Robert Schumann: The Chamber Music With Piano, Volume 2

1. Märchenerzählungen for clarinet (or violin), viola, & piano, Op. 132 Lebhaft, Nicht Zu Schnell
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Nicolas Chumachenco , Daniel Levy , Antony Morf

2. Märchenerzählungen for clarinet (or violin), viola, & piano, Op. 132 Lebhaft Und Sehr Markirt
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Nicolas Chumachenco , Daniel Levy , Antony Morf

3. Märchenerzählungen for clarinet (or violin), viola, & piano, Op. 132 Ruhiges Tempo, Mit Zartem Ausdruck
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Nicolas Chumachenco , Daniel Levy , Antony Morf

4. Märchenerzählungen for clarinet (or violin), viola, & piano, Op. 132 Lebhaft, Sehr Markirt
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Nicolas Chumachenco , Daniel Levy , Antony Morf

5. Romances (3) for oboe (or violin or viola) & piano, Op. 94 Nicht Schnell
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Pietro Borgonovo , Daniel Levy

6. Romances (3) for oboe (or violin or viola) & piano, Op. 94 Einfach, Innig
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Pietro Borgonovo , Daniel Levy

7. Romances (3) for oboe (or violin or viola) & piano, Op. 94 Nicht Schnell
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Pietro Borgonovo , Daniel Levy

8. Adagio & Allegro for horn (or violin or cello) & piano in A flat major, Op. 70 Langsam, Mit Innigem Ausdruck
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Daniel Levy , Marcello Rota

9. Adagio & Allegro for horn (or violin or cello) & piano in A flat major, Op. 70 Rasch Und Feurig
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Daniel Levy , Marcello Rota

10. Phantasiestücke (3 Fantasy Pieces) for clarinet (or cello or violin) & piano, Op. 73 Zart Und Mit Ausdruck
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Daniel Levy , Antony Morf

11. Phantasiestücke (3 Fantasy Pieces) for clarinet (or cello or violin) & piano, Op. 73 Lebhaft, Leicht
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Daniel Levy , Antony Morf

12. Phantasiestücke (3 Fantasy Pieces) for clarinet (or cello or violin) & piano, Op. 73 Rasch Und Mit Feuer
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Daniel Levy , Antony Morf

13. Märchenbilder for viola (or violin) & piano, Op. 113 Nicht Schnell
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Nicolas Chumachenco , Daniel Levy

14. Märchenbilder for viola (or violin) & piano, Op. 113 Lebhaft
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Nicolas Chumachenco , Daniel Levy

15. Märchenbilder for viola (or violin) & piano, Op. 113 Rasch
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Nicolas Chumachenco , Daniel Levy

16. Märchenbilder for viola (or violin) & piano, Op. 113 Langsam, Mit Melancholischem Ausdruck
Composed by Robert Schumann
with Nicolas Chumachenco , Daniel Levy

Tracks:

Mazurka in A minor, Op. 17 No. 4: Lento, ma non troppo
Etude in G-flat major, Op. 10 No. 5: Vivace
Introduction & Rondo in E-flat major, Op. 16
Waltz in A minor, Op. 34 No. 2: Lento
Polonaise in A-flat Major, Op. 53: Maestoso
Mazurka in F-sharp minor, Op. 59 No. 3: Vivace
Mazurka in C-sharp minor, Op. 50 No. 3: Moderato
Mazurka in D-flat major, Op. 30 No. 3: Allegro non troppo
Mazurka in E minor, Op. 41 No. 2: Andantino
Mazurka in D major, Op. 33 No. 2: Vivace
Etude in C-sharp minor, Op. 10 No. 4: Presto
Etude in E major, Op. 10 No. 3: Lento, ma non troppo
Etude in C minor, Op. 10 No. 12: Allegro con fuoco
Prelude in B minor, Op. 28 No. 6: Lento assai

Tracks:

Posonaise in A major, Op. 40 No. 1: Allegro con brio
Prelude in D-flat major, Op. 28 No. 15: Sostenuto
Etude in E-flat minor, Op. 10 No. 6: Andante
Etude No. 2 in A-flat major from 'Trois Nouvelles Etudes': Allegretto
Mazurka in F minor, Op. 7 No. 3
Waltz in C-sharp minor, Op. 64 No. 2: Tempo giusto
Variations on a Theme by Clara Wieck from Sonata No. 3 in F minor, Op. 14: Andantino
Kreisleriana, Op. 16: I. Auberst bewegt
Kreisleriana, Op. 16: II. Sehr innig
Kreisleriana, Op. 16: III. Sehr aufgeregt
Kreisleriana, Op. 16: IV. Sehr langsam
Kreisleriana, Op. 16: V. Sehr lebhaft
Kreisleriana, Op. 16: VI. Sehr langsam
Kreisleriana, Op. 16: VII. Sehr rasch
Kreisleriana, Op. 16: VIII. Schnell und spielend

Amazon.com essential recording

Schumann and Chopin were staples of Horowitz's repertory, and this late 1960s-early 1970s collection finds him at his mature peak, playing with elan and imaginative fantasy. The Kreisleriana is one of his greatest recordings, trumping rivals with its spectacular pianism and complete identification with the composer. The Chopin set typifies Horowitz's approach--big and bold, with personalized editorial emendations and an energy that shatters the conventional salon approach. But he also sings Chopin's touching melodies as few others can, making the lovely Op. 10 No. 3 Etude an achingly touching poem. --Dan Davis

Customer Reviews:

The Schumann Kreisleriana is worth everything, and the Chopin is magical.......2005-12-20

This is a must have dual CD set of one of the great pianists of all time playing some of his favorite music. Later in life Horowitz made a TV show that became a best selling VHS tape entitled "Horowitz: The Last Romantic". If you ever heard him play, you know that title is appropriate and what the grand piano style was all about.

I have often referred to recordings of music as photographs of music. And just as photographs of people a wonderfully valuable, they are not the real person and do not capture the real person. Even a movie or documentary distorts the reality of the person. Still, we treasure our home movies, photos, and recordings. And we should. We just need to remember what they really are and that they are representations of reality (or of fictions if that is what they are) rather than real life.

It was my good fortune to hear Horowitz in recital three times; twice here in Ann Arbor and once in East Lansing. While I have heard dozens of great pianists, and hundreds of very fine quality, Horowitz (and Rubenstein) had a special charisma that was totally involving. His playing had special qualities that were unique to him. He played more quietly and yet was able to send that whisper of sound to the farthest rows in Hill Auditorium. I believe the secret of his power was that he had so many shades of pianissimo. While we clearly here a great dynamic range in these recordings, the compressed nature of recordings cannot capture the full range of what we heard in live performance.

The other thing he had was the ability to not only keep the voices clear in the music he was playing, but to give each voice its own character and sound. The recording of Schumann's fabulous Opus 16, Kreisleriana included here captures this ability to a stunning degree. This recording should be in your collection and studied carefully. While these phantasies are full of contrasts that make listening to them seemingly easy, there is so much quality and interesting music that they will reward as much close listening and study as you can lavish on them.

The other Schumann work included is the "Variations on a theme by Clara Wieck" (who became Schumann's wife and was a superb and important pianist).

The Chopin pieces included here are a wonderful collection of etudes, mazurkas, the two famous polonaises, preludes, waltzes, and the wonderful but not often heard "Introduction and Rondo in E-flat major Op 16". These are all full of magic and will hold your imagination closely. I find myself saying, "Oh, I LOVE this piece" and then the next one comes on, and I say the same thing again and then again for the next one. They are all pieces I have learned to play or want to learn (like the Intro & Rondo).

Get a hold of these disks if you can. Just a number of wonderful listening experiences.

Chopin + Schumann + Horowitz = Unforgettable Playing.......2003-04-12

Volume Seven of Sony's Horowitz reissue contains very convincing performances of Chopin and Schumann, Romantic composers whose music was sympathetic to the pianist's interpretive style.

It was not uncommon for Horowitz to bring to light a rarely played work by a well known composer, which is the case with Chopin's Introduction & Rondo in E-flat. This early composition (probably written for Chopin's most advanced pupils) abounds with glittery passagework and technical configurations similar to his Concertos (which Horowitz never recorded). Under Horowitz's hands, the work exceeds the boundaries of mere salon piece and emerges as a virtuoso tour de force.

Horowitz (who had a Polish grandmother and was fond of pointing out that he was "half as much a Pole as Chopin") considered the Mazurkas to be Chopin's greatest works, and often stated that there was more music in the shortest Chopin Mazurka than in the longest Mahler Symphony. The pianist treated the Mazurkas less as dance pieces than as "dance-fantasies" and his playing of the works was freer than the more straightforward Rubinstein. Highlights of this set include a seductive F-sharp Minor, Op. 59 No. 3.

Horowitz made several recordings of the ever popular A-flat Polonaise, and this one adheres most closely to Chopin's text. The introduction is very sparsely pedalled (as if Horowitz were saying "Look! I can play the tricky introduction without using the pedal to cover up insufficient fingerwork. Take THAT, Rubinstein!"). The remainder of the piece goes with gusto and flair (too fast to be a Maestoso), but he somehow misses the grandeur which Rubinstein brought to the piece--and which Horowitz himself would attain in his last years. The A-major Polonaise is also taken at a fast clip, but this somehow seems more appropriate to this work, and one is reminded of Chopin's remark that if he were able to play the piece the way he meant it to be played, the piano would lay in ruins afterward.

If anyone thought Horowitz, then approaching 70, had lost any of his fire, their worries were quickly dispelled with the Etudes included here. The C-sharp Minor goes at a rapid clip, but unlike many pianists, there is no loss of clarity. The famous Revolutionary Etude is given a more outwardly virtuosic performance then the pianist's 1963 recording, yet somehow the piece has less impact here.

The ubiquitous C-sharp Minor Waltz is from the Boston concert of April 7, 1968. Three days previously, the Reverend Martin Luther King had been murdered in Memphis. At the beginning of this concert, Horowitz came onstage with an African-American minister, and played Chopin's Funeral March in memory of Dr. King.

Horowitz learned Shumann's Kreisleriana in the 1930s, but did not play it in public until 1968. Several attempts to record the work in concert were not successful, and Horowitz came to the conclusion that he needed the peace and quiet of a recording studio to achieve the concentration for a performance suitable for posterity. Horowitz recorded the work at one inspired session on December 1, 1969, and this may well be the most successful Kreisleriana ever recorded. Ironically, Horowitz, who often had trouble holding together a Beethoven Sonata, makes this structurally splintered work emerge as one piece. This is one Kriesleriana which is never rambling or boring. There is virtuosity here, but never for its own sake, and there is poetry in plenty. This stands alongside the 1932 Liszt Sonata and 1951 Rachmaninoff Third Concerto as one of Horowitz's greatest recordings. However, it should be pointed out that this reissue of Kriesleriana uses a few alternate takes, which are markedly different from the original LP and an earlier CD issue (MK42409). Although the performance is basically similar, there are several differences in detail.

Schumann's Variations on a Theme by Clara Wieck, originally included as a filler for the Kriesleriana record, is given a straightforward reading here. It a lovely little work, but it is even more beautiful in its original context: as the third movement from the composer's Sonata in F Minor, another rarely played work Horowitz would bring to light in 1975.

The sound is more than acceptable here, and especially fine in the Schumann works.

Classic Chopin.......2000-11-23

Volume Seven of Vladimir Horowitz's "Complete Masterworks Recordings" ("Early Romantics") compiles almost two discs worth of classic Chopin performances. There's a little bit of everything here -- Polonaises, Etudes, Mazurkas and Preludes, but sadly no Nocturnes. The Chopin renditions here are as good as, if not better than, anything available -- Rubinstein, Kissin, Pollini and Cliburn included. And just when you thought the highlight of this collection was the Chopin material, on come two amazing pieces by Schumann, "Variations on a Theme by Clara Wreck" and "Kreislerania." The latter piece is a particular favorite of mine -- a wild and turbulent, and at times poetic and lovely, masterpiece which Horowitz captures in all its brilliance. In all, "Early Romantics" is a thoroughly enjoyable couple of discs that anyone should love.

Great Performances From the Library of Congress, Volume 22 - Henryk Szeryng and Gary Graffman in Concert

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Great Performances From the Library of Congress, Volume 22 - Henryk Szeryng and Gary Graffman in Concert

Manufacturer: Bridge Records, Inc.
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Ludwig van Beethoven: Sonatas at the Library of Congress
Prokofiev: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 3
Beethoven: Violin Concertos; Bach: Partita No. 2, BWV 1004 - Chaconne
Davd Oistrakh and Sviatoslav Richter - Live at Alice Tully Hall, New York 1970
Murray Perahia Performs Béla Bartók

ASIN: B000BDH572
Release Date: 2005-10-01

Tracks:

Brahms - Sonata No. 1 in G major, Op. 78
Brahms - Sonata No. 1 in G major, Op. 78
Brahms - Sonata No. 1 in G major, Op. 78
Schumann - Sonata No. 1 in A minor, Op. 105
Schumann - Sonata No. 1 in A minor, Op. 105
Schumann - Sonata No. 1 in A minor, Op. 105
Beethoven - Andante, piu tosto allegretto
Mozart - Rondo: Allegro (from Sonata in C Major, K. 296)

Product Description

This disc is the second Szeryng/Graffman disc Bridge has released, and is taken from concerts that the duo gave at the Library of Congress in 1970 and 1971. In his review of the first Bridge CD (a Beethoven recital- BRIDGE 9165) critic Jed Distler writes: Â“In his autobiography, pianist Gary Graffman warmly recalls his chamber music collaborations with violinist Henryk Szeryng. Judging from these Beethoven performances, the Szeryng/Graffman partnership yielded exciting results.Â” And indeed, the exciting results are continued in this collection. The disc begins with the duoÂ’s superbly wrought recording of BrahmsÂ’s G major Sonata- a reading that is notable for its precision and involvement. This is chamber music-making at its best, with both artists playing off each other with inspired spontaneity. The Schumann A minor Sonata performance, called by critic Irving Lowens in The Evening Star Â“the high point of the eveningÂ”, is one of almost savage intensity and impassioned music-making. Szeryng announces two encores from the stage- movements by Beethoven and Mozart, and a cheering audience sends the artists home with Â‘BravosÂ’ ringing in their ears. Henryk Szeryng and Gary Graffman can also be heard on these Bridge CDs: Beethoven: Sonatas for Violin and Piano Op. 12, No. 1; Op. 12, No. 3; Op. 47 "KreutzerÂ” Henryk Szeryng, violin; Gary Graffman, piano; BRIDGE 9165 Brahms: Sonata in A major, Op. 100; Prokofiev: Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 80 Brahms: Sonatensatz; Berl Senofsky, violin; Gary Graffman, piano; BRIDGE 9118

Fifth Van Cliburn Competition: 1977 (Volume 2) [Live]

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Fifth Van Cliburn Competition: 1977 (Volume 2) [Live]

Manufacturer: Video Artists Int'l
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Ballads | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

Fantasies | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

Scherzo | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Compilations | Classical | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000003LLP
Release Date: 1997-10-21

Tracks:

Scherzo No. 3 In C-Sharp Minor, Op. 39
Out Of Doors, 1st Movement
Out Of Doors, 4th Movement
Ballade, Op. 46
Variations On 'Weinen Sorgen, Zagen, Klagen'
Three Movements From Petroushka: Danse Russe
Three Movements From Petroushka: Chez Petroushka
Three Movements From Petroushka: La Semaine Grasse
Fantasy In C Major, Op. 17: Durchaus Phantastisch Und Leidenschaftlich Vorzutragen
Fantasy In C Major, Op. 17: Massig. Durchaus Energisch
Fantasy In C Major, Op. 17: Langsam Getragen. Durchweg Leise Zu Halten

Amazon.com

These are the three medal winners in the 1977 Cliburn International Competition, in live performances from the competition. Steven De Groote is better represented in the previous volume of the series, which he has all to himself. Here he plays Bartók with too much percussion, but at least shows he could bang with the best of them; his Chopin, though, shows great artistry. Alexander Toradze plows his way through the noisy Liszt Variations, but then gives a truly amazing performance of the Stravinsky showpiece, both technically and musically superb and worth the price of the disc on its own. Jeffrey Swann's Schumann is fine, but not memorable. The sound quality of the disc is excellent, the documentation scanty, and the title of the Liszt is severely mangled. --Leslie Gerber

The Romantic Approach, Volume 3: Music from Germany

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The Romantic Approach, Volume 3: Music from Germany

Manufacturer: Celestial Harmonies
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Compilations | Classical | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00000JH8C
Release Date: 1999-06-29

Tracks:

Pno Son No.14 in c# Op.27, No.2: Adagio Sostenuto - Jeno Jando
Cl Qnt in B flat Op34: Fant - Kalman Berkes/Auer Str Qt
Romance No.2 in F, Op.50 - Takako Nishizaki
Songs Without Words No.41 in A, Op.85 No.5 - Peter Nagy
Hebraic Melodies Op.47: Kol Nidrei Adagio - Maria Kliegel
Fant in C, Op.17: Langsam Getragen - Denes Varjon
Qnt in b, Op.115: Adagio - Jozsef Balogh
Siegfried Idyll - Polish National RSO/Johannes Wildner

Album Description

Despite the reputation of such countries as France and Italy, musical romanticism actually originated in Germany, where many of the great composers lived and worked. It is true we don't often think of the Germans as a particularly romantic lot. The precision and intricacy of the Baroque period, the logic and architecture of the great Classical period - these are the traits we expect to find in German musical history. But the fact is that the Romantic movement started in Germany - in German art and literature as well as in German music.

Romantic music is above all emotional music. It attempts to speak directly to the heart. At its best - and in the German Romantics it was often at its best - this music was intellectually satisfying. As this third volume of The Romantic Approach shows, these composers could move their listeners without having to resort to painting a particular image in sound. Most of the works on this recording have fairly generic names - Romance, Fantasy, Song without Words; but we get the feeling that there is more to the music than just one note following another. This is music that can speak to the emotions without dictating which emotion you should feel; in fact, it can evoke a different vision or story in each listener.

This volume opens with perhaps music's most celebrated musical painting, Beethoven's Adagio Sostenuto from Moonlight Sonata, followed by the somber darkness of Weber's Fantasia showing the moody, brooding side of the German Romantics. Beethoven lifts our hearts in Romance No. 2 to happier optimistic Romanticism followed by one of Mendelssohn's Songs without Words. Bruch's most popular work, the weeping Kol Nidrei, is somewhat ambiguous in its key, moving between major and minor. The classic image of the tortured Romantic, pouring out his heart, is captured in Schumann's soulful Langsam getragen from Fantasie in C. Brahms' clarinet, in Adagio from Clarinet Quintet, sketches an intimate portrait of home and hearth, savoring each moment in a reflective mood. Wagner's Siegfried Idyll completes this volume with a musical love letter written for his wife, reflecting on motives from his opera Siegfried.