Ludwig van Beethoven

“They are virtuoso works, and Ronald Brautigam, who tends to favour quick tempos, plays them in genuine virtuoso style, but without ever failing to bring out the music's more expressive moments...A must for those interested in the byways of Beethoven's keyboard music.” BBC Music Magazine, June 2012 *****

“Brautigam's interpretations are stunning. He brings stylish character and life to each of the small variation sets and never misses a trick, so to speak...What breathtaking elan and point Brautigam brings to the flashy scales and biting trills throughout the [Salieri] Variations...He also gives one of the finest recorded performances of the Eroica Variations...Raise a glass to this terrific disc.” Gramophone Magazine, July 2012

“BIS’s SACD sonics are superb, and with the usual accessible and informative booklet notes by Roeland Hazendonk this is something of a highlight even of Brautigam’s brilliant Beethoven.” MusicWeb International, May 2012

“the performance has [Eschenbach's] trademark fondness for sonic beauty. Surprisingly, for a conductor often associated with slowish speeds, it's also uptempo and volatile. There's real elation in the outer sections of Gloria and Credo and the Agnus Dei...There's fire and commitment in the choral singing and playing, and apart from Annette Jahns's occasionally plummy alto, the soloists are superb.” The Guardian, 12th April 2012 ****

“This may not be the finest performance of Beethoven's most forbidding work on disc, but it certainly ranks with the best...Eschenbach is his own man. In his hands, the work is more questioning than devout, though it has passages of unbridled jubilation...The London Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir are on top form...And the soloists - not all familiar names - make a great team.” BBC Music Magazine, June 2012 ****

“Eschenbach scores with the finely shaped phrasing of his violas and cellos in the introduction to the 'Gratias agimus' and the delicate woodwind entry lead-in to 'Qui tollis'” Gramophone Magazine, August 2012

“Eschenbach delivers some old school Beethoven here...Eschenbach has a long-standing relationship with the LPO. The orchestra is able to deliver exactly what he asks of them. He likes big, round sounds from the strings and woodwinds, which is exactly what the players produce...It's good, but I suspect the live experience was more fulfilling. Read more: http://www.musicweb-” MusicWeb International, July 2012

“Right from the opening notes of the Missa Solemnis it is clear that this is to be a reading of weight and moment, but the slow tempi that Barenboim chooses for most of the time seldom work in its favour...Barenboim’s dramatic gifts, so evident from his work in the opera house, come to the fore in [the Verdi] and he paces it with much more agility, moving dynamically from section to section and never dragging.” MusicWeb International, August 2012