Brahms: Complete Violin Sonatas ~ Anderszewski / Mullova

Brahms (Composer), Anderszewski (Performer), Mullova (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Anderszewski, Mullova
• Composer: Brahms
• Audio CD (April 15, 1997)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Philips
• ASIN: B0000041KQ
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #250,799 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Son No. 1 in G, Op. 78: Vivace Ma Non Troppo

2. Son No. 1 in G, Op. 78: Adagio

3. Son No. 1 in G, Op. 78: Allegro Molto Moderato

4. Son No. 2 in A, Op.100: Allegro Amabile

5. Son No. 2 in A, Op.100: Andante Tranquillo - Vivace - Andante - Vivace Di Piu - Andante - Vivace

6. Son No. 2 in A, Op.100: Allegretto Grazioso (Quasi Andante)

7. Son No. 3 in d, Op.108: Allegro

8. Son No. 3 in d, Op.108: Adagio

9. Son No. 3 in d, Op.108: Un Poco Presto E Con Sentimento

10. Son No. 3 in d, Op.108: Presto Agitato

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Among the best available., December 30, 2002

By 

"doctor_smith" (Rowland Heights, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brahms: Complete Violin Sonatas ~ Anderszewski / Mullova (Audio CD)

There are a number of excellent recordings of these classic sonatas, but Mullova's are at the top of list. Intensely warm, musical to boot, lovely and rich and balanced in tone and phrasing, and, above all, judicious. Mullova's technique is unparalleled (she's a finer technician than Anne-Sophie Mutter), but it never imposes on her musicality, and all the beauty and subtlety of Brahm's scores are bought out here. Anderszewski, her long-time accompaniest, is also in top form, imaginative, rich in tone, and warm.

It's a real pity that many of Mullova's earlier recordings are unavailable or out of print; her solo Bach is the finest I have ever heard (and I own a dozen recordings of the Bach solo violin works and have heard even more), her Tchaikosvky is assured and polished. It's also a pity that she doesn't record as much as some classical "stars" do (a personal decision on her part). Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of this as soon as you can, in case it too goes out of print in the future. Your ears and your soul will thank you for it.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Thoughtful Introspective Duo, December 27, 2005

By 

Grady Harp (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Brahms: Complete Violin Sonatas ~ Anderszewski / Mullova (Audio CD)

For those who only know of Piotr Anderszewski as a piano recitalist, it is reassuring to hear this recording with violinist Viktoria Mullova collaborating on the three Brahms Sonatas for Violin and Piano. Each artist brings to this recital all the fire and intelligence that marks their individual careers and demonstrate how intensely musical they truly are. The lead player here is Brahms and one would have to look far and wide to find artists as sensitive to this composers demands.

The Brahms Sonatas treat each instrument equally. They are conversations in every sense of the word. Anderszewski and Mullova seem extensions of each other, so clear is the communication and the give and take of the musical discourse.

These are beautifully performed works, adding to the recorded repertoire top-notch recordings of some of Johannes Brahms most sensitive chamber works. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp, December 05

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thrilling and insightful, an account beyond reproach, December 7, 2008

By 

Santa Fe Listener (Santa Fe, NM USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Brahms: Complete Violin Sonatas ~ Anderszewski / Mullova (Audio CD)

Although Viktoria Mullova is Russian and Piotr Anderszewski Polish, both have made their reputations by largely avoiding Russian music. Only the very most elite musicians from the Soviet era managed to do that, since the initial expecttation was for a flood of Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich, and Prokofiev. That flood arrrived, but so did select artists who had something major to say about Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms. This set of the Brahms Violin Sonatas is a case in point -- it's one of the strongest collaborations in these works since Richter and Oistrakha generation ago (they never officially recorded all three sonatas, either).

Given the musical richness to be found here, it's a shame that Philips, recording in London in 1995, gives us hard, glassy sound that is especially shrill for the violin. The perspective is very close up, and as often happens, the violin is so exaggerated in scale that it's louder than the piano. (This is always a tricky business when recording chamber music for strings and keyboard.)

That aside, these are commanding performances, full of authority and passion. Mullova, ten years senior to Anderszewski, tends to be the dominant personality, and her abilities in Brahms couldn't be improved upo (try her riveting live account of the Brahms violin concerto under Abbado, also on Philips). But both she and Anderszewski accomplish something that elevates any performance of the sonatas: they find endless nuances of mood and tone that keep these works from seeming too uniform. Their version of Sonata No. 1 starts off more energetically than usual, less inclined toward the melancholy of "Regen" (Rain), the song upon which the first movement is based.

Sonata No. 2 in A major is almost Chopinesque in its call for sensitive rubato and flexible phrasing. This duo do wonders there, but they are also expert in contrasting the dramatic struggle of the first movement with the affecting natural simplicity of the slow movement's songful main theme. It's the third sonata, set in the emotionally complex key of D minor, where Brahms adds a fourth movement and expands the rhetoic in scale. I'm glad Mullova and Anderszewski resist the temptation to sound symphonic; they put all their efforts into increased intensity and expression.

Since this totally satisfying recording was released, we've also had acclaimed versions of the Brahms sonatas from Christian Tetzlaff and Sergey Khachatryan. If pushed, I might choose Mullova as the best, but the larger picture is impressive. A younger generaation is building a legacy in the standard repertoire that is already supplanting many old standbys.