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

author: Steven Isserlis asin: 0571206166 binding: Paperback list price: $7.62 USD amazon price: $7.62 USD

Why did Bach's son call him 'The Old Wig'?What part did Stravinsky's parrot play at dinner parties?How did Mozart keep his pigtails styled?What did Schumann invent to make his fingers stronger?And why did Beethoven throw his stew?This book is a unique introduction for children to the world of classical composers and their music.Famous cellist Steven Isserlis brings six of his favorite composers to life in an irresistible manner, painting hilarious biographical portraits of each of them and describing their music in lively detail. Packed with facts, dates, anecdotes and illustrations, Why Beethoven Threw the Stew is an attractive and accessible read for children (and their parents!).

author: Beethoven asin: B000LRYPP8 binding: Digital list price: $5.95 USD amazon price: $5.95 USD

Downloadable sheet music file

asin: B00004T92Y binding: Audio CD list price: $31.98 USD amazon price: $31.98 USD

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