Brahms: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 / Haydn Variations / Tragic Overture / Academic Festival Overture [Original recording remastered]

Johannes Brahms (Composer), Sir John Barbirolli (Conductor), New Philharmonia Orchestra (Orchestra), Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra), Daniel Barenboim (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Daniel Barenboim
• Orchestra: New Philharmonia Orchestra, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
• Conductor: Sir John Barbirolli
• Composer: Johannes Brahms
• Audio CD (August 11, 1998)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: EMI Classics
• ASIN: B000009OQR
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #185,339 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great set, February 6, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Brahms: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 / Haydn Variations / Tragic Overture / Academic Festival Overture (Audio CD)

It's hard to believe that Barenboim was only in his 20s when he recorded these concertos; the performances show emotional depth far beyond his years. Barbirolli and the New Philharmonia provide beautiful playing and the entire production is cohesive, powerful, and the remastered sound is amazingly good. While it won't displace the Fleisher/Szell or the Gilels/Jochum sets, it's essential listening for anyone who loves this music.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As close to Klemp as we can ask for., May 7, 2004

By 

Ryan Kouroukis "In 1882 Richard Wagner said: ... - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brahms: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 / Haydn Variations / Tragic Overture / Academic Festival Overture (Audio CD)

This set of the Brahms Piano concerto's blew me away. Barenboim was on fire, he plays them big and chunky (just the way I like it!) and as if they were live performances! Barbirolli and the New Philharmonia Orchestra give such blazing support in both that my jaw dropped!

Here's the thing:

Otto Klemperer never got a chance to record the Brahms piano concertos with Barenboim (like in the Beethoven concertos). But "Danny-Boy" and "Barber-Oily's" recordings are as close as we can get to an interpretation Klemperer would have had. Recorded in the late 60's, you can tell that there's that "Klemp" sound in the New Philharmonia, as if he was conducting!

All I have to say is this:

"Gilels/Jochum, you have competition now, watch out!"

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't you wish he'd stayed at the keyboard?, July 25, 2000

By 

Mark McCue (Denver, CO USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brahms: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 / Haydn Variations / Tragic Overture / Academic Festival Overture (Audio CD)

This five star production infuriates me--why has Barenboim inflicted himself on the world as a two-star conductor when he was consistently doing five-star work from the keyboard?

This is the perfect case in point. This is one of the great traversals of these two big things, individual without being quirky, technically assured, interpretatively clear, thoughtful, astute. Of course, Barbirolli is responsible in part for this, but his collaboration is what was needed to fill out a perceptive rather than noisy and even elegant presentation. All this in Brahms: that's rare.

We're not going to be forgetting Rubenstein, Fleisher, Backhaus, Gilels, Richter on a good day, Bachauer and a few others. We're just going to keep remembering to include Barenboim in that select group.

This disc would be unalloyed joy...if we just didn't have that nagging feeling that we're listening to a great artist who took the advice of a mediocre career counselor.