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Beethoven: The Piano Concertos
 
 

Beethoven: The Piano Concertos [BOX SET]

Ludwig van Beethoven (Composer), Georg Solti (Conductor), Chicago Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra), Vladimir Ashkenazy (Performer)
3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews) More about this product

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Frequently Bought Together

Customers buy this album with Mozart: The Great Piano Concertos, Vol. 1 ~ Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Beethoven: The Piano Concertos + Mozart: The Great Piano Concertos, Vol. 1
  • This item: Beethoven: The Piano Concertos ~ Ludwig van Beethoven

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  • Mozart: The Great Piano Concertos, Vol. 1 ~ Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

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Product Details


Listen to Samples

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Disc: 1
1. Allegro con brio
2. Largo
3. Rondo, Allegro scherzando
4. Bagatelle No. 1 in G major, Andante con moto cantabile e compiacevole
5. Bagatelle No. 2 in G minor, Allegro
6. Bagatelle No. 3 in E flat major, Andante cantabile e grazioso
See all 9 tracks on this disc
Disc: 2
1. Allegro con brio
2. Largo
3. Rondo, Allegro
4. Allegro moderato
5. Andante con moto
6. Rondo, Vivace
Disc: 3
1. Allegro
2. Adagio un poco moto
3. Rondo, Allegro
4. Allegro con brio
5. Adagio
6. Rondo, Molto allegro

On this CD:
  1. Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 15
    Composed by Ludwig van Beethoven
    Performed by Chicago Symphony Orchestra
    with Vladimir Ashkenazy
    Conducted by Georg Solti

  2. Bagatelles (6) for piano, Op. 126
    Composed by Ludwig van Beethoven
    with Vladimir Ashkenazy

  3. Bagatelle for piano in A minor ("Für Elise"), WoO 59
    Composed by Ludwig van Beethoven
    with Vladimir Ashkenazy

  4. Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37
    Composed by Ludwig van Beethoven
    Performed by Chicago Symphony Orchestra
    with Vladimir Ashkenazy
    Conducted by Georg Solti

  5. Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58
    Composed by Ludwig van Beethoven
    Performed by Chicago Symphony Orchestra
    with Vladimir Ashkenazy
    Conducted by Georg Solti

  6. Piano Concerto No. 5 in E flat major ("Emperor"), Op. 73
    Composed by Ludwig van Beethoven
    Performed by Chicago Symphony Orchestra
    with Vladimir Ashkenazy
    Conducted by Georg Solti

  7. Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat major, Op. 19
    Composed by Ludwig van Beethoven
    Performed by Chicago Symphony Orchestra
    with Vladimir Ashkenazy
    Conducted by Georg Solti


Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Each of these performances has its own profile. The orchestra plays incisively in the First Concerto, but Ashkenazy's plush lyricism doesn't make a good match either with the orchestra or with the music, and he makes one weird ritard in the first movement. The Second Concerto is uneventful, rather bland and pleasant. The Third Concerto seems to be the best performance of the lot, with dramatic playing by soloist and orchestra, but it's sabotaged by blurry recorded sound, the only serious problem with sound quality in the entire set. The Fourth Concerto is enlivened, at least intellectually, by Solti's approach, constantly revealing interesting unfamiliar details in the orchestral score. Ashkenazy's detachment makes this a frosty but fascinating experience. The "Emperor" is a good routine performance, nothing special. The Bagatelles aren't much of a bonus, since they're rather dully played. (Why not the "Choral" Fantasy?) There's nothing actively bad about this set, and it's reasonably priced. But Beethoven deserves better, and gets it from many performers, including the fascinating Uchida-Sanderling collaborations. --Leslie Gerber

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Customer Reviews

19 Reviews
5 star:
 (10)
4 star:
 (2)
3 star:
 (4)
2 star:
 (2)
1 star:
 (1)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.9 out of 5 stars (19 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
36 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Unsurpassed after a quarter century, September 16, 2001
By Stan Vernooy (Henderson, NV) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This recording is not only the best set of the Beethoven Piano Concertos I know of, but also represents the peak performances in the history of Georg Solti and the Chicago Symphony. For some reason, after the mid-70s, Solti increasingly emphasized power at the expense of musicality, and the sound of the orchestra became more strident and astringent.

But these performances, having all the power and excitement of the later Chicago Symphony recordings, also have warmth, love, and sweetness. Ashkenazy too was at his peak in these recordings. His later cycle, in Cleveland, lacks the bite and depth of involvement that you can find here.

If you want a capsule summary of the performance philosophy of these performances, it is easy to describe: they are unapologetically romantic. In my opinion, the Third and Fourth concertos are particularly fine. Both Ashkenazy and Solti find exactly the right combination of power and beauty in both works, and the quality of the performances is further emphasized by the gorgeous sound.

And speaking of sound, those who believe that a recording has to be DDD in order to have state-of-the-art sound need to listen to these recordings. The subsequent digital recordings of these works that I have heard are all comparatively cold and clinical.

I consider it unfortunate that in the last 25 years music has been more of an intellectual or historical exercise than an emotional experience or an appreciation of beauty. But back in the 70s when this was recorded, Solti and Ashkenazy had not been infected by those negative trends.

Looking at the individual concertos, I have a slight preference for Richter's recording of the First and the Serkin/Bernstein recording of the "Emperor" (Fifth). But if you want a complete set of outstanding performances of all five Beethoven concertos, I don't think there is another set that comes close to these.

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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Ashkenazy at his best?, August 20, 1999
As an admirer of these works I have listened to them in many versions. This set is highly recommendable and goes with Kempff/Leitner or Barenboim/Klemperer. No.1,2 and 5 are all well performed but the stars are 3 and 4. I guess that this recording of the 4th is the best I have ever heard (I must say though that I find the transfer to CD not as good as I would like it (I have it on LP)). In all the recordings of the Beethoven concertos I have heard I can always find something that I'd like better the other way but this recording of the 4th is an exception; in my mind it's flawless in every way.
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16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A solid set, the 4th stands out, November 3, 1999
By A Customer
I agree with the other reviewer who stated the slow movement of the Fourth Piano Concerto is well worth the price of the whole set. In fact, the last note of the slow movement of the Fourth is worth the price of the set! The Chicago Symphony Orchestra brings a wonderfully full sound that brings out the very best in Beethoven. Ashkenazy does great justice to these concertos.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars Above Average Performances Ruined by Poor Sonics
As an admirer of both pianist and conductor, I purchased this inexpensive set with high hopes. Ashkenazy's passionately involving cycle of Beethoven sonatas and Solti's... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Johannes Climacus

5.0 out of 5 stars A perfect gem!
This CD set is a digital re-mastering of the original "Stereophonic" London recordings from 1973. The sound is crisp and clear, and enhances the masterful technique of Vladimir... Read more
Published 21 months ago by Eric Erwin

4.0 out of 5 stars beethoven piano concerti
the article was in good condition and i had a smooth and prompt delivary
Published on May 6, 2007 by Mahmoud S. Okasha

3.0 out of 5 stars wished it was not a set
All I can comment right now, is the performance of the Beethoven piano concerto 1 with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra was poor. Read more
Published on October 26, 2006 by Disway

4.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful set!
Ashkenazy is more sweet in his playing than profound, Solti and the CSO are on fire, and the Decca sound is excellent! Good job!
Published on May 2, 2005 by Ryan Kouroukis

3.0 out of 5 stars What is Ashkenazy up to?
After purchasing Ashkenazy's complete set of the Mozart concertos, I decided to get this one of the Beethoven concertos. Read more
Published on May 15, 2004 by Prescott Cunningham Moore

3.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful, but not perfect
This is a good set of the piano concertos. However, the main problem is in the Fifth (Emperor): the second movement is extremely slow and faltering. Read more
Published on February 15, 2004

1.0 out of 5 stars OK performances, TERRIBLE sound
Having enjoyed Ashkenazy's recordings of the Beethoven piano sonatas, I decided to give this set a try. Read more
Published on January 20, 2004 by W. Hill

3.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful, not perfect
This is a good set of the piano concertos. However, the main problem is in the Fifth (Emperor): the second movement is extremely slow and faltering. Read more
Published on February 22, 2003

2.0 out of 5 stars Hard to do worse
This is one of the worst collaborations out there, and I can't recommend it even at a bargain price. Read more
Published on December 5, 2002 by John Grabowski

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