Search - Bela Bartok, Bernard Haitink, Colin Davis :: Bartók: Concertos

Still a contender

Bruce Hodges | New York, NY | 05/02/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is not only a great Bartok collection but an outstanding value, with a lot of music packed onto two discs. While I do love Pollini's thunderous, hammering version of the First Piano Concerto (with Abbado and Chicago), this one is perhaps better balanced. Kovacevich is superb in all three of these pieces, and the orchestral accompaniment, led by the brilliant Sir Colin Davis, is terrific. Henryk Szeryng is also in spectacular form in the Violin Concerto, playing with great feeling, not to mention the sheer beauty of the sound of his instrument. His partners here are Bernard Haitink and the Concertgebouw, one of the great conductor/orchestra teams ever. And after all these fireworks, we still get an arresting performance of the Concerto for Orchestra, showing off Haitink and the Concertgebouw at their most precise and luminous. A confession up front: I have about a dozen versions of this piece, including the brand-new one from Chailly with the same orchestra, which is certainly spectacular. I would also hate to give up recordings by Solti and Chicago (not to mention Solti and the London Symphony Orchestra), the great Cleveland Orchestra with Christoph von Dohnanyi, and Dutoit with Montreal, whose technicolor reading works very well. I also treasure the vivid, fiery interpretation from Mariss Jansons and the Oslo Philharmonic.Even considering all of these, this performance from the mid-1960's still sounds excellent. And again, it gives an exciting glimpse of the quality of music-making by Haitink and this orchestra during that period. A great recording AND a bargain."

A Bartók feast

Alejandra Vernon | Long Beach, California | 04/02/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you like Bartók, you'll love this, and if you just want to round out your classical collection with one CD of his, this is the one ! You'll get over 2 1/2 hours of superb performances in one 2-disc jewel case.Piano concertos # 1 and # 2 are difficult to listen to at first if you're not used to this type of music...Bartók wrote these pieces for himself to perform, and he must have enjoyed a challenge. The speed and complexity are mind-boggling. # 3 is a much easier ride...written shortly before his death (he wrote this one for his wife to perform), it's much more melodic and gentle on the ears. Stephen Kovacevich is brilliant as the soloist in all 3 pieces, and they're conducted masterfully by Colin Davis.My favorite in this collection is the 2nd violin concerto, and this is a lyrical, beautiful rendition of this gorgeous composition. Henryk Szeryng's performance is exquisite, and it's wonderfully conducted by Bernard Haitink, who also does the final piece, Bartók's most famous and most often played, the rousing "Concerto for Orchestra"."

Best Performance of Bartok piano concertos

Alejandra Vernon | 07/10/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Unfortunately I have never heard Donohoe/Rattle recording on Bartok piano concertos, but I've heard Andras Schiff on teldec, Maurizio Pollini (No.1&2 only) on DG, Yefim Bronfman on Sony, and Martha Argerich (No.3 only) on EMI, so far. Among these seemingly splendid recordings, this recording by then-young Kovacevich is a really best-buy. I feel he gives sometimes a boring performance and shows a little bit poor techniques especially recently, but here his performance is very fresh and filled with the musical momentum."