Beethoven Piano Your resource for the piano music of Ludwig van Beethoven

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VAI 4388 Mozart: Sonata No. 7 in A minor, K.310, Beethoven: Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111. Bonus: Arrau interview. Telecast of March 5, 1964, 60 min., B&W, All regions.

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The great Russian pianist recorded these concertos again later in his career, with George Szell and the incomparable Cleveland Orchestra for EMI. Those recordings are also available on CD. However, the critical consensus seems to be that Emil Gilels was in better form here, even if Ludwig was no Szell and the Philharmonia can't match the Clevelanders in precision or collective virtuosity. Mind you, there's nothing at all wrong with the conducting or the playing--it's quite fine--but it's Gilels who carries the day. He was one of those artists with technique to burn, but who placed it firmly in the service of the most classically severe music he could find. The result is a particularly combustible blend of passion and intellect, particularly in evidence here. -- David Hurwitz

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Along with Marston's invaluable reissue of Arrau's early studio recordings, these radio broadcasts from the late 1930s add to our knowledge of one of the century's greats. The younger Arrau was a more overtly virtuosic pianist than the later, more philosophical one on his Philips recordings, but the seriousness of his interpretive approach shines through. The Beethoven sonatas, for example, are weightier in his later recordings, but we can still revel in his unique depth of tone and refusal to settle for surface glitter, a rare trait in a virtuoso of Arrau's technical accomplishments. His Chopin, too, while still in the Germanic tradition, has more air and lightness. The Liszt solo pieces are played with transcendent beauty. He makes light of the Liszt Concerto's difficulties, but it's roughly recorded and doesn't match his mid-1950s version with Eugene Ormandy on Sony. Despite some noisy originals, most tracks have surprisingly fresh and vital sound. An important release. --Dan Davis

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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