Ludwig van Beethoven

The public image of Friedrich Gulda (1930-2000) is divided: for some, he is one of the most important Beethoven interpreters of the 20th century, whereas others perceive him as an enfant terrible whose battle against the cultural establishment and the constraints of the music business, which limited his multifaceted artistic interests and talents, became legendary.As ever, such generalisations are both true and false. This compilation of hitherto unreleased recordings made by Gulda for the RIAS Berlin between 1950 and 1959 enables us to experience the pianist and musician Gulda in a more differentiated and unprejudiced manner. For even here, the 'complete musician' - as Gulda saw himself throughout his career - comes into view.The spectrum of recordings which, given the almost frightening concert and recording activities Gulda tackled during this decade, only represents the tip of the iceberg, speaks for itself: it stretches from Mozart to Prokofiev and shows Gulda to be a universal artist who, from the beginning, sought to combine the highest possible degree of objectivity and authenticity with the greatest intensity of music-making. Gulda's musical and pianistic foundations had been laid in Vienna by his teacher Bruno Seidlhofer, who had formed nearly all the important pianists of the 'Viennese School'; the quality of Gulda's training was confirmed by his being awarded the first prize at the Geneva Piano Competition in 1946 which Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli had won before him. Gulda looked for role models who displayed a spontaneous and at the same time controlled intensity in their playing, and he found them in American Jazz, whose inexorable rise in post-war Europe was to fascinate him throughout his career. The early Mozart and Beethoven recordings, made in 1950, demonstrate Gulda's phenomenal analytical understanding of compositional structures and his unerring sense of rhythm and touch. His Chopin and Ravel recordings are sensational: on the highest pianistic level, Chopin's Prélude Op. 28 and Ravel's Gaspard de la Nuit are presented in a rare, incisive manner on both a musical and dramatic level.With his interpretation of two important early works by Debussy, the Suite pour le Piano and the Suite bergamasque, as well as a selection of the Préludes, Gulda also proves to be one of the few non-French pianists who found a decidedly modern and yet authentic access to these masterworks.The programme closes with single pieces by Chopin (Nocturne in C minor,Op. 48 No. 1 and Berceuse Op. 60), demonstrating Gulda's intensive exploration of romantic works, as well as a spectacular recording of Prokofiev's Piano Sonata No. 7 Op. 83, made in 1950. Prokofiev's music, whose wildness in the end proved incompatible with Gulda, did not remain in his repertoire for long; he did, however, pass on important impulses to his most famous pupil, Martha Argerich.

CD+bonus DVD Journey into the Hammerklavier.

Subtitles, Fr & Eng

Format: NTSC

Total time: 51'40

A documentary directed by Jean Frederic Neuburger and François-René Martin

The London Chamber Orchestra, the UK's oldest chamber orchestra, has nurtured the new and paid homage to the traditional for 88 years. For 22 years, as Principal Conductor and Music Director, Christopher Warren-Green has brought together the inspirational musicians and repertoire for which LCO is renowned. The remarkable acoustic and intimate ambience of St. John's, Smith Square, its London home, enable LCO, the only chamber orchestra resident in London, to give vibrant performances and establish a close rapport with its audiences.The recordings on the LCO Live label, in partnership with Signum Classics, are the result of this happy marriage of orchestra and venue.

Christopher Warren-Green, LCO Music Director & Principal Conductor is a highly experienced musician and one of the UK's most engaging conductors who recently featured in BBC TV's Maestro.

"…everyone on stage seems to be having a whale of a time and this feeds into a performance in which the music sounds new-minted" The Guardian

"pristine pianism of Tan with exquisite articulation and colouring" Glasgow Herald (on Melvyn Tan)

Chandos is proud to present the complete series of Beethoven String Quartets performed by the legendary Borodin String Quartet.

The quartets which contain some the greatest, most enigmatic music ever written, are in the capable hands of one of the world’s finest ensembles.

The Borodin String Quartet was formed in 1945 in Moscow. Cellist Valentin Berlinsky was with the quartet since its earliest days and violinist Andrei Abramenkov joined in 1974. Igor Naidin learnt the art of quartet playing from several of the Borodins including the Quartet’s violinist, Dmitri Shebalin, whom he eventually replaced. Leader Ruben Aharonian won prizes at several international competitions, including the Enescu, Montréal and Tchaikovsky. These artists provide a unique insight to these works.

The individual volumes were highly acclaimed by the critics and this praised series is now released as a complete box set, at a competitive price and in attractive packaging.

“Biret grasps the size of Beethoven’s style. The polyphony is laid out in a relaxed way with little indulgence in point making. She keeps the big line and yet is thankfully sparing in her use of fortissimos. The piano tone is sumptuous. Biret’s gentle and almost sensuous sonorities are really captivating. One is reminded that her mentor has been Wilhelm Kempff.” Gramophone

“Idil Biret gives an impressive performance. A supreme mastery of tempi, sonorities, polyphony and technique permits Biret – a disciple of Alfred Cortot – to embrace all the moods of Beethoven and gives her playing a symphonic depth rarely heard until now.” Le Nouvel Observateur

Performed on period instruments.