Customer Reviews

Mozart: The Great Piano Concertos, Vol.1

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

To give you an idea of how much I like this, I have already bought two copies of this one and two copies of Vol. 2. (gifts) To begin with, the music is so beautiful, it occasionally brings a tear to my eye. Alfred Brendel (the pianist) plays with spirit, but doesn't overdo it like Daniel Barenboim does. (I have the complete Mozart Piano Concertos played by Barenboim from the EMI label, and he didn't play them this well) The only pianist I like better for Mozart is Alicia de Larocha, but her recordings are much more expensive, and she only recorded a few of these Piano Concertos.

If I were to recommend three sets of CDs to represent Mozart, I would choose his late symphonies (sold here on the Deutsch Gramophone (sp?) label) and Vols. 1 & 2 of his Piano Concertos through Philips. Also, look for Mozart's Horn, Oboe, and Bassoon Concertos, and his Piano Sonatas, which are also outstanding.

I found this 2-CD set to be an absolute delight. It contains 5 of Mozart's most famous piano concertos and his two rondos for piano as well - a particularly generous offering! From opening to closing measure of every selection, pianist Alfred Brendel and the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, under the direction of Sir Neville Marriner, team up to establish a splendid musical dialog. Brendel is a wonderful interpreter and player of Mozart's music; I found him to be particularly expressive in Concerto No. 20 (my favorite) and No. 21. The 2 piano rondos are sheer magic from start to finish as well.

This CD set was awarded a rosette by the Penguin Guide to Compact Discs. (The rosette is the Penguin Guide's highest accolade, given to recordings of special distinction). For lovers of Mozart's piano concertos, this, and its companion "The Great Piano Concertos, Volume 2," are THE CDs to own!

Alfred Brendel is one of the world's most famous pianists, but not for reasons that make Argerich, Paderewski, or Rubinstein famous. Brendel is an expert both artistically and technically but he is not given to highly individualistic interpretations that rattle purists and create controversy. In other words, Brendel is a highly reliable pianist. Like Murray Perahia, there are no let downs in his recorded performances. For this and the price, no one should pass up this 2 disc recording.

The only downside is the recording's track listing. Piano Concerto No. 23 is split: its first movement is in the first disc while its last two movements are in the second. Bewildering especially since the piano concertos are not sequenced chronologically. And the insert doesn't help. It does not explain the track arrangement (is it by the year of recording? by importance in Mozart's ouvre?). Nonetheless, there it is, Piano Concerto No. 23 separated into two cds. Why this has to be is difficult to understand. The first movement, allegro, is 11.04 minutes long; in the second disc, a one movement rondo, Rondo in A, KV 386, is 8.32 minutes long. Why wasn't this rondo placed in the first disc to allow a seamless playing of Piano Concerto No. 23?

This is annoying if your player does not support multiple disc playing. I bought this 2 cd set specifically for Piano Concerto No. 23, whose second movement I love. It is one of the most sublime of piano adagios, up there with the second movements of Chopin no. 1, Rachmaninoff no. 2, Shostakovich no. 2. And I bought it specifically for Brendel's performance with the ASMITF, conducted by Neville Marriner. Brendel really makes the piano weep here. His evocations of a human's cycle of grief and redemption make the performance definitive for Piano Concerto No. 23. If the split won't bother you, do yourself a favor and get a copy.

With his 27 piano concertos, Mozart developed the form to a new level of artistry and claimed dominion of the piano concerto genre. As a whole, these are amoung the richest treasures in all the classical music repertoire. They make a great entry point into learning about classical music, yet remain deeply satisfying to the oldest collector.

The first few concertos resulted from early composition exercises from his father converting Baroque sonatas movements to concerto form. Mozart composed the first original concerto at a mere age 17 (No. 5, K.175) and remained one of his favorite. No. 9, composed for a potential love interest Mlle. Jeunehomme, is both pure charm and brilliant form where concertos #14-27 are the gems of the "mature" works. While most works here are typically sunny, lively and galante, a couple (like #20 & 24) with their ominous minor-key movements paved the way for Beethoven's innovations and expressiveness. The shift towards an introspective and simple mood in the last concerto #27 (along with his last chamber works) possibly foreshadowed a new phase - which, if true, was sadly cut short by Mozart's early death in 1791.

This 2-CD set showcases several concertos considered the "creme-de-la-creme" of the 27. These readings by Brendel and Marriner are alive with enthusiasm, warmth, and the typical Brendel precision. The balance of the piano and orchestra is ideal and brings out the interplay Mozart had in mind in this genre. Along with Murray Perahia's legendary complete set, Brendel's performances of Mozart's piano concertos are considered on the whole to be at the top of the list overall. Along with the sister set, Great Piano Concertos Vol II, these recordings received the highest Penguin Guide rating (Rosette) and are an official "Recommended Recording." Additionally, Gramophone says "this set can be recommended without any reservations." The value and sound quality/balance are excellent (as with most all Philips DUO label CD's). Compositions - 5 stars; Performance - 5 stars; Sound Quality - 5 stars.

For those who like the sound of a Mozart-era pianoforte and more "period performances," there is a splendid 9-CD set of Mozart's piano concertos by Malcolm Bilson and the English Baroque Soloists w/ John Gardiner conducting that is both top-notch music and a super value on DG.

Other recommended Philips DUO's for Mozart are: Great Serenades (Marriner), Piano Trios (Beaux Art Trio), Violin concertos (Grumiaux), Violin Sonatas (Haebler), and Complete Quintets I, II (Grumiaux et al). For the average listener with no musical biases, these double-disc sets are all excellent choices to build a Mozart collection.

Philip's two double-CD sets of Alfred Brendel and Neville Marriner performing a total of ten of Mozart's great piano concertos, plus two rondos for piano and orchestra, must rate as one of the best of many bargains available in their "2 for 1" series. The four CDs add up to close to five hours of music, most of it essential listening for anyone interested in Mozart, great piano music, and great concertos.

This first of the two sets contains four indisputable masterpieces. In the stormy D minor Concerto K. 466, Brendel springs a mild surprise by playing his own cadenzas rather than Beethoven's, the ones most often used. I must confess to preferring Beethoven's unstylish but dramatic and imaginative cadenza to the first movement, but otherwise the performance is beyond reproach. Brendel adds some discreet and entirely appropriate ornamentation to the many repetitions of the second movement's main theme. The Olympian C major K. 467, with its incomparably beautiful slow movement, also receives some much-needed decoration: here the cadenzas are by Radu Lupu and are a bit quirkier than necessary. Although the soloist's tone and phrasing in the wistful K. 488 are ravishing in the first two movements, the starker phrases of the F-sharp minor Adagio are better left undecorated--for once Brendel's practically unerring sense of propriety in added ornamentation goes slightly off. In my opinion the best of a superb set of performances is that of the C minor, K. 491: Brendel and Marriner catch every nuance of tragedy while never slighting the grace of the music--the problem of writing an appropriate first-movement cadenza, difficult since Mozart left none of his own, is brilliantly solved here by the soloist.

Although in a set billed as Mozart's "Great Piano Concertos" I might have opted, narrowly, for including K. 453 in G major over K. 459, it cannot be denied that all involved seem perfectly attuned to the quicksilver energy and unexpected contrapuntal intricacies of the F major work. The two additional rondo movements, one a lightweight replacement for the original finale of Mozart's very first original piano concerto, the other a possible alternate finale to his earlier A major Concerto K. 414, are a delightful bonus. Incidentally, although the splitting of K. 488 across two generously filled CDs is an annoyance, timing restrictions would not have permitted cramming three complete concertos onto one CD as another review suggests.

If I were to be left stranded on a deserted island one day and I had to take only one thing with me it would undoubtedly be Mozart's complete piano concertos. There are no words to describe how much I love these works! I've listened to them dozens of times to the point of becoming intoxicated by their themes! And I mean really intoxicated, to the point where you replay in your head the same themes every given moment of the day or night, while you get up in the morning, you eat, work, rest, read, watch TV, even in your sleep. Quick, I need a detoxification treatment!

Of all the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the most popular ones may well be the "Eine kleine Nachtmusik" serenade, the opening movement of the "Symphony no 40" or different overtures and arias from "Die Zauberflöte", "Le nozze di Figaro" or "Don Giovanni". But the most characteristic works are undoubtedly his 27 concertos for piano and orchestra. The interactive relationship between piano and orchestra is an issue of central importance to the appreciation of these works. These piano concertos stand alongside his operas and symphonies as his most frequently performed and most loved music. Like Beethoven's symphonies, Mozart's piano concertos constitute an extraordinary body of work that will never disappear from the world's culture.

Mozart revolutionized the concerto style, giving it a symphonic dimension, with the solo instrument exploiting all of its technical possibilities, playing never heard before effects with the orchestra. I like what Charles Rosen once said about these effects: "In every Mozart's concerto, the entrance of the soloist is an event, like the arrival of a new character on the stage. Only Mozart, of all the composers before Beethoven, understood the implications of this dynamic contrast between soloist and orchestra and its formal possibilities".

I read somewhere that Beethowen once said to a pupil of his that he would never be able to think of a melody as great as a certain one in the first movement of Mozart's piano concerto no 24. Now that's a huge compliment! Beethowen went on to write the cadenzas of some of Mozart's concertos and later on he wrote some variations on these concertos and some other Mozart work.

Concertos no 20 and no 24 are my all time favorites. They both display the so-called daemonic side of the composer's genius. While the first is overtly dramatic, the latter is more inward-looking and it has a huge opening movement. Musical expression can hardly get any better than this and it probably won't for quite some time!

I find Mozart's piano concertos just a joy to listen to. Should there be a heaven, and should I manage to go there, I wouldn't be surprised if piano concerto no. 21 is playing on the way up. At least that is how it makes me feel when listening. Like the music of Bach, there is an underlying simplicity in Mozart's music that makes it very accessible and timeless. On a technical note, I found the sound quality very clear, and of course it does not get better than this entire cast of musicians (including the brilliant Alfred Brendel).

I bought the cd because of K. 467, my favorite Mozart concerto. The recording and Brendel's playing are good, although I liked Murray Perahia's K. 467 better. I liked Perahia's cadenzas and his playing in general more than Brendel's. What I liked in this cd was K. 466, my other favorite Mozart concerto. Brendel's playing was very good and his cadenzas are magnificent. I also have Alicia de Larrocha's K. 466. de Larrocha takes a more gentle approach with her K. 466, unlike Brendel who's playing was a bit more aggressive and confident. Anyway, I love both recordings and I listen to both from time to time.

The other concertos and concert rondos in the cd are also quite good. I also like Brendel's K. 488, while I find listening to the others enjoyable.

You should buy this 2-cd set for the quality of music in this collection alone. A very good extra is the price. You get high quality music in 2 cds for the price of one. Definitely a good buy.

I was pleasantly surprised when I received my CD of great piano concertos by Mozart. Although I had listed to the sample selections on Amazon.com, the entire concertos were great. The interaction of the orchestra with the piano were blended perfectly. Mozart takes one little theme & develops it into a beautiful piece of music. Being a piano player myself, it is especially amazing to hear the complexity and dexterity of Alfred Brendel.

Pity Alfred Brendel, Neville Marriner, and the incomparable Academy of St Martin in the Fields having to play this luscious span of concertos from the sweet spot of Mozart's oeuvre.

If there is sweeter music in the universe, it must lie at the depths of the sea or some equally inaccessible place, far from eyes and ears that could compare it to Mozart's piano concertos no. 19-24.

Mozart's piano concerti, perhaps more than those of any other composer, shape the solo instrument's phrasing so that its entrances and exits vis-à-vis the orchestral score are nearly seamless. Brendel and his supporting cast perform this aspect of the music as well as can be done.

In the stellar Philips Classics 'Duo' series, this recording may well reign supreme. It's as good as it gets.