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

asin: B00030B9DE binding: Audio CD list price: $8.99 USD amazon price: $8.99 USD

Franz Liszt was one of Beethoven's greatest champions and admirers, and his acclaimed transcriptions of the master's nine symphonies stand as testament to the greatness of both men. Through many revisions, Liszt's intrinsic attention to detail and intimate understanding of Beethoven's compositions resulted in these transcriptions, which are considered some of Liszt's greatest musical achievements. The transcription recorded here is perhaps Beethoven's most well-known work, his Symphony No. 9. The performance is by none other than the legendary Konstantin Scherbakov, who has been hailed as the modern Rachmaninov since he won the first Rachmaninov competition in Moscow in 1983.

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As a preteen, Kissin had a technique most pianists would envy. His solo recordings since have revealed a predilection for Schumann's music, each showing signs of greater interpretive maturity. Now, he uses a combination of great abandon and even greater control to produce a stunning performance of Kreisleriana. The piece is one of the last of Schumann's quixotically titled piano works consisting of generously scaled, poetic movements (eight, in this case) in which technical prowess is absolutely necessary in order to clarify the textures but hardly sufficient to deliver the full expressiveness of this lovely music. Busoni's virtuosic Bach transcription is played with great imagination, and Beethoven's delightful Op. 129 is as wittily performed as it is written. --Paul Turok

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If the "Hammerklavier" Sonata (No. 29), perhaps the most profound work ever written for the piano, were not on this disc, one would dwell on the singular charms of the rarely heard, two-movement Sonata No. 27 or the astonishing rightness of Solomon's interpretation of the Sonata No. 26, "Les Adieux." But the "Hammerklavier" is the touchstone of any Beethoven sonata cycle, and it's the rock upon which most pianists founder. Solomon meets its challenges as well as anyone who's every recorded it. Solomon may not match Artur Schnabel's intensity, but he's far superior technically, and he comes close to Claudio Arrau's depth and Wilhelm Kempff's poetry. Solomon is unique in bringing all these attributes to bear on a piece whose mysteries can never be encompassed in one interpretation. He captures the dynamism of the opening Allegro, makes the Scherzo a witty romp, and sustains the long, 22-minute Adagio with a flowing poetry that's breathtaking. The final fugue, played with superhuman ease by Solomon, for once seems an inevitable culmination of a timeless journey. An indispensable disc. --Dan Davis