman, the Tonhalle Orchestra has undertaken a number of successful concert tours throughout Europe, the U.S., and Japan. In addition to its concerts at home and its touring schedule, the orchestra and Zinman are devoting increasing time to recording projects. Beethoven's "Emperor" concerto is the most dramatic of his five piano concertos, and one of the most popular in the entire genre. First performed in 1812, it is still a concert staple. First-time listeners to Beethoven's "Choral Fantasy" are inevitably taken aback by its similarities to the far more famous final movement of the Ninth Symphony, and indeed it was to become a sort of model or study for that magnificent finale. The "Choral Fantasy" was especially written for a mammoth concert of Beethoven's works given in December of 1808. Seldom heard in concert today, Beethoven's dramatic choral piece Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage was composed in 1814/15 to two poems by Goethe, and dedicated to the great German poet who received a copy of the score from Beethoven in 1822, the year of its first performance.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best modern Emperor., July 22, 2007

By 

Abel "AMY" (Hong Kong) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beethoven: Piano Concerto No 5 (Audio CD)

Of the top pianists born in the year 1958, Yefim Bronfman is perhaps the least well known. If not for the 'fake' incident last year, perhaps even fewer people would mention his name in the classical music market.
The very fact that a pianist in his prime could have his recordings being stolen and taken as somebody else's for the sheer aim of money making shows how fast deteriorating the classical music world is at present.
For me at least, Bronfman is an excellent interpretor of Beethoven. So his legging up with David Zinman in this recording of Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5 and Choral Fantasy is nothing short of being immaculate.
Even in his other recordings, like the 4th Concerto, Bronfman demonstrates impeccable pyrotechnique as well as a highly charged passionate interpretation of Beethoven's more mature piano concertos. His Emperor is even more powerful than the 1967 version of Kempff and Leitner, and his outstanding collaboration with Zinman almost to the point perfection itself. I really could not imagine a better Concerto No. 5, especially among contemproary pianists.
In the Choral Fantasy, Bronfman shows off his lyricism to the full, and convinces audiences and listeners that he is not a hacker-like Beethovenian, but also a charmer as well.
I remain highly interested in waiting to hear when and who will have the ability to surpass this Bronfman/Zinman Emperor Concerto, not even taking into account the great value-for-money of this disc.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Heroic Concerto and More, October 25, 2007

By 

Robin Friedman (Washington, D.C. United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beethoven: Piano Concerto No 5 (Audio CD)

In recent years, the American conductor David Zinman and the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich have been recording Beethoven's works for orchestra, including the nine symphonies, the overtures, the Missa Solemnis, and the concertos. The recordings are on Arte Nova and are available at a budget price. Zinman has joined with the virtuoso pianist Yefim Bronfman in recording the five Beethoven piano concertos concertos with outstanding results. This CD includes Beethoven's final piano concerto, no. 5 in E flat major, opus 73, nicknamed "Emperor", together with the Choral Fantasy in C minor opus 80, and a short choral work, "Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage", opus 112.

The three works are beautifully performed. The Emperor concerto, composed in 1809, is the last and most dramatic of the Beethoven concertos. It is cast in the large-scale "heroic" style of the Third and the Fifth symphonies, beginning with the strong chords and piano arpeggios of the works opening moments. It is a work symphonic in scope as the pianist and orchestra alternatively collaborate with and duel against each other. Many of Zinman's other recordings tend to be fast in tempo and lyrical in character, but in this reading of the Emperor, Zinman and Bronfman play the heroic character of the music to the hilt. In the first movement, Bronfman brings powerhouse pianism to the flamboyant octave passages, solo themes, warlike trills, and flashy scales and arpeggios which characterize the solo part. Zinman adds structure, drama and a sense of orchestral coloring, particularly in the lyrical second theme Beethoven gives to the horns. The second movement is the highlight of this work for both Zinman and Bronfman, as soloists and orchestra interplay beautifully throughout the hymnlike noble theme. The rondo finale is a virtuosic, dancelike movement which Bronfman and Zinman play with clangor, vigor, and elan. This is a grand, large-scaled performance of heroic Beethoven.

The choral fantasy, opus 80, first performed in 1808 with Beethoven at the piano,was once thought of as a curiosity and as one of Beethoven's less successful works. Happily, the work has been receiving increased attention. The choral fantasy is rather short but scored for an elaborate ensemble of piano, orchestra, chorus, and six soloists. It is a predecessor to the Ninth Symphony. The work opens with a long, improvisatory piano solo, followed by the gradual entrance of the instruments of the orchestra accompanied by the piano in a theme-and-variation format. Finally the chorus, soloists, piano, and orchestra join in a brief song that celebrates the power of art to redeem life. The transparency of the wind parts are tailor-made for Zinman, as his soloists offer touches of filigree to the music as their parts are introduced. Bronfman is most impressive in the improvisatory fanastasia that opens the work, and the chorus and soloists sing with enthusiasm and vigor. The choral fantasy is still a work that deserves a better reputation. This performance will introduce it well to the listener who may be unfamiliar with it.

The CD closes with some rare Beethoven, the short chorale work (also sometimes performed by four soloists) "Calm Seas and Prosperous Voyages" opus 112 written in 1814-15 and setting two poems by Goethe. This brief work consists of two contrasting sections, the first slow, melancholy, and foreboding and the second joyous and triumphal. Together with the familiar Fifth piano concerto and the lesser-known choral fantasy, this CD offers the opportunity to hear this infrequently performed chorale piece of late Beethoven.

Robin Friedman

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Fine Choral Fanstasy; So-so Emperor, March 5, 2009

By 

Virginia Opera Fan (Falls Church, VA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beethoven: Piano Concerto No 5 (Audio CD)

The best part of this disc is the fine rendering of Beethoven's "Choral Fantasy," a one off combination of the fantasy, piano concerto, and cantata. I'll admit to a fondness for the work that goes back to my first exposure to it as a filler for the Serkin/Bernstein recording of the Beethovan Piano Concerto No. 3 on a Columbia Lp. Bronfman's playing, the clarity of the orchestra, and excellent choral work combine to make this a very good performance indeed.

I'm not very enthusiastic about the "Emperor". First, Bronfman uses excessive rubato in the opening florishes of the first movement. In the development, the octave passages are well played but mechanical. Listen to Serkin (with Bernstein) for the ideal of virtuosity at the service of expression. Bronfman's expressive playing (and Zinman's faster than usual pacing) of the second movement is the highlight of the performance. The conductor nails the Adagio un poco mosso at an appropriate walking pace. Unfortunately, the finale disappoints as overblown with too many fussy rhetorical gestures. The Tonhalle's tonal polish isn't up to its own standards established in the Beethoven symphony cycle and recent Mahler releases - the latter probably enhanced by excellent SACD engineering.

For my money, Serkin and Bernstein (1962) established the gold standard for the "Emperor". Serkin's playing is imperious and expressive with Bernstein providing like-minded support. Brendel with Levine and the Chicago Symphony is my second choice. Bronfman doesn't add anything to what these artists had to say about the piece.

At the budget price, this is an OK "Emperor" coupled with an outstanding "Choral Fantasy'"