Brahms: Cello Sonatas/Mendelssohn: Cello Sonatas [Import]

Editorial Reviews
Album Details
Lynn Harrell Recorded a Large Part of the Cello Repertory for Decca and Among his Classic Readings Are Those of the Brahms Cello Sonatas with Ashkenazy — Ashkenazy … One of the Most Imaginative Partners I’ve Ever Heard in These Sonatas this Double Decca Release Pairs Mendelssohn’s Works for Cello with Brahms, and in the Mendelssohn Pieces Lynn Harrell is Accompanied by Bruno Canino in a Recording which also Won High Praise When First Released in 1992.

Tracks:

Sonatas For Cello And Piano: No. 1 In E Minor, Op. 38: 1. Allegro non troppo
Sonatas For Cello And Piano: No. 1 In E Minor, Op. 38: 2. Allegretto quasi Menuetto
Sonatas For Cello And Piano: No. 1 In E Minor, Op. 38: 3. Allegro
No. 2 In F Major, Op. 99: 1. Allegro vivace
No. 2 In F Major, Op. 99: 2. Adagio affetuoso
No. 2 In F Major, Op. 99: 3. Allegro passionato
No. 2 In F Major, Op. 99: 4. Allegro molto
Sonata No. 2 In D Major, Op. 58: 1. Allegro assai vivace
Sonata No. 2 In D Major, Op. 58: 2. Allegretto scherzando
Sonata No. 2 In D Major, Op. 58: 3. Adagio
Sonata No. 2 In D Major, Op. 58: 4. Molto allegro e vivace

Customer Reviews:

Preferable to Serkin / Rostropovich & Ax / Ma.......2006-03-19

The Brahms cello sonatas are favorites of mine. I've owned this recording, the Ma / Ax version on Sony, and the Rostropovich / Serkin version on DG. This version by Starker and Sebok takes the cake. I think Ma's playing is so refined that it can become precious. Rostropovich strikes me as being the opposite: very big and brash and overly macho. The sound quality on the DG recording is also a bit strident. Starker is somewhere in the middle, and I like that. He is probably closer to Ma, but there's a sort of honesty and straighforwardness in Starker that appeals to me more than Ma's refinement or Rostro's brashness. The Mercury sound is also top drawer. The piano is slightly recessed relative to the cello, but the effect is never distracting or unpleasing. The Sony sound is better than the DG, and maybe even slightly preferable to the Mercury. None of the pianists made enough of an impression on me to really comment confidently about their differences. Anyway, I don't think you can go wrong with this disc.

Get Mercury Living Presence Before Its Dead.......2003-07-12

When I first started collecting classical CDs, I only had a few Mercury Living Presence (MLP) titles. In my quest to get the absolute best, or at least a definitive recording, of the major works of the standard repertoire, MLP discs rarely topped the critics' lists. In fact, only three MLP recordings have been earmarked as "Essential Recordings" by amazon -- Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture, Byron Janis performing Rachmaninov's 2nd & 3rd Piano Concertos, and Yehudi Menuhin performing Bartok's 2nd Violin Concerto, all three with Antal Dorati as conductor. It is also safe to say that three other titles are equally essential for their historical value alone. They are Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake by Dorati (the first recording of the complete ballet), Janis performing Liszt's Piano Concertos (the first recordings made in the Soviet Union by American technicians, musical staff and equipment), and Kubelik's Chicago Symphony performance of Pictures at an Exhibition (one of, if not the single best mono recording ever, and the one that led the New York Times critic to coin the phrase "Living Presence," from which the label named its series). But how does a CD line go from having a half-dozen must have recordings, to being this reviewer's all-time favorite classical label?

The answer: consistently magical performances, captured in brilliant golden-age stereo sound, that offer a slightly different take on your typical interpretation of the great works. While MLP titles may not offer the best standard account of a work, they always surprise you and open you up to all the possibilities that the music has to offer. For example, this performance of Brahms' Cello Sonatas by Starker and Sebok may not be the consensus first choice recording -- for most that would probably be the Du Pre/Barenboim, or one of the two Ma/Ax recordings -- but I constantly come back to this disc for a different perspective, and its vibrancy and splendor never disappoint me. Maybe that is why collectors prize these recordings, because they are a breath of fresh air in a homogenized world of listening. Of course, collectors love a challenge too, and MLP CDs are becoming increasingly hard to find. It has taken years for me to finally find all of the MLP CDs released to date, and unfortunately I don't think there will be any new releases forthcoming. So collectors, and even those who aspire to be, should pick up as many Mercury Living Presence discs as possible now, before they all die.

so talented!.......2003-05-25

this is one of the best albums that i have heard on brahms over any other recordings of the prominent cellists

Average customer rating:

Fantastic Fournier

Les Introuvables de Pierre Fournier

Manufacturer: EMI
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B0000241DO
Release Date: 2002-08-05

Tracks:

Cello Concerto No. 2 In D Major, H. 7b Op. 101
Cello Concerto In A Minor, Op. 129
Phantasiestke (3 Fantasy Pieces) For Clarinet (Or Cello Or Violin) & Piano, Op
Variations On A Rococo Theme, For Cello & Orchestra (Or Cello & Piano) In A Majo
Sonata For Cello & Piano No. 1 In F Major, Op. 5/1
Sonata For Cello & Piano No. 2 In G Minor, Op. 5/2
Sonata For Cello & Piano No. 3 In A Major, Op. 69
Sonata For Cello & Piano No. 4 In C Major, Op. 102/1
Sonata For Cello & Piano No. 5 In D Major, Op. 102/2
Sonata For Arpeggione & Piano In A Minor, D.821
Pieces For Children Big And Small For Piano, 4 Hands Op. 85
Feldeinsamkeit ("Ich Ruhe Still Im Hohen Gren Gras"), Song For Voice & Piano,
Romance For Cello & Piano, Op. 69
Shylock, Incidental Music And Suite For Tenor & Orch., Op. 57
Mavra, Opera Buffa In One Act
Nocturne For Violin (Or Flute) & Piano
Melody In F, Various Arrangements, Op. 3/1
Introduction & Polonaise Brilliante For Cello & Piano In C Major, Op. 3
Song Without Words For Cello & Piano In D Major, Op. 109
Le Coq D'or (The Golden Cockerel; Zolotoy Petushok), Concert Suite For Orchestra
The Tale Of Tsar Saltan, Op. 57
Carnival Of The Animals, Zoological Fantasy For 2 Pianos & Ensemble
Berceuse, For Violin & Piano (Or Orchestra) In D Major, Op. 16
Tonadillas Al Estilo Antiguo, Songs (10) For Voice & Piano, H. 136
Goyescas (Serenata Goyesca; Dusk), For Piano, H. 63
La Gitana For Violin & Piano (After An 18th Century Arabo-Spanish Gypsy Song)
Papillon, For Cello & Piano, Op. 77
L' Enfant Prodigue, Sce Lyrique For Voices & Orchestra, L. 57
Pie En Forme De Habanera, For Solo Instrument & Keyboard (Arr.)
Kaddisch, Song For Voice & Piano (Modie Hraue No. 1)
O Mensch, Bewein' Dein' Sde Gross, Chorale Prelude For Organ (Orgel-Bhlein N
Herzlich Tut Mich Verlangen, Chorale Prelude For Organ, Bwv 727 (Bc K109)
Ich Ruf Zu Dir, Herr Jesu Christ (I), Chorale Prelude For Organ (Orgel-Bhlein
Nun Komm Der Heiden Heiland (I), Chorale Prelude For Organ (Orgel-Bhlein No. 1
Sonata For Cello & Continuo In C Major, G. 6 (Six Sonatas No. 2)

Customer Reviews:

Fantastic Fournier.......2004-02-16

On this 4CD EMI Import, the great cellist Pierre Fournier performs a variety of orchestral and chamber recordings, recorded primarily in mono from the 1940s and early 50s. There are three orchestral works -- Haydn's 2nd Concerto (Kubelik/Philharmonia, 1951), Schumann's Concerto (Sargent/Philharmonia, 1956 in stereo), and Tchaikovsky's Rococo Variations (Bigot/Lamoureux, 1941). Disc two, and half of disc three, contain Beethoven Cello Sonatas with the great Artur Schnabel, while the fourth disc features a variety of pieces, from Bach and Boccherini to Debussy and Ravel, with pianist Gerald Moore. I'm withholding a fifth star because the collection contains mostly historical recordings, though it certainly captures one of history's greatest cellists in his prime. With that being said, "Les Introuvables de Pierre Fournier" is a must buy for cello entusiasts.

Brahms: Cello Sonatas/Mendelssohn: Cello Sonatas

Average customer rating:

Brahms: Cello Sonatas/Mendelssohn: Cello Sonatas
Harrell , Ashkenazy , and Canino
Manufacturer: Decca/Universal
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

The Decca Records Store | Specialty Stores | Music
ASIN: B0002U9G8A
Release Date: 2004-09-24

Tracks:

Sonata For Cello And Piano No.1 In E Minor, Op.38
Sonata For Cello And Piano No.2 In F, Op.99
Sonata No.1 For Cello And Piano In B Flat, Op.45
Variations Concertantes, Op.17
Lieder Ohne Worte, Op.19
Lied Ohne Worte, Op.109
Sonata No.2 For Cello And Piano In D, Op.58

Album Details

Lynn Harrell Recorded a Large Part of the Cello Repertory for Decca and Among his Classic Readings Are Those of the Brahms Cello Sonatas with Ashkenazy — Ashkenazy … One of the Most Imaginative Partners I've Ever Heard in These Sonatas this Double Decca Release Pairs Mendelssohn's Works for Cello with Brahms, and in the Mendelssohn Pieces Lynn Harrell is Accompanied by Bruno Canino in a Recording which also Won High Praise When First Released in 1992.

The Good Life: The Greatest Waltzes, Sonatas and Concertos (Box Set)

Average customer rating:

The Good Life: The Greatest Waltzes, Sonatas and Concertos (Box Set)

Manufacturer: Platinum Disc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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