5 Pno Ctos [Box set, Import]

This set of performances has been in my CD collection for decades and I have loved them from the start. Since then I have added other fine performances by other respected world-class pianists but none of them have surpassed Kempff's achievement here.

Kempff was famed for his absolute clarity of articulation and his subtlety of touch. His approach was very classical and this variety of touch giving variety to his phrasing was never at the expense of maintaining a tight rhythmical control. Furthermore he never exceeded the tonal limitations of the piano so there are no examples of undue heaviness, twanging strings or thumping foot pedals.

One consistent oddity to his Beethoven concertos and sonatas was a tendency to play the slow movements at a slightly faster tempo than was usual thus creating a forward sense of flow. The outer movements were often slightly steadier than was usual so, coupled with his rhythmic control and light touch, these movements dance more joyfully than usual. I have always been convinced by this readjustment of tempo balance within works.

All of this is to be found in abundance in these readings, both in the concertos and in the sonata.

The orchestral balance is more perfect than is often the case. Every one of the woodwind's crucial dialogue phrases with the piano and with each other are clearly audible as are the string's rhythmical accompanying chords etc. This perfect blend is due to a combination of faithful recording balance, good conducting and sensitive pianism.

The sonata recording is drier and for that reason I have always preferred the sound of his earlier mono set. Nevertheless the performance still remains as outstanding as the concertos although it will be for the concertos that this box set will most likely be bought.

I have always found these discs to be a joy from start to finish. To paraphrase The Gramophone from years ago I would suggest that to hear Kempff playing Beethoven is like listening to Beethoven speaking to us directly without an intermediary. Kempff playing Beethoven was a very special talent and we are lucky to have such fine recordings of it. I would suggest that this set should therefore warrant serious consideration from all lovers of Beethoven's piano concertos and collectors of fine piano playing. There are others though who prefer the set with van Kempen conducting so I would suggest trying to listen to both sets first before choosing.

To me there is not much excitment in this cycle. The orchestra gives a bland reading throughout, no thanks to Leitner.

I don't know why the Berlin Phil is not on fire on this one! Kempff meanwhile excersices full genius of his powers, so on Kempff's side I give 5 stars, but the orcestra I give 2 stars. This is the best Kempff I've heard, 10 times better than his playing of the same concertos with Van Kempen in the '50's.

But the thing is, the Berlin Phil. with Van Kempen is totally inspired and on fire! The best orchestral playing of ANY Beethoven concerto cycle on record in the history of the grammphone! It's a toss up between the two Kempff cycles. You just gotta ask what you're looking for overall. My end answer lies in the fact that I own the Van Kempen set and not the Leitner set.

I had allready owned Kempff"s {theres a mouthful)set in Mono and the 4th and 5th with Leitner so I decided to get this set adding only the first second @ third to my collection. I was very disappointed @ if I could I would have returned it.The sound is not great nor are the performances of 1@2.That said I must say that my older CD of the 4th is one of my favorites. So get the 4th @ 5th and pass on this set.