Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Get 3 Individual Ma CD's With the Money About To Be Spent!, October 17, 2001
Nothing to be said about super star Yo-Yo, but I have to confess that as far as concertos go, Yo-Yo Ma does incredulously better in live performances, and if you turn that sentence around, you will see the gist of what I have to say.
All cellists (or any performer on any instrument really) have their more forte genres; for certain romantic concertos, such as Elgar or Schumann particulalry, I frankly don't think Yo-Yo Ma gives MILESTONE performances on this CD set. But of course, his reading of Haydn concertos is one of the most delightfully beautiful ones out there, get it by all means. Also, they were made far back when Yo-Yo Ma was but a young cellist, so that is one obvious reason why there should be better recordings around now(i.e. If you want a Dvorak Concerto by Ma, you should definitely go for the new one with Kurt Masur and New York Philharmonic).There are numerous other recordings that truly show all admirable, enjoyable aspects of Ma playing (e.g. the exuberant and refreshing Beethoven Sonatas, a little lagged but very beautiful Brahms Sonatas,..) and this is not the best Ma CD's you can get. Money to spend on this CD set? By three other CD's by Ma, there are a LOT of cheaper and greater ones out there!
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not all are live..., December 2, 2003
Amazon puts "Live" in the title of this disc, but a closer reading of the liner notes shows that some are live and some are not.... it's confusing and I wish the record companies would clearly label whether recordings are live or not on the OUTSIDE of the disc, so you can see it BEFORE you buy it, as many collectors prefer not to purchase live recordings.In any event, I purchased this recording without knowing it was recorded live and I haven't been disappointed. The Haydn is played with that characteristic Ma reserve, but it works quite well for the piece, being from the Classic Era and all... Saint-Saens and Schumann are surprisingly lively, although I generally prefer Rostropovich. Of course, no one plays the Elgar better than Du Pre, so if you're looking for that, you should get the EMI recording of Du Pre/Barenboim b/w Janet Baker's Sea Songs instead of this. And if you're looking for the Dvorak, the 1969 recording of Rostropovich/vonKarajan/BPO on DG takes the cake EVERY time. Don't waste your time on Ma's soulless, sanitized reading of this wonderfully romantic concerto. If you're up to it and you really want to hear someone pour their heart into Dvorak, try DuPre's late-60s recording on Angel (EMI) with Barenboim and Chicago. Tasty!
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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Just Amazing, August 1, 2000
Yo Yo Ma never seems to dissapoint. His tone is incredibly clear and plays with poise and confidence that every musician should emulate. Yo Yo Ma's interpretation of all the concerti are first rate and some are even better. His Haydn in D leaves me speechless and his Dvorak is one of the best ever recorded. This is one of the best cd collections on the market. You should enjoy every moment of it.
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