Alban Berg: Violin Concerto "To the Memory of an Angel" (1935) / Wolfgang Rihm: "Time Chant" Music for Violin & Orchestra (1991-92) - Anne-Sophie Mutter

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com essential recording
Berg's Violin Concerto (1935) is considered by many the most accessible and emotionally engaging piece of music in the atonal idiom. His last completed work, the concerto was written as a memorial "to an angel" upon the premature death of Alma Mahler's daughter Manon Gropius. But as with all of Berg's oeuvre, an autobiography of the composer's inner life is also thoroughly woven into the score. From the deeply reflective nuances of its quiet opening, Anne-Sophie Mutter takes the listener into the heart of Berg's ambiguous lyricism. There's a keen grasp, both by soloist and conductor James Levine, of the work's intricate structure and progression, but never at the price of a coldly disengaged intellectualism. Mutter summons a marvelous array of shadings and colors, effecting a truly haunting impression as tonality makes its ghostlike apparition, first in the guise of a folk song and, in the final part--following a violent cataclysm rendered with fiery power--in the variations on a quote from a chorale by Bach. Throughout, Mutter's intuitive realization of the psychic journey traced by Berg reveals the work's significance as closer in spirit to a requiem of farewell than a traditional concerto.

Mutter's command of an animated tone that pulsates with expressive purpose inspired the contemporary German composer Wolfgang Rihm to write the other work on this disc, Gesungene Zeit ("Time Chant"). It's a mesmerizing neoexpressionist poem of shimmering, elongated string lines--later punctuated with dire eruptions from full orchestra--that seem to form an ether over which the soloist floats. Any sense of time measured in bars becomes negated as Mutter intones Siren-like threads of sound in the highest register. As with the Penderecki Violin Concerto No. 2 and other contemporary works she champions, Mutter plays with a gripping immediacy that indeed makes Rihm's imaginative novelty seem tailor-made for her. --Thomas May

Tracks:

Andante - Allegretto - Henryk Szeryng
Allegro, Ma Sempre Rubato, Frei Wie Eine Kadenz - Adagio - Henryk Szeryng
Andante - Alfred Brendel
Molto Allegro - Alfred Brendel
Adagio - Alfred Brendel
Giocoso - Alfred Brendel
Poco Allegro - Zvi Zeitlin
Andante Grazioso - Zvi Zeitlin
Finale. Allegro - Zvi Zeitlin

Customer Reviews:

A must have for the classical music fan..........2007-01-07

...especially given the price...the recordings are well done and the performances are excellent...Schoenberg's a bit hard to swallow but he's probably analagous to spinach -- a little bit now and then is good for you.

A historic CD.......2006-09-11

This CD is containing the three most important concertos of the "Second Vienna School" founded by Schoenberg in the first half of the 20th Century.
The Violin Concerto by Alban Berg (1936) is certainly the best-known and the most often heard of the three. It is a remarkable synthesis of the classical harmonic style and the new twelve-tone style. It effortlessly merges quotations from Bach and Austrian tunes with the basically atonal structure into a beautiful and moving piece (a noble swan song indeed).
The Schoenberg concertos are more difficult. Let us start with the Violin Concerto (1936) which is very seldom played and has a reputation of being abstract and inaccessible. If you do not yet know it, just listen to it a few times. The first time it may appear to be not much more than interesting noise. The second time you may catch one or two striking phrases or even melodies. The third and forth time the interesting phrases become more and more numerous and you start thinking that the piece may not be so bad at all. The fifth time you catch the structure, the melodies and harmonies, and the noise is gone. Wonderful music has remained.
The same procedure applies to the Piano Concerto (1942), only that it is easier. Don't worry about twelve-tone music and atonality, just try listen to it as a normal piece of classical music.
You will find that all three concertos are very fine pieces, basically in the romantic tradition, not much more difficult than, say, Mahler. The problem with "modern" music (the concertos have been written more than 60 years ago!) is that they are rarely played and (as all music) can be appreciated only after repeated listening. This is why this CD is so important.
In fact, I already have the early vinyl recordings of the Piano Concerto by Glenn Gould, and of the Berg and Schoenberg Violin Concerto by Louis Krasner, who was the first to overcome the tremendous difficulties of the latter (Jascha Heifetz had returned the piece as unplayable!).
The violinists of the present record (Henryk Szeryng and Zvi Zeitlin) are very fine musicians. The pianist, Alfred Brendel, lives up to his reputation as a poetic performer of romantic music, from Schubert to Liszt. Listening to their play, you will forget about virtuosity and hear only music of exquisite beauty.
The orchestral colours are essential to this music. Rafael Kubelik is an inspiring conductor of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra.
This record is unique.

Helmut Moritz, Graz (Austria)

Best buy.......2005-10-21

Not much to add here. It is very good that Universal keeps this one in stock, even if the commercial potential is not the greatest. You get immense value for money here:
Szeryng under Kubelik plays the Berg concerto just as nicely as Perlman under Ozawa.
I have never heard another recording of the piano concerto (Schnberg), so here I have no idea if there are better recordings out there.
The symphonic style of the Schoenberg violin concerto is very well served by Kubelik's baton. If this action-filled, but highly organized, music gives you trouble - so it did for me about ten years ago - don't give up, because it becomes very exciting and will never let you down when you finally arrives to appreciate it.

A Great Reissue at a Great Price!.......2005-01-31

This is a very nice disc--a reissue from the '70s--and as a bonus, it's at a great price.

The Berg Concerto is great, and almost too popular: it's available in several performances.

The Schoenberg Piano Concerto is also available in serveral realizations (e.g., Uchida; Brendel; Gould--Gould is the best!). It's one of the unpopular Schoenberg's most "popular" works because, though 12-tone in form, the row used is ambigously tonal, so it's not too scary to weak ears and minds.

But the real star of this disc is the Schoenberg Violin Concerto. This is one of Schoenberg's most virtuosic pieces: it's stunningly well orchestrated, and the violin cadenzas are spectacular. It's a 12-tone piece, but makes no consessions to older tonalities. This is such a great piece that I often wonder why some of the great violinists of our time don't play it: Perlman, for example; or Mutter--who plays the heck out of the Berg Concerto. I don't know why they don't play it: too difficult perhaps, for Schoenberg aptly remarked that the soloist should have a sixth finger on his/her left hand to realize the piece!

Perfect Pieces For The Twelve-Tone Beginner.......2004-04-09

While I have not yet decided how I feel about twelve-tone music in general (some of it I like, and some (i.e. Webern and Boulez) I don't know if I'll ever understand), I LOVE the music on this CD. Berg's Violin Concerto is relatively "easy" to listen to (for a twelve-tone piece, that is) and is absolutely beautiful. It hovers on the edges of conventional tonality and features music of incredible intensity and loveliness. For this reason, it is, I think, a good place for the "twelve-tone beginner" to start listening to music of the twentieth century. Schoenberg's pieces on this CD are less accessible, but are also masterpieces. The piano concerto, in particular, is a remarkable work, and is well worth the repeated listening necessary to understand and appreciate it. Again, this is not easy music, but is music that will reward careful and concentrated listening.

Steinway Legends: Grand Edition/Various (Box)

Average customer rating:

What results do you get when you mix Decca, Philips, Deutsche Grammophone, and Steinway????.....I'd call them GRAND!!
Steinway Ledgends

Steinway Legends: Grand Edition/Various (Box)

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000ICLSWO
Release Date: 2006-10-24

Tracks:

Sonata for Piano no 17 in D minor, Op. 31 no 2 "Tempest" by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performer: Hélène Grimaud (Piano)
Andante spianato et Grand polonaise brillante in E flat major, Op. 22 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Yundi Li (Piano)
Hungarian Rhapsodies (19) for Piano, S 244: no 2 in C sharp minor by Franz Liszt. Performer: Lang Lang (Piano)
Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland, BWV 659 by Johann Sebastian Bach. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Valses oubliées (4) for Piano, S 215: no 1 in F sharp major by Franz Liszt. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 13 in B flat major, K 333 (315c) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Moments musicaux (6) for Piano, D 780/Op. 94: no 3 in F minor by Franz Schubert. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Consolations (6) for Piano, S 172: no 3 in D flat major, Lento placido by Franz Liszt. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Polonaise for Piano in A flat major, B 147/Op. 53 "Heroic" by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Mazurkas (4) for Piano, B 77/Op. 17: no 4 in A minor by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Scherzo for Piano no 1 in B minor, B 65/Op. 20 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Schwanengesang (Schubert), S 560: no 7, Ständchen "Leise flehen" by Franz Liszt. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Impromptu for Piano in F sharp major, S 191 "Nocturne" by Franz Liszt. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Etudes (15) de virtuosité, Op. 72 "Per aspera ad astra": no 6 in F major by Moritz Moszkowski. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Characteristic Pieces (8), Op. 36: no 6, Etincelles by Moritz Moszkowski. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Military Marches (3) for Piano 4 hands, D 733/Op. 51: no 1 in D major by Franz Schubert. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Rondo for Piano no 1 in D major, K 485 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Impromptus (4) for Piano, D 935/Op. 142: no 3 in B flat major by Franz Schubert. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Impromptus (4) for Piano, D 899/Op. 90: no 4 in A flat major by Franz Schubert. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Kreisleriana, Op. 16 by Robert Schumann. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Pieces (3) for Piano, Op. 2: no 1, Etude in C sharp minor by Alexander Scriabin. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Op. 8: no 12 in D sharp minor by Alexander Scriabin. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Preludes (13) for Piano, Op. 32: no 5 in G major, Moderato by Sergei Rachmaninov. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Preludes (13) for Piano, Op. 32: no 12 in G sharp minor, Allegro by Sergei Rachmaninov. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Lachtäubchen (Behr) "Polka de W.R." by Sergei Rachmaninov. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Sonata for Harpsichord in E major, K 380/L 23 by Domenico Scarlatti. Performer: Vladimir Horowitz (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 14 in C sharp minor, Op. 27 no 2 "Moonlight" by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performer: Claudio Arrau (Piano)
Rondo for Piano no 3 in A minor, K 511 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performer: Claudio Arrau (Piano)
Allegretto for Piano in C minor, D 915 by Franz Schubert. Performer: Claudio Arrau (Piano)
Sonata for Piano in B minor, S 178 by Franz Liszt. Performer: Claudio Arrau (Piano)
Oriental Fantasy for Piano, Op. 18 "Islamey" by Mily Balakirev. Performer: Claudio Arrau (Piano)
Impromptu for Piano no 1 in A flat major, B 110/Op. 29 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Claudio Arrau (Piano)
Impromptu for Piano no 2 in F sharp major, B 129/Op. 36 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Claudio Arrau (Piano)
Impromptu for Piano no 3 in G flat major, b 149/Op. 51 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Claudio Arrau (Piano)
Impromptu for Piano no 4 in C sharp minor, B 87/Op. 66 "Fantaisie-Impromptu" by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Claudio Arrau (Piano)
Faschingsschwank aus Wien, Op. 26 by Robert Schumann. Performer: Claudio Arrau (Piano)
Variations (15) and Fugue for Piano in E flat major, Op. 35 "Eroica" by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performer: Claudio Arrau (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 21 in C major, Op. 53 "Waldstein" by Ludwig van
Symphonic Etudes for Piano, Op. 13 by Robert Schumann. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Pétrouchka: Three movements for Piano by Igor Stravinsky. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Variations for Piano, Op. 27 by Anton von Webern. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Arabeske for Piano in C major, Op. 18 by Robert Schumann. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Berceuse for Piano in D flat major, B 154/Op. 57 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Op. 25: no 1 in A flat major by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Op. 25: no 7 in C sharp minor by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Op. 25: no 9 in G flat major by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Op. 25: no 10 in B minor by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Op. 25: no 11 in A minor by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Op. 25: no 12 in C minor by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Sonata for Piano in B minor, S 178 by Franz Liszt. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Book 2: no 9, Pour les notes répétées by Claude Debussy. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Book 2: no 10, Pour les sonorités opposées by Claude Debussy. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Book 2: no 11, Pour les arpèges composées by Claude Debussy. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Book 2: no 12, Pour les accords by Claude Debussy. Performer: Maurizio Pollini (Piano)
Sonata for 2 Pianos in D major, K 448 (375a) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Prelude for Piano in C sharp minor, B 141/Op. 45 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Scherzo for Piano no 4 in E major, B 148/Op. 54 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Mazurkas (3) for Piano, B 157/Op. 59: no 2 in A flat major by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Dumka for Piano in C minor, Op. 59 "Russian rustic scene" by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 5 in F sharp major, Op. 53 by Alexander Scriabin. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Etudes-tableaux (9) for Piano, Op. 39: no 1 in C minor by Sergei Rachmaninov. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Etudes-tableaux (9) for Piano, Op. 39: no 2 in A minor by Sergei Rachmaninov. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Etudes-tableaux (9) for Piano, Op. 39: no 5 in E flat minor by Sergei Rachmaninov. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 30 in E major, Op. 109 by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Sonata for Piano in D major, D 850/Op. 53 "Gasteiner" by Franz Schubert. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Pieces (10) for Piano from "Romeo and Juliet", Op. 75: no 10, Romeo and
Pieces (10) for Piano from "Romeo and Juliet", Op. 75: no 5, Masks by Sergei Prokofiev. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Prelude and Fugue in G sharp minor, Op. 29 by Sergei Taneyev. Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy (Piano)
Rondo for Piano no 3 in A minor, K 511 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performer: Mitsuko Uchida (Piano)
Fantasia for Piano in D minor, K 397 (385g) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performer: Mitsuko Uchida (Piano)
Impromptus (4) for Piano, D 899/Op. 90: no 4 in A flat major by Franz Schubert. Performer: Mitsuko Uchida (Piano)
Variations (32) for Piano in C minor on an Original Theme, WoO 80 by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performer: Mitsuko Uchida (Piano)
Kreisleriana, Op. 16 by Robert Schumann. Performer: Mitsuko Uchida (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Book 2: no 11, Pour les arpèges composées by Claude Debussy. Performer: Mitsuko Uchida (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Book 2: no 10, Pour les sonorités opposées by Claude Debussy. Performer: Mitsuko Uchida (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Book 2: no 9, Pour les notes répétées by Claude Debussy. Performer: Mitsuko Uchida (Piano)
Etudes (12) for Piano, Book 2: no 8, Pour les agréments by Claude Debussy. Performer: Mitsuko Uchida (Piano)
Sonata for Piano, Op. 1 by Alban Berg. Performer: Mitsuko Uchida (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 18 in D major, K 576 "Hunt" by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performer: Mitsuko Uchida (Piano)
Sonata for Piano in C major, D 840 "Reliquie" by Franz Schubert. Performer: Mitsuko Uchida (Piano)
Sonata for Harpsichord in C minor, K 11/L 352 by Domenico Scarlatti. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Sonata for Harpsichord in A major, K 322/L 483 by Domenico Scarlatti. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Sonata for Harpsichord in C major, K 159/L 104 by Domenico Scarlatti. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 4 in E flat major, Op. 7 by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Ballades (4) for Piano, Op. 10: no 1 in D minor "Edward" by Johannes Brahms. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Images for Piano, Set 1: no 1, Reflets dans l'eau by Claude Debussy. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Images for Piano, Set 2: no 2, Et la lune descend sur le temple qui fût by Claude Debussy. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Images for Piano, Set 2: no 3, Poissons d'or by Claude Debussy. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Children's Corner by Claude Debussy. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Ballade for Piano no 1 in G minor, B 66/Op. 23 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Scherzo for Piano no 2 in B flat minor/D flat major, B 111/Op. 31 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Mazurkas (4) for Piano, B 115/Op. 33: no 4 in B minor by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Prelude for Piano in C sharp minor, B 141/Op. 45 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Faschingsschwank aus Wien, Op. 26 by Robert Schumann. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Sonata for Piano in A minor, D 537/Op. 164 by Franz Schubert. Performer: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (Piano)
Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, BWV 147: Jesu bleibet meine Freude "Jesu, joy of man's desiring" by Johann Sebastian Bach. Performer: Wilhelm Kempff (Piano)
Fantasy for Piano in C minor, K 475 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performer: Wilhelm Kempff (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 26 in E flat major, Op. 81a "Les Adieux" by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performer: Wilhelm Kempff (Piano)
Pieces (3) for Piano, D 946 by Franz Schubert. Performer: Wilhelm Kempff (Piano)
Nocturnes (3) for Piano, B 54/Op. 9: no 3 in B major by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Wilhelm Kempff (Piano)
Impromptu for Piano no 3 in G flat major, b 149/Op. 51 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Wilhelm Kempff (Piano)
Kinderszenen, Op. 15 by Robert Schumann. Performer: Wilhelm Kempff (Piano)
Scherzo for Piano in E flat minor, Op. 4 by Johannes Brahms. Performer: Wilhelm Kempff (Piano)
Pieces (4) for Piano, Op. 119 by Johannes Brahms. Performer: Wilhelm Kempff (Piano)
Legends of St Francis (2), S 354 by Franz Liszt. Performer: Wilhelm Kempff (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 8 in C minor, Op. 13 "Pathétique" by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performer: Wilhelm Kempff (Piano)
Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, BWV 140: Wachet auf ruft uns die Stimme by Johann Sebastian Bach. Performer: Wilhelm Kempff (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 18 in E flat major, Op. 31 no 3 by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Fantasy for Piano 4 hands in F minor, D 940/Op. 103 by Franz Schubert. Performer: Elena Gilels (Piano), Emil Gilels (Piano)
Sonata for Piano in G minor, Op. 22 by Nikolai Medtner. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Ballades (4) for Piano, Op. 10: no 1 in D minor "Edward" by Johannes Brahms. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Ballades (4) for Piano, Op. 10: no 2 in D major by Johannes Brahms. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Fantasia for Piano in D minor, K 397 (385g) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 3 in B minor, B 155/Op. 58 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Lyric Pieces (8), Book 2, Op. 38: no 1, Berceuse by Edvard Grieg. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Lyric Pieces (6), Book 3, Op. 43: no 1, Butterfly by Edvard Grieg. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Lyric Pieces (7), Book 4, Op. 47: no 2, Albumblatt by Edvard Grieg. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Lyric Pieces (7), Book 4, Op. 47: no 4, Halling by Edvard Grieg. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Lyric Pieces (6), Book 5, Op. 54: no 4, Notturno by Edvard Grieg. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Lyric Pieces (6), Book 9, Op. 68: no 2, Grandmother's Minuet by Edvard Grieg. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Lyric Pieces (6), Book 9, Op. 68: no 3, At Your Feet by Edvard Grieg. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Lyric Pieces (7), Book 10, Op. 71: no 1, Once upon a Time by Edvard Grieg. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Lyric Pieces (7), Book 10, Op. 71: no 3, Puck by Edvard Grieg. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 3 in B flat major, K 281 (189f) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performer: Emil Gilels (Piano)
Toccata in C minor, BWV 911 by Johann Sebastian Bach. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 2 in G minor, Op. 22 by Robert Schumann. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Rhapsodies (2) for Piano, Op. 79 by Johannes Brahms. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Hungarian Themes and Rhapsodies (21) for Piano, S 242: no 6 in G minor, Lento by Franz Liszt. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Sonata for Piano in B minor, S 178 by Franz Liszt. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Prelude for Piano in C sharp minor, B 141/Op. 45 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Barcarolle for Piano in F sharp major, B 158/Op. 60 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Scherzo for Piano no 3 in C sharp minor, B 125/Op. 39 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Prelude for Piano in A flat major, B 86 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Jeux d'eau by Maurice Ravel. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Gaspard de la nuit by Maurice Ravel. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Toccata for Piano in D minor, Op. 11 by Sergei Prokofiev. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Symphonic Dances, Op. 45: no 1, Non allegro by Sergei Rachmaninov. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Andante spianato et Grand polonaise brillante in E flat major, Op. 22 by Frédéric Chopin. Performer: Martha Argerich (Piano)
Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue in D minor, BWV 903 by Johann Sebastian Bach. Performer: Alfred Brendel (Piano)
Sonata for Keyboard no 60 in C major, H 16 no 50 by Franz Joseph Haydn. Performer: Alfred Brendel (Piano)
Fantasia for Piano in C minor, K 396 (385f) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performer: Alfred Brendel (Piano)
Pieces (3) for Piano, D 946: no 2 in E flat major by Franz Schubert. Performer: Alfred Brendel (Piano)
Nuages gris for Piano, S 199 by Franz Liszt. Performer: Alfred Brendel (Piano)
Nocturne for Piano, S 207 "En rêve" by Franz Liszt. Performer: Alfred Brendel (Piano)
R. W. - Venezia, S 201 by Franz Liszt. Performer: Alfred Brendel (Piano)
Années de pèlerinage, deuxième année, S 161 "Italie": no 7, Après une lecture du Dante by Franz Liszt. Performer: Alfred Brendel (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 23 in F minor, Op. 57 "Appassionata" by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performer: Alfred Brendel (Piano)
Bagatelle for Piano in A minor, WoO 59 "Für Elise" by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performer: Alfred Brendel (Piano)
Phantasiestücke (8) for Piano, Op. 12 by Robert Schumann. Performer: Alfred Brendel (Piano)
Sonata for Piano no 10 in C major, K 330 (300h) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performer: Alfred Brendel (Piano)

Album Description

THE STEINWAY LEGENDS GRAND EDITION Steinway & Sons, for over 150 years the maker of the world's finest pianos and the symbol of quality and excellence to generations, joins forces with Universal Classics, home to history's greatest pianists on the Deutsche Grammophon, Decca and Philips labels, to present the Steinway Legends Grand Edition, an impressive box that holds all 10 Steinway Legends packages in the series in a unique "Steinway Series D" Piano Box. Boxed set includes the complete Steinway Legends series on 20 compact discs (that's 301 tracks!) plus a special bonus CD. Each title features "spot-on" repertoire choices of legendary pianists that have strong associations with Steinway & Sons, along with informative notes and unique packaging. Each album includes two long-playing CDs housed in high gloss black digipacks with Steinway & Sons logo & iconography embossed in gold brass on the cover--just like on the real Steinway piano! Bonus CD--Steinway Legends in the Making--features three great pianists from the current generation of Steinway artists--HÃ¨lÃ©ne Grimaud, Yundi Li and Lang Lang. Only available as part of the Grand Edition boxed set. Souvenir Photo Album--Boxed set includes a big (10˝ x 6˝), full color 40-page booklet that offers a rare glimpse into the world of Steinway & Sons - chock full of rare photos, unique memorabilia, autograph reproductions and testimonials all from the personal archive of Steinway & Sons and more! Packaging--CDs and booklet housed in a beautiful reproduction of a Steinway Series D Grand Piano--with incredible detail--including full keyboard, working piano lid and sweeping body that is the unmistakable look of a Steinway. Grand Edition includes these great titles: Steinway Legends Martha Argerich, Steinway Legends Claudio Arrau, Steinway Legends Vladimir Ashkenazy, Steinway Legends Alfred Brendel, Steinway Legends Emil Gilels, Steinway Legends Vladimir Horowitz, Steinway Legends Wilhelm Kempff, Steinway Legends Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, Steinway Legends Maurizio Pollini, Steinway Legends Mitsuko Uchida, and Steinway Legends in the Making.

Customer Reviews:

What results do you get when you mix Decca, Philips, Deutsche Grammophone, and Steinway????.....I'd call them GRAND!!.......2007-04-16

Yes, GRAND, indeed is the word for this spectacular collection of solo piano recordings by the creme-de-la-creme of Decca's, Deutsche Grammophone's, and Philips' vaults.........AWESOME by ALL measure!

Two discs each, in individual deluxe folders, from the archives of Decca, DGG, and Philips........featuring Claudio Arrau, Mitsuko Uchida, Vladimir Horowitz, Maurizio Pollini, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Emil Gilels, Martha Argerich, Wilhelm Kempff, Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, and Alfred Brendel........what a list, huh?

And, Wait!.....It gets Better!!! Included on each individual collection are rare, long out of print, recordings....the best of each artist's familiar recordings, and....unknown, never-released recordings.....could it get any better than this???

YES! A bonus disc of "Steinway Legends in the Making".......featuring the incredibly gifted artists Lang Lang, Helene Grimaud, and Yundi Li....how great it is to hear these young artists against their towering predecessors of keyboard artistry.

Also included is a forty page deluxe book with tons of photos and memorabilia from Steinway. Remember, all these pianists were solid, dedicated, Steinway artists, and would not play anything else.

While the presentation of these recordings simply could never match or meet the level of the performances themselves (lucky us that they were recorded and preserved so we may hear them again and again, just as fresh and wonderful as the first time), the package IS pretty darned AWESOME!!! The whole collection, book included, fits inside a perfectly proportioned Steinway Piano shaped box, complete with opening lid and support to hold it up, revealing the frame and strings below, which also lifts up to reveal the booklet and individual folders and discs beneath. The entire "piano" itself slips into an oversized slipcase.

What a unique and beautiful set this truly is. Sadly, it was released as a deluxe set in very few numbers. But, luckily, the individual two disc sets by each artist are available separately, so at least the recordings are available still to those who want them.***

Luckily, I knew about this collection many many months before it's limited release and had pre-ordered my set (very happy bear, indeed). It's a joy just to look at this set, and also to know that these "performances" are here in my home for me to enjoy over and over again and again.

To my knowledge, I am unaware of individual companies working together before (Decca, DGG, Philips, and Steinway in this case) to present this type of collection as a "unified" set, and we truly are very lucky beneficiaries of this wonderful partnership of these companies.

My only "complaint"......the outer slipcase that the "piano box" slides into is made of a very inferior weight of paperboard to support such a heavy presentation as this, and is so flimsy that it will not stand up to much use before it simply disintigrates. Sort of too bad, as the rest of the set/presentation is so first rate...shame on you folks...I can't think of anybody who would not have paid a few dollars more for a suitable slipcase for this beautiful set. ~operabruin

***June 22, 2007...I just found out that this set is now, once again, available! Do yourself a favor, and get a copy NOW, before it is gone again! I just found it on another site [classical only online seller], and when I came back here to amazon to make this notation, I also see that they have it in stock again!!! What a stroke of luck for those of you who want this set. Trust me, it is just beautiful, and one of the most unique items you have ever seen! ~operabruin

Steinway Ledgends.......2007-03-09

The quality of the pianos and recording is breath taking says my friend, a professional tuner and former buyer of American & European pianos . And I was just stunned by the playing of these masters...the Liszt pieces of Kempff were were a revelation as was Gilels, and the supreme Horowitz..What is astounding to me is the presence of the piano ( played with a moderately good system only); it is as if they were there in the room.

Berg: Chamber Concerto; Three Orchestral Pieces, Op. 6; Violin Concerto

Average customer rating:

rich, alluring works of early modernism
Exemplary Berg

Berg: Chamber Concerto; Three Orchestral Pieces, Op. 6; Violin Concerto

Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Alban Berg: Lulu Suite/The Wine/Lyric Suite
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Arnold Schoenberg: Suite, Op. 29, for 2 Clarinets, Bass Clarinet, Violin, Viola, Cello & Piano / Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4 (Sextet for 2 Violins, 2 Violas & 2 Celli) - Ensemble Intercontemporain, Pierre Boulez
Schoenberg, Berg, Webern: Orchestral Works / Karajan

ASIN: B000002C02
Release Date: 1995-12-05

Tracks:

Chamber Concerto For Piano And Violin With 13 Wind Instruments: Motto
Chamber Concerto For Piano And Violin With 13 Wind Instruments: Thema scherzoso con variazoni
Chamber Concerto For Piano And Violin With 13 Wind Instruments: Variation I
Chamber Concerto For Piano And Violin With 13 Wind Instruments: Variation II - langsames Walzertempo
Chamber Concerto For Piano And Violin With 13 Wind Instruments: Variation III - krig bewegt
Chamber Concerto For Piano And Violin With 13 Wind Instruments: Variation IV - sehr rasch
Chamber Concerto For Piano And Violin With 13 Wind Instruments: Chamber Concerto: I. Variation V - tempo primo
Chamber Concerto For Piano And Violin With 13 Wind Instruments: II. Adagio
Chamber Concerto For Piano And Violin With 13 Wind Instruments: III. Rondo ritmico con introduzione: Introduzione
Chamber Concerto For Piano And Violin With 13 Wind Instruments: III. Rondo ritmico
Chamber Concerto For Piano And Violin With 13 Wind Instruments: III. Coda
Three Orchestral Pieces, Op. 6: I. Prdium. Langsam
Three Orchestral Pieces, Op. 6: II. Reigen. Anfangs etwas znd, leicht bewschwingt
Three Orchestral Pieces, Op. 6: III. Marsch. Mges Marschtempo
Concerto For Violin And Orchestra: I. Andante, Allegretto - London Symphony Orchestra
Concerto For Violin And Orchestra: II. Allegro, Adagio - London Symphony Orchestra

Amazon.com essential recording

No doctrinaire theorist, Berg composed communicative, emotional music without compromising his technical sophistication and atonal allegiances. The Chamber Concerto has its knotty moments, but also considerable charms. Barenboim's big-hearted, romantic pianism plays off Gawriloff's tart violin, the piquant winds, and Boulez's controlled leadership. The Three Pieces is as close as Berg ever came to writing a symphony; its mix of powerful orchestral outbursts and elegant section writing are reminiscent of Berg's beloved Mahler. The Violin Concerto's ardent warmth and tender lyricism, expressing Berg's meditations on death and redemption (including a direct quote from a Bach cantata) after the untimely passing of Manon Gropius, make it irresistible. The fine performance offers an alternative view to classic older recordings by Louis Krasner and Isaac Stern. Including most of his key instrumental works, this disc is an ideal introduction to Berg's genius. --Dan Davis

Customer Reviews:

rich, alluring works of early modernism.......2002-08-28

This is a stunning record in every respect -- the compositions, performances, conducting, and recording -- a jewel of Boulez' many recordings for Sony. The "Violin Concerto" is the only piece here that has become part of the standard repertory, and the performance is beautiful, if not as well known as Mutter's. The "Chamber Concerto" is rigorously structured, and sounds more like Webern than the other two pieces. My favorite, though, is "Three Pieces for Orchestra," the closest Berg came to writing a symphony. This dramatic music blends the influence of Mahler with that of Schoenberg, which seems to be Berg's forte.

20th century masterworks!

Exemplary Berg.......2000-04-30

It remains to be seen how kindly history will judge Pierre Boulez the composer. However, by virtue of this release alone, his credentials as a conductor are the stuff of which legends are made. Of the atonalists, Berg is in some ways the most "messy." He was not as orthodox as his classmate Webern when it came to applying twelve note techniques. His music is dense, and hopelessly complex to be sure, but under Boulez's deft touch it also seems to live and breathe. Perhaps Boulez the composer has contributed much to the triumph that is Boulez the conductor. He unpacks this music as only someone who can also construct it might. The Three Orchestral pieces, which I have heard multiple times to varying degrees of satisfaction, is given a very sensible but appealing reading here. The Chamber Concerto, featuring Daniel Barenboim in the first of several recordings he would make of this piece under Boulez's baton, is also outstanding. Pinchas Zukerman gives a very credible reading of the Violin Concerto. For individuals on the fence about Berg, this recording should be required material. For those who already admire Berg, this recording does not need to be required because it will sell itself after even after the most casual of listenings. This recording is a testatment to the brilliance of one of this century's least understood composers, and the artisty of one of this century's greatest conductors.

Berg, Stravinsky: Violin Concertos / Perlman, Ozawa

Average customer rating:

Bland & Un-Committed Performances
This a Masterpiece of Alban Berg
For the Stravinsky
Why all the fuss? This is mediocre.
Beautiful music

Berg, Stravinsky: Violin Concertos / Perlman, Ozawa

Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Bartók: Violin Concerto No. 2; Rhapsodies Nos. 1 & 2
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Alban Berg: Violin Concerto "To the Memory of an Angel" (1935) / Wolfgang Rihm: "Time Chant" Music for Violin & Orchestra (1991-92) - Anne-Sophie Mutter

ASIN: B000001GQX
Release Date: 1996-08-13

Tracks:

Violin Concerto - To The Memory Of An Angel: Andante - Allegro
Violin Concerto - To The Memory Of An Angel: Allegro - Adagio - (Coda)
Violin Concerto In D: Toccata
Violin Concerto In D: Aria 1
Violin Concerto In D: Aria 2
Violin Concerto In D: Capriccio
Rapsodie de concert pour violon et orchestre: Tzigane

Amazon.com essential recording

Berg's Violin Concerto is atonal--yes, it's the "A" word, but you shouldn't let that keep you from getting to know this modern masterpiece; it's actually very listener-friendly. The music tells a story. The first movement is a character sketch of the young, flirtatious Manon Gropius, daughter of Alma Mahler and architect Walter Gropius. She died tragically of meningitis, and the second movement depicts the horrifying onset of her illness, her death, and her transfiguring apotheosis. Dedicated "to the memory of an angel," it's one of the most heartfelt and moving tributes imaginable. Stravinsky's much more abstract Violin Concerto is about being a violin concerto. Both works, modern classics, are exceptionally well played and recorded by Itzhak Perlman and Seiji Ozawa. Regarding Berg, this was a landmark recording of Perlman's both in his career as a performer and in the history of the work itself. For Perlman, generally perceived as a heart-on-sleeve traditionalist of the "old school," this venture into musical modernism confounded his detractors while at the same time introducing many new listeners to a work that, though difficult, has since come to be regarded as one of the touchstones of the Romantic concerto repertoire. Stravinsky's concerto is less controversial though no less well-played. In sum, these performances are landmarks in the Perlman discography. --David Hurwitz

Customer Reviews:

Bland & Un-Committed Performances.......2004-05-30

These are two of my favorite pieces, but the performances here are utterly bland and un-committed. Perlman merely saws through both with a mechanical, un-inflected proficiency - he often sounds like he's more in a hurry to get home. Ozawa is worse: he virtually sleepwalks his way through both scores, offering very little in the way of true collaboration. The orchestral commentary in both works just sort of wanders by, with little accentuation or inflection. In Perlman's equally bland account of the Stravinsky with Barenboim, the latter at least provided a more detailed and better executed framework than this catatonic effort by Ozawa.

To my ears, no modern version of either work has matched the stunning achievement of Arthur Grumiaux, who recorded both concertos in excellent 1967 stereo sound for Philips (they were coupled on the same LP). In the Berg, Grumiaux was ably accompanied by Igor Markevitch, whereas the Stravinsky was led by Ernest Bour, a champion of modern music who was trained by Scherchen and who succeeded Hans Rosbaud at the SW German Radio. The orchestra in both cases was the Amsterdam Concertgebouw.

Grumiaux was one of the last century's greatest violinists, and his combination of rhythmic zest and soaring lyricism in both works was extraordinary: he was simply a finer musician than the likes of Perlman, Stern, or Zukerman. The Grumiaux Stravinsky Concerto is available in a fine Stravinsky collection on a Philips "two-fer." Unfortunately, the Berg remains in limbo - it is urgently in need of a CD transfer.

There are two old 1930's recordings that remain my interpretive benchmarks in each concerto: Louis Krasner with Anton Webern in the Berg, and Samuel Dushkin with the composer conducting in the Stravinsky. I feel that people who love these pieces should make an effort to find them and hear for themselves what is possible in this music.

Despite crackly, deficient mono sonics, the Berg Concerto from May 1, 1936 on Testament Continuum SBT 1004 is an absolute marvel. Krasner premiered the work a year before in Barcelona with Scherchen conducting. Berg's friend and compatriot Anton Webern was supposed to conduct, but he got cold feet at the last moment about performing his late comrade's final testament. Just listen to the performance on this Testament CD - which Webern DID conduct, with the BBC Symphony - and you will hear what is missing with Perlman and Ozawa. It is deeply inflected and romantically impassioned: the phrasing is simply gorgeous.

The 1935 Paris recording with Dushkin in the Stravinsky can now be heard in a splendid transfer on an Andante CD set. Stravinsky was closer to his roots than would later be the case: he and Dushkin fashion an earthy performance that hails back to ancient Russia itself. Dushkin is an obedient fiddler - he plays his part EXACTLY the way Stravinsky wanted it to be heard. His playing may take some getting used to: the composer insisted on an abandoned, rhapsodic, somewhat swoopy style that makes most contemporary accounts sound bland by comparison. A Columbia Records executive once told me that Stravinsky was so incensed at Isaac Stern being chosen for the stereo re-make that he threatened to break his recording contract. But he later relented, and the result was dreary in comparison with the earlier version.

To conclude: try to hear Grumiaux for the best modern accounts of these magnetic scores. The earlier historic versions are wonderful reminders of truly "living" music: they are a sharp contrast to the sterile, dry-as-toast renderings we usually get these days.

This a Masterpiece of Alban Berg.......2002-06-04

Although atonal music is rather mechanic, Alban Berg's violin concerto is very sorrowful and romantic. Of course Perlman's performance is obviously magnificent. This is a "Must" recording for every deep classical music lovers.Highly recomended.

For the Stravinsky.......2002-02-07

I listened to the vinyl version of this recording as a kid, and along with Schoenberg's string trio, it was basically my introduction to 20th century music. I have to say I usually do not have the stomach for the sustained tension in serial composers longer orchestral works. I respect them as composers and greatly enjoy a disc of Berg/Schoenberg/Webern piano music I have, but really have a difficult time with works such as this Berg and Schoenberg's piano concerto. (Although the Schoenberg string trio is an all-time favorite and I enjoy practically any other kind of 20th century music.) It is difficult to discern any kind of shape in the Berg concerto. That Bach chorale is nice, but everything surrounding it is quite unintelligible to me.

To get to the point, I think the average listener would find the Stravinsky far more accessible and enjoyable. It is basically an all-around well crafted piece and each movement is very exciting.

Why all the fuss? This is mediocre........2001-02-24

I'm normally a big fan of the DG Originals series, but this is one they could have left in the vaults. The performance of the Berg is adequate. But I don't get the fuss when this has now become a competitive field. (It was not when this recording was originally released in 1980.) Throughout the work Perlman is distant and uninvolved, with a thin wirey tone that borders on ugly at times (and yes, I know this is a "dissonant" and tragic work, but the tone is simply colorless, which is different) and Ozawa conducts like he's not really listening to his fiddle player, not really relating some intricate accompaniments to what Perlman's violin line is. Time and again he skates over climaxes, holds back, fails to get all the depth from his accompanist role. The sound is not that great for a DG Originals reissue--it's rather dry. The Stravinsky fares better (though the soundstage is close-up and bizarre), but it is hardly reason to recommend the recording itself. Zukerman/Boulez, Szigeti/Mitropoulos, Krasner/Webern (the very first recording and only the second performance of the work), and above all Mutter/Levine easily beat this recording. The Mutter in particular is a hair-raising account where every shading of the score is examined and given breath and color, where the work's "Modern" and "Romantic" worlds are for once melded appropriately. (The Krasner is another example of that, largely thanks to Webern's insightful accompaniment, but with that 1936 performance there's the issue of extremely limited sound.) In short, Stravinsky, four stars...Berg one.

Beautiful music.......2000-11-26

It is amazing how different these two pieces are. The Berg is cold, almost steely, where as the Stravinsky has a much mnore organic feel to it, I love this recording. In the Berg you can feel the sorrow of the composer, but some sort of comfort is reached in the Bach organ chorale at the end. A msterpiece of composition. Yet if you don't like 12 tone contempoary music, then the its not for you. The Stravinsky is much warmer, with easier to follow themes, good yes, in fact it is very good, but the Berg is great. Despite its warmness of feel that the Stravinsky is less emmotive than the Berg. the playing by both soloist and orchestra is wonderful. They do both composers credit.

Alban Berg: Violin Concerto "To the Memory of an Angel" (1935) / Wolfgang Rihm: "Time Chant" Music for Violin & Orchestra (1991-92) - Anne-Sophie Mutter

Average customer rating:

One of the greatest CDs Deutsche Grammophon has put out
Anne-Sophie Mutter Plays Berg
Absolutely, completely sublime!
A Breath of Fresh Air
Outstanding Berg with an unusual coupling

Alban Berg: Violin Concerto "To the Memory of an Angel" (1935) / Wolfgang Rihm: "Time Chant" Music for Violin & Orchestra (1991-92) - Anne-Sophie Mutter
Alban Berg , Wolfgang Rihm , James Levine , Anne-Sophie Mutter , and Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Krzysztof Penderecki: Concerto for Violin & Orchestra No. 2 "Metamorphosen" (1992-95) / Béla Bartók: Sonata for Violin & Piano No. 2, Sz 76 (1922) - Anne-Sophie Mutter / London Symphony Orchestra / Krzysztof Penderecki / Lambert Orkis
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ASIN: B000001GH9
Release Date: 1993-03-16

Tracks:

Violin Concerto 'To The Memory Of An Angel': I. Andante - Allegretto
Violin Concerto 'To The Memory Of An Angel': II. Allegro - Adagio
'Time Chant' Music For Violin And Orchestra: Beginning
'Time Chant' - Music For Violin And Orchestra: Bar 179

Amazon.com essential recording

Berg's Violin Concerto (1935) is considered by many the most accessible and emotionally engaging piece of music in the atonal idiom. His last completed work, the concerto was written as a memorial "to an angel" upon the premature death of Alma Mahler's daughter Manon Gropius. But as with all of Berg's oeuvre, an autobiography of the composer's inner life is also thoroughly woven into the score. From the deeply reflective nuances of its quiet opening, Anne-Sophie Mutter takes the listener into the heart of Berg's ambiguous lyricism. There's a keen grasp, both by soloist and conductor James Levine, of the work's intricate structure and progression, but never at the price of a coldly disengaged intellectualism. Mutter summons a marvelous array of shadings and colors, effecting a truly haunting impression as tonality makes its ghostlike apparition, first in the guise of a folk song and, in the final part--following a violent cataclysm rendered with fiery power--in the variations on a quote from a chorale by Bach. Throughout, Mutter's intuitive realization of the psychic journey traced by Berg reveals the work's significance as closer in spirit to a requiem of farewell than a traditional concerto.

Mutter's command of an animated tone that pulsates with expressive purpose inspired the contemporary German composer Wolfgang Rihm to write the other work on this disc, Gesungene Zeit ("Time Chant"). It's a mesmerizing neoexpressionist poem of shimmering, elongated string lines--later punctuated with dire eruptions from full orchestra--that seem to form an ether over which the soloist floats. Any sense of time measured in bars becomes negated as Mutter intones Siren-like threads of sound in the highest register. As with the Penderecki Violin Concerto No. 2 and other contemporary works she champions, Mutter plays with a gripping immediacy that indeed makes Rihm's imaginative novelty seem tailor-made for her. --Thomas May

Customer Reviews:

One of the greatest CDs Deutsche Grammophon has put out.......2007-01-30

I've held off on reviewing this Deutsche Grammophon disc for a long time, since I didn't think I could add anything to the praise already lavished on it by the press and my fellow reviewers. Yet, it is the fate of reviewers to ultimately throw in their two cents in spite of all that has come before, so here follow my thoughts on these performances by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra led by James Levine, with Anne-Sophie Mutter on solo violin.

Alban Berg's "Violin Concerto" (1935), with the dedication "to the memory of an angel", seems to have finally entered the standard repertoire. Written after the death of the young Manon Gropius, daughter of Alma Mahler-Werfel and Walter Gropius, it is a work of constant elegy sometimes tempered with praise of a beautiful young soul, but at other times giving in to the darkest feelings of mourning and catastrophe. Like in all his work, Berg uses the twelve-tone system inherited from his teacher Arnold Schoenberg, but with strong echoes of traditional harmony. Romanticism is abundant in this work too often considered undesirably "modernist"; it opens with the lushest sounds of clarinet and harp, moves towards the softest touches of strings, and ultimately roars thundering crescendos pregnant with meaning. While the violin is sometimes a sort of protagonist, representing the bloom of youth held down by Fate, often the work is intensely directing us to higher themes outside of the ensemble itself.

Since Berg left the door open to traditional harmony, he brings in two objets trouvees that link the work to a long tradition before it. The most readily noticeable is Bach's chorale "Es ist genug", variations on which provide the basis of the second movement. Another is a Carinthian folk song Berg knew in his youth, when he had an illegitimate child with a family maid, giving the concerto a "secret programme". This being 2007, when film music has gone to much greater extremes of "dissonance" than Berg ever approached, the harmonies of the concerto will seem pleasing and elegant to all but the most conservative of classical listeners.

There are, of course, many other performances of Berg's concerto out there. But several things set this apart. For one, the digital sound quality is superb, bringing a clarity to a piece too often heard in primitive recordings. And it was recorded after examination of the original sketches in the 1980s revealed that a key part of the work was muddled in the published score. Finally, there is Mutter's technique itself. While she has now grown rather stale and trite, at this time the violinist was at the height of her powers, and this performance is simple flawless.

The second piece on the disc is Wolfgang Rihm's "Time Chant" (1991-92). Here the violin is meant to exhibit nearly vocal characteristics, and when the small orchestra contributes, it is only in the role of filling out a line that is, as Rihm, claims, "in essence monophonic". The writing for the violin hovers in the heights of its range, playing crystalline sounds in the longest durations. This is actually something unusual for Rihm, as his music is often concerned with movement and energy--see JAGDEN UND FORMEN in DG's "20/21" series for an excellent work in this vein. Here Rihm amost approaches Alexander Knaifel in the light purity of the writing. I enjoy it immensely, especially played on a top-of-the-line stereo where its fragile beauty shines through, but I'd certainly recommend that people look elsewhere for an introduction to Rihm.

This disc is one of the greatest achievements on the CD. It commands so much respect and demand that 15 years after its release, it still has not been lowered to mid-price. It deserves a place in your collection, and the music will undoubtedly find itself a place in your heart as well.

Anne-Sophie Mutter Plays Berg.......2005-11-02

Alban Berg (1885 -- 1935) composed his violin concerto as a requiem for a young woman, Manon Gropius, but the work effectively became Berg's own requiem as well. It is Berg's last completed score, written in 1935. This is passionate, emotive music which staddles the bounds between atonality and musical romanticism. The performance by Anne-Sophie Mutter and James Levine conducting the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, recorded in 1992,is justly celebrated. This is an ideal introduction to Berg and to his masterful violin concerto. This is difficult music, make no mistake. The new listerner should stay with it, as the violin concerto will reward many hearings.

I used the discussion of this work in Michael Steinberg's book, "The Concerto," (1998) as a guide to my listening. Steinberg writes with great enthusiasm for Berg's concerto and gives the reader a good, brief introduction to Berg and his work. The violin concerto is a hermetic work. That is, the concerto is filled with allusions to Berg's love life, to affairs both late in his life and to an affair he had as a young man. The work also shows Berg's fascination with secrecy and with numerology. He followed certain pseudo-science of his day in thinking that the number 23 had some mystical significance for the life-rhythm while the number 28 had significance for women. This thinking, and other beliefs in lucky numbers and the like are built into Berg's score.

But of the music were only a code to be deciphered, it would not be of much interest. The emotion and force of the violin concerto drew me in and will make the work live for other listeners as well. The work is in two movements, each of which has two parts. The first movement opens slowly and elegaically with a quiet figure in the harp, followed shortly by an ascending 12-tone figure for the violin. The second part of the music is more rapid in tempo and develops nostagically an old folk-song -- in Berg's case, perhaps, to remind him of a love affair he had when young, the memory of which remained with him through life.

The second movement opens with a violently dissonant passage that speaks of calamity and loss. The second part of the movement, though, is a response and an answer to deep sorrow. It develops a chorale theme from a Bach cantata, "Es ist Genug" through a combination of Bach's harmonies and Berg's own. The chorale goes through a number of variations and moods ranging from a rememberance of love and passion to quiet acceptance and resignation. The work fades away with only the solo violin remaining at the end. The solo and the orchestral writing are deeply intertwined in this concerto.

It may be a shame that Wolfgang Rihm's "Time Chant: Music for Violin and Orchestra" is the companion piece on this CD. It seemed to me a thoughtful work, but it pales in comparison with the Berg. Rihm is a prolific contemporary German composer, and he wrote this work for Anne-Sophie Mutter. This was my first exposure to his music. The "Time Chant" is in two movements, both of which feature the violin playing declamatory passages at the top of its register punctuated on occasion by orchestral outbursts. The work shimmers and has the quality of a chant but functions mostly as a showpiece for Ms. Mutter's formidable technique. There are some striking passages for the violin but they are surrounded by musical moments in which not much happens.

The Mutter-Levine reading of Berg's concerto is more than enough reason to hear this CD with Rihm's work an intriguing addition. This disk offers an outstanding opportunity to get to know one of the great masterpieces of Twentieth Century music.

Robin Friedman

Absolutely, completely sublime!.......2004-02-16

I have long put off writing this review because I was afraid my puny words could not match this recording, which is one of the very finest in my collection of 3,000+ classical CDs. I have about a dozen recordings of this work, as it's my favorite violin concerto (sorry, Beethoven), but this reading is in a league of its own: the only comparable recording is the famous Krasner/Webern, which was only the second performance of the work ever. (The work was written for Krasner...see post script.)

Mutter and Levine are both on a very, very high level here, and the consistency is astonishing as well. Levine never holds back--the fortissimo climaxes in the second movement that represent the physical agony of 18-year-old Manon Gropius are truly hair-raising. (Some conductors perform this with more head than heart, but this is very emotional music and the emotional content should not be downplayed.) As someone else pointed out, Mutter give less vibrato than most in the Corinthian folksong, but the result is haunting, and here she was not abusing this technique, as I feel she now often does. Mutter was far more emotional and connected more with her audience, to my ears, in 1992 than she does today. I would not be interested in hearing what she does with this work now, sad to say, because I think she would turn it more into a vehicle for her technique than an exploration of the work.

But in 1992 Mutter was not yet "Anne Sophie Mutter," and instead she uses her magnificent control over the colors of her violin to imply the evolution of Manon's life, consciousness and illness. Although the grief is already present when we begin, there are also many light and airy moments in the first movement that make the grief feel more like freshadowing. In the second movement the illness is already fully present, and we hear what can only be the wracking pain of the illness. Her violin thus sounds, if not weak, at least subdued and drained when the Bach Chorale enters. But the most astonishing effect is saved for last: as the final bars play, the Corinthian theme is heard again, seemingly as Manon's last statement, and Mutter somehow gives her tone here an eerie "disembodied" quality, as though Manon is departing from this earth. It's not the colorless vibratoless approach that she overuses nowadays, but something very special. I must go back and check my Krasner recording to see if he did it. Then Levine brings the orchestra in for the fattest, warmest chords of all as we feel Manon has ended her suffering.

I am aware that we now know this masterpiece has multiple interpretations, and Berg apparently had more than one woman in mind when he wrote the work (the concerto is filled with various numerical mysticisms), but at the same time, we don't know who those other women were or what the rest of the "program" was, so I have a feeling Mutter and Levine took the Gropius story as their reference point, as one has to pick something as a focus. Agreed the trombones can't do that glissando from Bb to Eb in the second movement properly, but I am so wrapped up in the music that I just don't care!

Through all this there is an effortless quality that I have never heard in any other recording of this concerto, save possibly the Krasner. (It's hard to tell--the sound is very poor in spots.) Not a gesture is wasted; there is no loss of momentum, not even for a second. Mutter and Levine know exactly where they are going, and the result is one of the greatest orchestral recordings in the catalog, both a sonic tour-de-force and a tender elegy, a modernist work and a deeply Romantic piece filled with the echoes of 19th century Europe. The breadth they achieve is surpassed only by how they manage to unify it all. The Berg is so overwhelming a work that each time I put it on, I am in no mood to play the Rihm that comes after it, as it would have to be anticlimactic, and so I have to confess I have never listened it. Someday I must evaluate that work separately.

(Post script: I've recently found out that Louis Krasner, a couple of years ago in the New York Times, praised this recording as one of the very best. So if you don't believe me, take *his* word for it!)

A Breath of Fresh Air.......2003-05-18

Sometimes it takes going to a live performance of a work that is familiar to you on recording to make you revisit an old friend with renewed passion. So it was after hearing the astonishingly fine young violinist Jennifer Frautschi collaborate with Pierre Boulez and the Los Angeles Philharmonic in the Berg Viloin Concerto that I returned to this brilliant recording of the Berg with Anne-Sophie Mutter, James Levine, and the Chicago Symphony to revive those moments. And once again this recording seems definitive. Berg's Requiem work is knowingly and lovingly performed with a richness of tone and technique that erases all of the seeming hurdles of atonal writing and delivers a wrenchingly passionate farewell work. The other joy of this particular recording is the coupling of Wolfgang Rihm's "Time Chant" which he wrote for violinist Mutter. This lyrically transcendent piece is evocative of the best of Messian and more than any other violin work to my knowledge succeeds in creating the illusion that the violin is a human voice, singing over a murmuring, pensive orchestral obbligato. Mutter masters this and the result is hair-raisingly beautiful. This is a very solid and very beautiful recording - and one that even the most harsh critic of atonal and contemporary music will succomb to in time.

Outstanding Berg with an unusual coupling.......2002-11-08

Anne-Sophie Mutter is one of the world's leading violinists, and this transcendent performance of the haunting Berg Violin Concerto shows why. With a gorgeous tone, she is in total command of the score's many expressive details, while keeping an eye on the larger structure. The overall impression is of quiet intimacy, even when the piece erupts into more blazing outbursts. The Rihm "Time Chant," written for Mutter, creates a vivid sound world and is also a fascinating complement to the Berg. Rihm is one of the most interesting composers around, and this piece, also on the quiet side, is an excellent introduction to his work.

James Levine is outstanding with Berg, as his glowing performances of "Wozzeck" and "Lulu" have shown. In his hands, this basically atonal score sounds more related to Richard Strauss or even Brahms. The Chicago Symphony Orchestra plays with its typically high level of virtuosity (such pianissimos!) and the recording is clear and natural-sounding.

Tracks:

Prelude A L'Apres-Midi D'un Faune - Alexander Rahbari
Walzer - Peter Hill
I. Andante-Scherzo - Rebecca Hirsch
Sehr Ruhig Und Zart - Ulster Orchestra
Lebhaft Und Zart Bewegt - Ulster Orchestra
Sehr Langsam Und Ausserst Zart - Ulster Orchestra
Fliessend, Ausserst Zart - Ulster Orchestra
Sehr Fliessend - Ulster Orchestra
Forlane: Allegretto - Klara Kormendi
First Tableau: The Shrove-Tide Fair - Philharmonia Orchestra
The Mountebank - Philharmonia Orchestra
Vivo - Bournemouth Sinfonietta
III. Moderato Pesante - Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
Hymn To St. Cecilia - Choir Of St. John's College, Cambridge
IV. Allegretto - Ondrej Lenard
Introduzione: Andante Non Troppo-Allegro Vivace - Alexander Rahbari

Tracks:

Romance - Czecho-Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra (Kosice)
II. Allegro - Ladislav Slovak
III. Allegro Agitato - Stephen Gunzenhauser
Main Theme From Schindler's List - Paul Bateman
The Unanswered Question - Northern Sinfonia
Second Electonic Interpolation (Conclusion) - Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
Third Electronic Interpolation (Beginning) - Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
I. Liturgie De Cristal - Amici Ensemble
IV. Commentaire - Idil Biret
Warming Up, Leading To Model 1, Bass - Gregory Rose
'Gott Nochmal' Sun God - Gregory Rose
'Vishnu' God Of Storms - Gregory Rose
God Of The Earth - Gregory Rose
First Interlude - Boris Berman
I. - Roger Heaton
Short Ride In A Fast Machine - Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
The Lord's Prayer - Choir Of St. John's College, Cambridge
II. Lento E Largo-Tranquillissimo - Zofia Kilanowicz
Lullaby - Philharmonia Orchestra
Vision Of The Hunt I - Philharmonia Orchestra
Voice For Solo Flute - Robert Aitken

Customer Reviews:

excellent overview of contemporaneous classic music.......2007-03-22

excellent overview of contemporaneous classic music.

Should be continued, plenty more 20th-century composers to be discovered.

For the price you can't lose.......2007-02-21

This 2 cd set consists of, as the title indicates, various 20c pieces or movements from the Naxos catalog. Sound quality is uniformly high, although for some such as Stockhausen's it's not clear if that's good or bad. What is excellent is the variety of the collection--some familiar (Debussy), others not, some pretty, others intentionally weird. Few will find every piece to his or her taste, but many listeners who do not spend much time on 20c music will find something to like. Overall, a great introduction to a period of much off-putting, yes, but also much compelling music.

Average customer rating:

Fabulous bargain, but Berg needs texts!
Superb Berg performances ... good value!
Real Estate Saver
Best Set; Good Price...
Excellent collection

Alban Berg Collection / Various (Coll)

Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Waltzes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Quartets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Modern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Deutsche Grammophon: Music | Specialty Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Complete Webern
Arnold Schoenberg: Serenade/Five Pieces For Orchestra
Schoenberg: Piano Concerto
Schoenberg: The String Quartets
Arnold Schoenberg: Chamber Music for Strings

ASIN: B0000B09Z4
Release Date: 2004-03-09

Customer Reviews:

Fabulous bargain, but Berg needs texts!.......2006-02-05

This is a great set for anyone who wishes to be immersed in Alban Berg's lurid, hothouse, hallucinogenic world. Both performances and sound quality are mostly excellent: No record company has ever made as great a commitment to Berg as Deutsche Grammophon. Based on the performances alone, this deserves six stars.

But the budget price comes with a catch: No texts or librettos. (There are at least scene synopses for "Wozzeck" and "Lulu.") With some composers, this wouldn't be a serious problem, but Berg was one of the greatest control freaks in music history. Without knowing exactly where each word is placed, listeners who don't understand German will miss an important facet of this intricately multi-layered music.

Superb Berg performances ... good value!.......2006-01-05

This might be the best box set I own. First of all you get what is most likely the best available versions of the Violin Concerto,Wozzeck,Lulu (3 act ver.),Lulu suite,7 Early Songs with van Otter,Der Wein and much more. The only real sub-par performance on it is the Piano Sonata op1 with Barenboim which can be found in many other recordings for a decent price. So, if you are new to Berg and you buy this, you are getting really an outstanding set of recordings which are top of the heap with great conductors and orchestras.

Real Estate Saver.......2004-10-04

This little box is an elegant, SPACE-SAVING means of acquiring classic performances (all of them stellar) from the DG catalog of Berg's major works, including two by my adored Lasalle Quartet that I believe have recently gone OOP. The set contains eight CD's housed in somewhat hard-to-remove cardboard sleeves that clearly identify the contents therein, and includes a booklet which, despite not containing lyrics for any of the vocal works, is very informative. The lack of libretti is possibly less an issue in the case of Wozzeck; chances are that listeners already own at least one other recording and so can refer to its libretto. Lulu, however, is more problematic because more listeners probably opt to purchase this "complete/d" performance over all others and may even be purchasing this set on that basis.
Not being particularly fond of lieder in general, I feel less qualified to make an educated call as to who might own which recordings of the songs other than to remark that I already own this recording of Op. 2 (which, of course includes the lyrics). In fact, as is the case with a previous reviewer, I already own a number of recordings from this set (which I received as a gift). No matter, it's still worth owning, and I agree with yet another reviewer's suggestion to grab it while it's available. True, one might prefer different performances here or there but honestly, this affords the best way of acquiring everything in one fell swoop, and there's not a clinker in the whole set.
In that vein, I might suggest that fans of the VC seek out Szeryng's performance with Kubelik, now available remastered on DG Eloquence at budget price. It's much less emotional than Mutter'