Great Recordings Of The Century - Beethoven: Triple Concerto / Brahms: Double Concerto [Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered]

Johannes Brahms (Composer), Ludwig van Beethoven (Composer), George Szell (Conductor), Herbert von Karajan (Conductor), Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra), Cleveland Orchestra (Orchestra), Sviatoslav Richter (Performer), Mstislav Rostropovich (Performer), David Oistrakh (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Sviatoslav Richter, Mstislav Rostropovich, David Oistrakh
• Orchestra: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra
• Conductor: George Szell, Herbert von Karajan
• Composer: Johannes Brahms, Ludwig van Beethoven
• Audio CD (March 9, 1999)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
• Label: EMI Classics
• ASIN: B00000I7VO
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #11,336 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #32 in Music > Classical > Instruments > Strings > Cello

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brahms - Double Concerto, October 28, 2005

By 

Angus (Bristol, UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Great Recordings Of The Century - Beethoven: Triple Concerto / Brahms: Double Concerto (Audio CD)

It's interesting that there are quite a number of negative comments about this performance of the Beethoven here. I didn't dislike it, but it is true that I almost always jump straight to the Brahms' Double Concerto. The piece and the performance are beyond praise, quite frankly.

The same could be said of David Oistrakh. I know of nobody who can play Brahms and Beethoven as this Russian genius does: his performances of the violin concertos are -- adjective defying...

Do have a look at Oistrakh's performaces of Beethoven's violin concerto, either with Cluytens (perhaps not available now) or in the easily got hold of disc on Testament (Erhling). For the Brahms violin concerto there is also the other CD from EMI with Otto Klemperer from 1960, which is also great (but not a patch on this one. It does, howver an amazing performance of the Sinfonia Concertante, with Igor Oistrakh which is the stand-out performance on the CD.)

37 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent versions of two famous concertos., May 9, 2000

By 

Mike Powers "mkp51" (Woolwich, ME USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Great Recordings Of The Century - Beethoven: Triple Concerto / Brahms: Double Concerto (Audio CD)

A wonderful version of Beethoven's Triple Concerto and Brahms' Double Concerto. These pieces are a superb coupling on one CD. David Oistrakh (violin), Mstislav Rostropovich (cello) and Sviatoslav Richter (piano) make a dynamic team with Herbert von Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra for the Triple Concerto. All of Beethoven's passion and power shine through admirably. Again, Oistrakh and Rostropovich are in top form playing Brahms' Double Concerto, this time with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra.

One minor problem is the CD's engineering, which lets the players down just a little bit. "Forte" passages seem too loud, and as a result lose some of their definition. This is less of a problem in the Brahms Double Concerto.

Despite this minor shortcoming, this is definitely the best recording to own of both Beethoven's Triple Concerto and Brahms' Double Concerto.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars grand and glorious, January 31, 2005

By 

Alejandra Vernon "artist & illustrator" (Long Beach, California) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Great Recordings Of The Century - Beethoven: Triple Concerto / Brahms: Double Concerto (Audio CD)

Historic for having three of the greatest musicians who ever walked the earth on one disc, these are also fabulous concertos, at once strong and graceful, melodic as well as grand, and beautifully played by these extraordinary masters.
David Oistrakh (1908-1974) has always been my favorite violinist, Sviatoslav Richter (1915-1997) one of the finest pianists of the 20th century, and Mstislav Rostropovich is almost a father figure in Russian music, whether as a superb cellist or conductor.
They share a similar heritage, having all lived in the Soviet Union (Oistrakh and Richter were born in the Ukraine, Rostropovich in Azerbaijan in 1927) during relatively the same time frame.

The Beethoven Triple Concerto was started in 1803, and it is fascinating to read in the liner notes how many compositions Beethoven had going at the same time, and major works, like the Eroica Symphony, the Waldstein Sonata, and Fidelio, and during this time managed to weave this marvelous (and unusual for its combination of instruments) piece into his composition schedule. As much as I love the Beethoven concerto, the Brahms "Double" is the winner for me...it gets me in its opening bars of a strong motif, the passionate "conversation" between cello and violin, to come back forcefully to the motif, and it never lets up that intensity for its duration. Oistrakh and Rostropovich have never been finer in what is a definitive performance of this concerto.

The Beethoven, conducted by Herbert Von Karajan with the Berlin Philharmonic, and the Brahms, with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra, were both recorded in 1969, and the sound has been well re-mastered and is very good for its age. Total playing time is 69'54.