Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1 & Ballades Op. 10

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[Lewis and Harding] encapsulate the contrasting moods of defiance and lyricism without indulging in unwarranted touches of rubato or having to negotiate awkward gear changes…Lewis brings all... — BBC Music Magazine, June 2016, 5 out of 5 stars More…

Release Date: 15th Apr 2016
Catalogue No: HMC902191
Label: Harmonia Mundi
Length: 72 minutes

Presto Recording of the Week

15th April 2016
Presto Recordings of the Year

Finalist 2016

Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor, Op. 15

Work length49:27

Album only

Paul Lewis, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Daniel Harding

I. Maestoso - Poco piu moderato

Track length23:22

Album only

II. Adagio

Track length13:25

$1.60

$2.00

$3.20

III. Rondo (Allegro ma non troppo)

Track length12:40

$1.40

$1.75

$3.20

Brahms: Ballade No. 1 en Ré Mineur, Op. 10

Work length4:21

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

Paul Lewis

Brahms: Ballade No. 2 en Ré Majeur, Op. 10

Work length6:10

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

Paul Lewis

Brahms: Ballade No. 3 en Si Mineur, Op. 10 (Intermezzo)

Work length4:00

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

Paul Lewis

Ballade No. 3 en Si Mineur, Op. 10

Track length4:00

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

Brahms: Ballade No. 4 en Si Majeur, Op. 10 (Andante con moto)

Work length8:09

$1.20

$1.50

$2.40

Paul Lewis

Ballade No. 4 en Si Majeur, Op. 10

Track length8:09

$1.20

$1.50

$2.40

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Recording of the Week, Paul Lewis performs Brahms's Piano Concerto No. 1

15th April 2016

James enjoys Paul Lewis's take on Brahms's concerto, with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra under Daniel Harding.

Innovative for its time, Brahms’s Piano Concerto no.1, premiered in Hanover in 1859, took some time to become established in the repertoire. It is a work that redefined the norms of the genre: the traditional confrontation between virtuoso soloist and orchestra is bypassed in favour of a balanced treatment and a more ‘symphonic’ approach. The 'Ballades' too derive from the impetus towards a renewal of forms, characteristic of the young Brahms’s output.

Reviews

June 2016

[Lewis and Harding] encapsulate the contrasting moods of defiance and lyricism without indulging in unwarranted touches of rubato or having to negotiate awkward gear changes…Lewis brings all the requisite power to the ‘sturm and drang’ octaves and trills, but maintains flow and a wonderful feeling for inner voicing in the chorale theme…memorable

CD Review 16th April 2016

[a] wonderful combination of the statuesque and finesse, [the] recording encompasses it beautifully.

8th April 2016

His playing in Brahms’s Piano Concerto No. 1 disdains romantic heroics in favour of poise and proportion, fine judgment and the purest of trills. The risk is that he sounds aloof from the mighty battles being waged in the orchestral part, performed with romantic sweep and a lot of darkly portentous bass lines by the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Daniel Harding.

May 2016

The Swedish Radio Symphony, under Daniel Harding’s expert baton, distinguish themselves. The wind band, plangent and exquisitely blended, floats effortlessly above a string choir of almost embarrassing luxuriousness…Lewis is pervasively lyrical in the concerto [and] the beauty of his sound is evident throughout…for a Brahms D minor Concerto of manifold beauties this account could scarcely be bettered

June 2016

It’s thrillingly played, excitingly conducted and full of both power and beauty, making it the best Brahms 1 we’ve had since Zimmerman and Rattle in Berlin (review), as well as Lewis’ best disc for a while, too.

15th April 2016

Harding has opted for an intensely dramatic reading of this piece, with plenty of Sturm und Drang on offer...the way Lewis gently but assertively glides in, almost as if he has actually been playing all along but it's only now that he has decided to make us aware of his presence, is a great moment, and sets the tone for his entire performance...As in the concerto, the range of colours that Lewis offers us in the Four Ballades is quite something.

10th April 2016

Lewis’s richly evocative account of the early Ballades shows that, at 21, Brahms was already himself. So he was (despite its protracted birth pangs) in the marvellous concerto. Lewis is equal to its challenges ... the captivating F major passage, after the fugato, is a delight, and the Swedish woodwind play expressively for Harding.

7th April 2016

His account has clarity, muscle and steely pride, but also intimacy, vulnerability and volatility: the combination is magnetic. Conductor Daniel Harding goes for full-out symphonic bulk from the start and his Swedish orchestra sounds hearty and brooding – fuzzier-edged than Lewis’s metallic attack, but generally the partnership works.

18th April 2016

The sound is big, wholesome, thrilling, even appropriately terrifying...Lewis’ approach is always integral, powerful yet unpretentious. He evokes every nuance of expression contained in this all-embracing concerto...Brahms’ four Ballads, Op. 10, form a beautiful counterbalance, Lewis evoking their essential sensuousness and beauty.

16th April 2016

Lewis shows himself thoroughly prepared for the power, the emotional turmoil and the radical vision that Brahms unleashed in his First Concerto … Lewis too enjoys a productive partnership with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted with passion and intensity by Daniel Harding.

The Classical Reviewer 8th May 2016

This pianist’s light fluent touch is a delight, as is the orchestra’s often fleet playing … Paul Lewis’ innate musicianship always shines through in this beautifully thought out performance, impressive in its restrained power … This is a formidable Brahms disc from Lewis.

Classical Ear 4th May 2016

Harding doesn’t hesitate, unequivocally conducting a majestically broad, imperiously thrusting but malleable exposition, its end quietly tapered for Paul Lewis’s poetic entrance...Here is mutually crafted musicianship … [with] Lewis’s insightful interpretations of the multi-faceted beauties that are the Ballads closing the disc.

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Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1 & Ballades Op. 10

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Recording of the Week, Paul Lewis performs Brahms's Piano Concerto No. 1

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