Customer Reviews

Complete Piano Sonatas

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Nous parlons ici de l'oeuvre d'un Génie mais aussi d'une interprétation d'un autre Génie... Alfred Brendel ! Autant dans la précision, le choix des tempis sans oublier la haute qualité d'enregistrement... tout est ici magnifique ! Beethoven Lui-Même aurait été des plus fier de cette manière de rendre sa musique pour piano ! Il y en a d'autres belles interprétations, mais aucune n'égale en perfection et en finesse celle de Brendel ! S'il est vrai de dire qu'il y a eu qu'un Beethoven, il est tout aussi vrai de dire qu'il n'y a qu'un... pianiste comme Brendel pour rendre si bien la musiuqe pour piano de ce Grand Compositeur !

Un coffret que je vais écouter et ré-écouter toute ma vie. Impossible de s'en lasser tant le jeu de Brendel est vivant et vibrant ! A apporter sur son île déserte

Michel

Now, Alfred Brendel is the best interpreter of Beethoven's Piano Sonatas alive, his 1990s cycle is the best one compare with his Vox cycle and the first Phillips Cycle (Recorded in 1970s). I like this recordings very much

Alfred Brendel has diligently worked his entire life striving for a perfect understanding of the great 32 sonatas of Beethoven. I believe he has reached this point. Within this amazing box set is the most sensitive and acurate playing I have ever heard. I agree with a former reviewer about the incredible playing of the "pastoral" sonata. This sonata has always been my favourite of the "gentle" sonatas of Beethoven. But, upon hearing Brendels rendition.... I was simply astounded. This is not to say that this is the only gem in the collection... there are 32 wonderful renditions (plus that wonderful andante!) each one stands head and shoulders above any other I have heard. If you want to hear what I believe is the most acurate playing of Beethoven, get this now. It will never dissapoint, and will provide a lifetime of enjoyment. Loving congradulations to Beethoven and Brendel!

Esta gran realización pianistica, ES UNA MAS de las tantas obras en que Alfred Brendel deja de manifiesto que existe el verdadero equilibrio entre la perfección y la sensibilidad iterpretativa. Al analizar técnicamente cada una de las Sonatas, se aprecia la maravilla de sus Apoyaturas, Tiempos, Ritenutos, Fortes, Piannisimos, y otros componentes propios de la estructura musical, que hacen concluir, SIN LUGAR A DUDA, que Alfred Brendel INTERNALIZA Y COMPRENDE a Ludwing Van Beethoven en su grado más profundo, tanto en su Humanidad, como en el verdadero objetivo de dejar un Legado a las generaciones venideras. Se logra finalmente una verdadera interpretación que cumple fielmente con el concepto: "audicionar a Ludwing Van Beethoven a través de Alfred Brendel"

Brendel is not the flashiest of pianists: generally, he eschews bombast. There are those who will prefer a greater sense of physical excitement, especially in movements like the finale of the Hammerklavier Sonata (Op. 106). But there is never any exaggeration, or excessive underlining of points: one gets the feeling listening to these that there is no-one standing between yourself and the music.

The piano sound is, generally, very successfully captured, and Brendel's tone and clarity of line are exquisite. He gives the early sonatas their proper weight (listen, for instance, to the tragic intensity of the slow movement of Op. 10 No. 3); gives an absolutely sensational performance of - amongst others - the Pastoral Sonata (Op. 28); and as for those visionary late sonatas... there are several great recordings of these, but none more satisfying than these.

The liner notes, incidentally, are by the distinguished Beethoven scholar William Kinderman, and are excellent. If I were forced to live with only one item from my CD collection, this box would be it.

I have never heard anything like Alfred Brendel's recording. It is absolutely the best Beethoven I have ever heard. Alfred Brendel is the best Beethoven interpreter in the world and this is the definitive recording. The slow movements, in particular, are interpreted beyond comparison. I've heard Barenboim, Schnabel, Ashkenazy, and many others, but none compare to the supreme beauty and passion that Brendel puts into his interpretation. The fact that they're digital makes it all the more worthwhile to buy this glorious cycle. Don't be daunted by the price, believe me, it will be among the very best, if not the best purchace of a recording you will ever make.

This collection is one of the finest possessions that any lover of music--classical or otherwise-- could possibly own. Alfred Brendel's interpretation of Beethoven's serious, probing piano works is in my opinion among the greatest interpretive achievements of the 20th century, and these recordings capture Brendel's performance in a luminous, ambient sonic wonderland that I find all but overwhelming. You will be drawn into a poetic and reflective space that will astound, enchant, and disturb you... consider Brendel's statement about the slow movement of the Moonlight Sonata, hideously sentimentalized by most artists: in Brendel's words, it's "a mystic realm of awe and shuddering." Think about this, and listen to Brendel's interpretation, and you'll have a great start on this rich, deep, expansive collection of total artistry. Avoiding bombast, Brendel lays bare the incredible architecture that underlies Beethoven's work, and in so doing Brendel fully unleashes Beethoven's artistic and emotional power, a world of musical romance and argumentation that begins to speak to you with an eloquence ranging far beyond the complexities of speech. With Brendel as your guide, you are ushered into a world in which you fully perceive Beethoven's creative genius; before you opens a world of depth and insight and enchantment and meaning. This recording belongs in the library of any serious lover of classical music--and indeed, of any person who believes that music and its performance speak with eloquence of something that is inexpressably deep and meaningful about human existence, something that only music can fully describe. It's very hard to put into words... just listen. A final note: the overwhelming power of this collection isn't a mere matter of sonic trickery; four of the performances are live performances selected by Brendel himself as superior to the studio recordings, despite the live performances' inferior acoustics; believe me, you won't care. (The audiences are very quiet, which doesn't surprise me; undoubtedly, they were drawn into Brendel's performances to the point of reverence.) Every one of the performances in this collection draws you into a world in which every single note penned by Beethoven matters deeply, and Brendel's artistry is such that, somehow, you understand why.

Alfred Brendel is a master musician. He has a lifetime of experience with these works in the concert hall and on recordings. This latest set is all digital and includes the highest quality studio recording techniques except for a couple live ones chosen by Brendel as being "better" to him. But the differences seem indistinguishable to me, if that matters. The interpretations of these sonatas can be intellectual or romantic and different players have given us versions that reflect this. But when you just want to sit and listen to Beethoven, sounding as if you were in the room with the composer himself, come here.

Since there is no end to the number of Alfred Brendel CDs being released by Philips it's a pity his first cycle of Beethoven's piano sonatas on that label is not available in the United States. Certainly Brendel's insights into this music have deepened over the years, and it's good to have these essential works played by a master interpreter in digital sound. Yet I get the feeling I should have been collecting the discs in this set as they came out individually. I would not have been as thrilled with the disc containing Op. 10 Nos. 1-3, especially my favorite, No. 2, which was recorded live. In fact, I rather dislike the mixing of live recordings with studio recordings. I know that every time Brendel touches the keys we want to hear him, but all the audience noises, including the applause before and after the performances make me wonder if the particular version selected for release is really all that superior to one Brendel would have made in the studio. So it is with the "Hammerklavier." Critics seem to agree this is one of the all-time best accounts, but when I hear it I find myself wishing I had been there in the audience-- a strange distraction, but a distraction nevertheless. Furthermore, a certain clanky quality has entered Brendel's playing in the last movements of the "Moonlight" and "Appassionata." Brendel has never had the most beautiful touch-- at times I am reminded of someone chopping wood-- but his playing in the 1970s set has a sweeter tone. Too polite or pretty for some, I imagine, but still my own personal preference. All in all, though, this is a box full of stunning moments-- my own favorite being Op. 31 No. 1 and the very first sonata, Op. 2 No. 1. It also would be nice if Philips kept the individual discs in print for those who don't wish to invest in the entire box.

Brendel plays the Beethoven sonatas with a great deal of care and gives thoughtful performances across the board. Everything sounds meticulously planned, down to the last trill. Brendel's technique is occasionally pushed to the limit but generally holds up quite well.

The real problem is that these begin to sound like cookie-cutter interpretations after a while. For more engaging performances, try Sviatoslav Richter (especially the "Richter in Leipzig" CD) or Artur Schnabel. In terms of more recent recordings, Maurizio Pollini takes a relatively straight interpretive approach but does a better job of bringing the music to life than Brendel does here.