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Monthly Archive: May 2008

BEETHOVEN: Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37; Piano Sonata No. 23 in F Minor, Op. 57 “Appassionata”; Piano Sonata No. 28 in A Major, Op. 101 – Friedrich Gulda, piano/Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra/Mario Rossi – MediciArts

by | May 15, 2008 | Classical Reissue Reviews

BEETHOVEN: Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37; Piano Sonata No. 23 in F Minor, Op. 57 “Appassionata”; Piano Sonata No. 28 in A Major, Op. 101 – Friedrich Gulda, piano/Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra/Mario Rossi MediciArts MM024-2,  75:33  (www.mediciarts.co.uk / Dist. by Naxos) ****: Friedrich Gulda (1930-2000) appears in 1957 performances of Beethoven, the C Minor Concerto (25 February 1957) assisted by Mario Rossi (1902-1992), long associated with RAI orchestras in Milan and Rome.  As one who had inscribed the complete 32 sonatas of Beethoven, Gulda early aligned himself with the structuralist tradition of Wilhelm Kempff, albeit that Gulda’s sense of form could be tempered by tonal warmth. The articulation throughout the concerto remains clean and vigorous, the trills hard and lean in the manner of Serkin. What might prove intriguing to collectors is the salon scale of performance, the blatant desire for intimacy in the midst of one of Beethoven’s most dramatic expressions. The first movement cadenza becomes virile and animated, quite potent as a vehicle of Gulda’s streamlined finesse.  Linear restraint marks the E Major Largo movement, which moves rather briskly despite its many changes of mood and meditative runs. The Cologne principal flute earns his […]

BRAHMS: Symphony No. 3 in F Major, Op. 90; Tragic Overture in D Minor, Op. 81 – Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra/William Steinberg – HDTT (CD-R)

by | May 12, 2008 | Classical Reissue Reviews

BRAHMS: Symphony No. 3 in F Major, Op. 90; Tragic Overture in D Minor, Op. 81 – Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra/William Steinberg HDTT HDCD142 (CD-R),  47:22 ***: Taken from 1961 4-track tapes from the Command Classics label, the Brahms Third under William Steinberg certainly qualifies as among the most bucolic of readings – all interior lines, the woodwinds and French horns having taken the upbeat to the ambivalent F Major/F Minor motif and run with it in lush colors displayed in excellent sonics. Not having obeyed the first movement repeat, Steinberg moves the opening Allegro con brio into flute and viola riffs with smooth elegance, the phrases tripping to the cello and oboe motif over resonant pizzicati. Sizzling attacks in the second violins for the counter-theme to the last repetition of the free-but-lonely motto, which then sails away into the melancholy, blue ether. The Andante begins as a darkly colored wind serenade, the Pittsburgh viola and French horn mellow luxury. The aerial main theme bursts forth singing its autumnal paean briefly, only to muse thoughtfully on loss and reminiscence.  The woodwind sequences evolve into the strings’ haunted lament, Steinberg’s allowing the passions full sway until the four-note “fate” motif. The sonata-form […]