Haydn: Piano Sonatas

Franz Joseph Haydn (Composer), András Schiff (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: András Schiff
• Composer: Franz Joseph Haydn
• Audio CD (August 3, 1999)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Teldec
• ASIN: B00000JLLE
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #124,205 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Sonata No.32 In G Minor, Hob. XVI:44: Moderato

2. Sonata No.32 In G Minor, Hob. XVI:44: Allegretto

3. Sonata no.54 In G Major, Hob.XVI:40: Allegretto innocente

4. Sonata no.54 In G Major, Hob.XVI:40: Presto

5. Sonata No. 53 In E Minor, Hob. XVI:34: Presto

6. Sonata No. 53 In E Minor, Hob. XVI:34: Adagio

7. Sonata No. 53 In E Minor, Hob. XVI:34: Vivace molto innocentemente

8. Sonata No. 58 In C Major, Hob. XVI:48: Andante con espressione

9. Sonata No. 58 In C Major, Hob. XVI:48: Rondo

10. Sonata No.33 In C Minor, Hob.XVI: 20: Moderato

See all 12 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Fantasia In C Major, Hob. XVII:4: Presto

2. Sontata No. 59 In E Flat Major, Hob. XVI:49: Allegro

3. Sontata No. 59 In E Flat Major, Hob. XVI:49: Adagio e cantibile

4. Sontata No. 59 In E Flat Major, Hob. XVI:49: Finale: Tempo di Minuet

5. Sontata No. 60 In C Major, Hob. XVI:50: Allegro

6. Sontata No. 60 In C Major, Hob. XVI:50: Adagio

7. Sontata No. 60 In C Major, Hob. XVI:50: Allegro molto

8. Sontata No. 61 In D Major, Hob. XVI:51: Andante

9. Sontata No. 61 In D Major, Hob. XVI:51: Finale: Presto

10. Sontata No. 62 In E Flat Major, Hob. XVI:52: Allegro

See all 12 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential Haydn, August 9, 2000

By 

DR ROBERT JAMES BERRY (Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Haydn: Piano Sonatas (Audio CD)

Andras Schiff is a performer I have long admired, and this disc doesn't disapppoint. Whereas other pianists like Alfred Brendel may take a more dramatic approach to Haydn's wonderful piano sonatas, I feel Schiff's delicacy and spirituality (especially in the slow movements) reaches more deeply into this composer's music. These are generously filled discs and I do hope that Schiff and Teldec will consider embarking on a complete cycle of Haydn's sonatas.

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fine performances AND not overly boomy., April 23, 2007

By 

Doug - Haydn Fan (California) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Haydn: Piano Sonatas (Audio CD)

These are highly desirable performances of the tremendous and still little known Haydn piano sonatas. Schiff is a master pianist who thinks about what his playing will sound like when transferred to digital format: the result is a huge plus for the consumer. Most available recorded performanceas of the sonatas are good, some very fine. My problem with many of these recordings, such as on Naxos or Decca, is that Haydn's musical make-up was rather boisterous, and as recordings of the sonatas reveal, this plays the devil with the inner voices of his keyboard works. Boomy congested sound makes for a pointless and very frustrating exercise. If you can handle it the Naxos recordings are very reasonably priced, as are the better recorded Decca with McCabe. But those large pianos present a myriad of sound issues. In this case Schiff is generally able to keep his sound balances from turning tubby, and the music and the listener benefits dramatically.
Another cleaner version of the sonatas - Leif Ove Andsnes. A performance very Scandanvian if you wish in its clarity, elegance and purity. Haydn's gusto and rude humor are transformed into a very Beethoven like power, all done in an ultra moderne approach. A must hear and also the readings are extremely pleasurable; especially so after the somewhat congested music-making/recordings often encountered in these piano sonatas.
Again - this just suggests Haydn has far more range than most give him credit for. The music itself? Wonderful!

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Exceptional Haydn Piano Recording, April 30, 2006

By 

Donald Carlson (Redding, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Haydn: Piano Sonatas (Audio CD)

Thanks to three prior reviews here, I decided to purchase this CD set. I have listened to many different recorded interpretations of these late Haydn piano sonatas over several decades; this set by Andras Schiff is the most rewarding in my listening experiece. His performance exemplifies the qualities of clarity and balance so central to the classical period. At the same time his sense of Haydn's wit, humour and invention is pure refreshment.

Andras Schiff is quoted as saying, "Silence is the beginning and end of all music...".

The way his musical notes sometimes appear out of dead silence is like the purest light appearing out of the darkest void. A kind of revelation!

Haydn's beautiful and sophisticated composition, Shiff's inspired enunciation, and Teldec's quality recording are in perfect concert here.