Piano Concerto 2 / Piano Concerto 27

Brahms (Composer), Mozart (Composer), Bohm (Conductor), Vpo (Orchestra), Backhaus (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Backhaus
• Orchestra: Vpo
• Conductor: Bohm
• Composer: Brahms, Mozart
• Audio CD (July 15, 1997)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Polygram Records
• ASIN: B0000042E0
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #364,509 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Piano Concerto No. 2 In B Flat Major, Op. 83: I Allegro non troppo

2. Piano Concerto No. 2 In B Flat Major, Op. 83: II Allegro appassionato

3. Piano Concerto No. 2 In B Flat Major, Op. 83: III Andante

4. Piano Concerto No. 2 In B Flat Major, Op. 83: IV Allegretto grazioso

5. Piano Concerto No. 27 In B Flat Major, K 595: I Allegro

6. Piano Concerto No. 27 In B Flat Major, K 595: II Larghetto

7. Piano Concerto No. 27 In B Flat Major, K 595: III Allegro

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Greatest Pianists Ever, February 9, 2003

By 

BLee "bpslee" (HK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Piano Concerto 2 / Piano Concerto 27 (Audio CD)

I'm afraid not even Gilels, not to mention Rubinstein, is quite on the same level with Backhaus.

It's not just the profound understanding of music as could be seen from his playing, even from the technical point of view, few pianists, present or past, have attained the sort of precision and clarity plus flexibility and lyricism as Backhaus did-- few except Busoni, Hofmann, Rachmaninoff, Moriz Rosenthal, Friedman, Simon Barere (the latter quite a category of his own) and a handful more. "Lyrical fantasy" is too much an over-simplication of his greatness.

I recommend readers to look for everything Backhaus played with all my heart. As to Gilels, he had handpicked a disciple more well-known in Russia than elsewhere: Sokolov. But I find another Russian pianist Merzhanov more interesting and more akin to him, the latter being the pupil of Feinberg though.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A magisterial and authoritative performance of consummate Brahms, October 5, 2008

By 

Y.P. - See all my reviews

This review is from: Piano Concerto 2 / Piano Concerto 27 (Audio CD)

This disc contains 2 concertos in the same key (B flat major) by Mozart and Brahms, performed by Wilhelm Backhaus on piano, with Karl Böhm conducting Wiener Philharmonker. The performance of Mozart's B flat concerto might not be everybody's favorite; it is an earnest and sincere performance nonetheless. The real treasure of this disc, in my opinion, is the Brahms B flat concerto.

Allow me to make a bold and personal statement: I have never heard any Brahms concerto performance (live or on record) which comes close to this recording in its grace and charm, and above all its understated yet overwhelming emotional power. Both the piano and orchestra playing are absolutely marvelous. However, what makes this recording so special was that some "miracle" seemed to have happened during the recording session: The piano and orchestra sounds are completely meshed with each other, and the music making seemed to come from a "whole". The excellent sound engineering and masterful transfer all add to the whole experience. This is a performance I worn out 2 audio cassettes (in grade school) before getting a CD. -- There is no way I can describe the "experience" in words. You have to experience it yourself!

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Backhaus performed in seventy seasons, and established himself as one of the greatest German pianists. However, English speaking countries (notably U.S. and U.K.) have curiously not warmed up to him. He met with Brahms and heard him conduct both his piano concertos with d'Albert (Backhaus's teacher) as soloist. This performance is not Gardiner's "revolutionary Brahms". It is, on the other hand, Teutonic tradition at its finest. Bachkaus would die 2 years after this recording was made. This recording, together with some of his Beethoven recordings, is a testament of his pianism.

By the way, this has a sister version Brahms, Mozart: Piano Concertos / Backhaus, Böhm, but they are both discontinued. Grab either one of them while they are still available.

My highest recommendation.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bold and Majestic, October 2, 2001

By 

Brian H. Williams (Manteca, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Piano Concerto 2 / Piano Concerto 27 (Audio CD)

Backhaus, at 83 layed down his last version of the Brahms 2nd concerto. It ranks as possibly one of the greatest versions recorded... Inspired though Gilels is, he hits a number of wrong notes in his performance. Even though, Gilels turns in a great performance, but here you have Backhaus in an even greater recording, without the wrong notes! Not to mention Bohm's outstanding conducting lends Brahms a strong singing line and the same time, peaceful quiet moments, especially in the 3rd movement. The Mozart, recorded earlier, is played with the light, but never lacking in sweetness phrasing that Bohm and Backhaus give. A great cd.