Mozart: Piano Concertos K.467 & 537; Variations K.265

Various (Artist), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Composer), George Szell (Conductor), Cleveland Orchestra (Orchestra), Columbia Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra), André Previn (Performer), Robert Casadesus (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: André Previn, Robert Casadesus
• Orchestra: Cleveland Orchestra, Columbia Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: George Szell
• Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
• Audio CD (December 30, 2009)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony Classical
• ASIN: B000002B6E
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #268,684 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sensitive piano, December 10, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Mozart: Piano Concertos K.467 & 537; Variations K.265 (Audio CD)

Casadesus recorded all the late Mozart Concertos with Szell - and he couldn't have found a better partner (Walter Legge considered Szell the best Mozart interpreter since R. Strauss). There a loads of recordings of these concertos on the market but apart from a few versions in mono (Lipatti, Haskil/Fricsay) none of them creates the requiered atmosphere. The recent ones always lacks something; Végh was an excellent Mozart conductor but he sadly chose the less gifted Schiff as soloist for his cycle. Serkin's exquisite playing was ruined by Abbado's uninspired conducting, and other good piano players hadn't got a clue about conducting. Happily we can always return to Casadesus/Szell - and now at bargain price.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful, April 19, 2001

By 

Deborah M. Lisle (Salem, OR United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mozart: Piano Concertos K.467 & 537; Variations K.265 (Audio CD)

This is truly an inspired version of these concertos. Szell and Casadesus work marvellously together to really bring these pieces to life. Casadesus is remarkably short on certain cadenzas, but, while this seems strange at first, the overall effect is to keep the pieces light and radiating a simple beauty. So often these concertos are overburdened with excessive ornamentation that detract from the overall effect of the music. Casadesus manages to ornament beautifully without losing the point of the music. The "Elvira Madigan," despite its overuse, manages to sound fresh and appropriately playful, and the "Coronation" concerto effuses just the right amount of pomp while maintaining enough levity to still sound Mozartian. Previn (one of my all time favorite conductors) makes a short and sweet appearance playing Mozart's "A vous dirai je maman" (aka "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star"). It is brilliantly played and a joy to listen to (as one would expect from Previn). Finally, you can't forget the unbeatable price. Absolutely no complaints. If the recordings were not so good as they are this would still be a great buy. So why hesitate?

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars By far the best version of the 21th!, March 30, 2007

By 

Hiram Gomez Pardo (Valencia, Venezuela) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Mozart: Piano Concertos K.467 & 537; Variations K.265 (Audio CD)

The most famous of Mozart's piano Concertos widely has never been performed with major expressiveness, elegant phrasing harmonic modulations, sublime thrills and majestic excellence. The main protagonist were Robert Casadesus and Georges Szell that evening of Nov 5 1961 when the members of the Cleveland and the legendary interpreter literally signed for immortality the ethereal bewitchment of this sublime work. They bestowed the K v.of radiant musicality and inimitable freshness. Casadesus makes the piano an extension of his soul and feelings that nobody until this date has been able to equal and nor anything like it surpass

I just can make you sure, that hardly you will find a version so extraordinary, overwhelming and mesmerizing like this one.