Brahms: Piano Quintet / Schubert: "Trout" Quintet - Amadeus String Quartet / Clifford Curzon [Import, Live]

Johannes Brahms (Composer), Franz Schubert (Composer), Amadeus String Quartet (Performer), Clifford Curzon (Performer), J. Edward Merrett (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Amadeus String Quartet, Clifford Curzon, J. Edward Merrett
• Composer: Johannes Brahms, Franz Schubert
• Audio CD (March 23, 1999)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Import, Live
• Label: BBC Legends
• ASIN: B00000IL6E
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #353,357 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Infectious live performances from some old hands, January 1, 2006

By 

Santa Fe Listener (Santa Fe, NM USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Brahms: Piano Quintet / Schubert: "Trout" Quintet - Amadeus String Quartet / Clifford Curzon (Audio CD)

Clifford Curzon and the Amadeus Quartet were staples of the London music scene for many years--the quartet persisted without a change in personnel for forty years. These live BBC recordings were made in Royal Festival Hall, known for its poor acoustics. The 1974 Brahms F minor Quintet fares worse of the two--the piano is suspended in an echoey space that blurs Curzon's articulation. But these are both soft-grained, genial readings anyway.

In the "Trout" Quintet, recorded three years earlier in 1971, the sonics are much better. All the instruments are clearer, and Curzon's piano sounds natural and well blended with the strings. This is relaxed music-making by old hands who know each other well. The Amadeus blend seamlessly. And yet I feel there are limitations. The "Trout" lacks imagination and buoyaant freedom, even though in its slightly earthbound way it's very enjoyable. The Brahms could use a good deal more incisiveness from Curzon; it's a shade too comfortable with its own mellowness.

Even so, these are very amiable readings, and as live performances go quite accurate and balanced ones as well.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars not worth the price, October 17, 2011

By 

Arthur Craig (Phoenix, AZ) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Brahms: Piano Quintet / Schubert: "Trout" Quintet - Amadeus String Quartet / Clifford Curzon (Audio CD)

I listen to the Amadeus Quartet's box set of Brahms Chamber music often; it is truly outstanding. Based on that experience and reviews I had read of this archive recording, here and in the major guidebooks, I bought this CD hoping for a positive experience. I was severely disappointed. The quality of the recording is poor - it seems as if only a single microphone pair was used - the sound is often swamped by the lead instrument, and the inner voices essential to Brahms are almost inaudible. When the piano is not leading, it rarely rises above the ensemble in the Brahms op 34. Yes, Curzon's live enthusiasm is infectious, making this a useful historical document, but too much of the time I was straining to hear him (with headphones on a Meridian CDP). The performance captured on Disc 2 of the box set is more enjoyable, but I have several other versions of both the Brahms Piano Quintet and Schubert's Trout Quintet, almost all of which are far better performances and far better recordings than these. Dollars better spent elsewhere.