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Beethoven: Sonatas
Ludwig van Beethoven, Vladimir Horowitz
Beethoven: Sonatas
Genre: Classical
 
  •  Track Listings (9) - Disc #1

Vladimir Horowitz's coiled virtuosity and volatile temperament suit the heroic side of Beethoven's middle-period output. The legendary pianist recorded the Moonlight and Waldstein Sonatas in the comfort of his Manhattan li...  more »

     
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CD Details

All Artists: Ludwig van Beethoven, Vladimir Horowitz
Title: Beethoven: Sonatas
Members Wishing: 0
Total Copies: 0
Label: RCA
Release Date: 4/20/1990
Genre: Classical
Styles: Chamber Music, Forms & Genres, Sonatas, Historical Periods, Classical (c.1770-1830), Modern, 20th, & 21st Century, Romantic (c.1820-1910)
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
UPC: 009026603752

Synopsis

Amazon.com
Vladimir Horowitz's coiled virtuosity and volatile temperament suit the heroic side of Beethoven's middle-period output. The legendary pianist recorded the Moonlight and Waldstein Sonatas in the comfort of his Manhattan living room. His incisive power in the finales and artful voicing in the Moonlight's famous Adagio easily transcend the dry and constricted mono engineering. The Appasionata, on the other hand, was taped at Carnegie Hall in stereo. A tinge of caution hovers over the outer movements, in comparison with the pianist's equally febrile but longer-limbed 1972 remake available on Sony. Perhaps Beethoven was ultimately an acquired rather than a natural affinity for Horowitz, yet dozens of so-called Beethoven specialists would give their eyeteeth for one speck of Horowitz's individuality. --Jed Distler

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CD Reviews

Horowitz is one of the greats - Just not for Beethoven
Music Lover | United States | 02/14/2006
(2 out of 5 stars)

"Vladimir Horowitz is one of the greatest pianists of the twentieth century. His magisterial command of the piano is second to none for much of the Romantic repertoire. His Liszt, Scriabin, Schumann, Tchaikovsky, and, particularly, his Rachmaninoff (not to mention his Scarlatti) are superlative, and possibly even definitive. I am much less impressed with his interpretations of the works of the two greatest titans of the keyboard literature, Beethoven and Chopin (who I will refrain from discussing here). In my humble opinion, Horowitz sounds bored with the sonatas on this recording. It's as if he's playing them to fulfill a contractual obligation, not because he actually likes them. His playing is uneven, uninspired, awkward, and generally disappointing. In addition, the recording is harsh, which makes it thoroughly unlistenable. The third movement of Appassionata, with its strange use of rubato and lack of momentum, is particularly distasteful. I own recordings of these sonatas by Brendel, Ashkenazy, Richter, Barenboim, and Frank, and I recommend them all over Horowitz."
The best for a novoice
jw | New Jersey, US | 04/04/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm not an artist. I don't know how to write a review like other reviewers did. Basically I could fall asleep in a classical music concert.



What I can tell you is I LOVE this CD. Mr. Horowitz has brought me into a world which I never appreciated much. It's soooo good. Every time I listen to it, I'd be amazed how wonderful a pianist could be.



If you have a friend like me and you want to help him learn to appreciate classical music, this is what you should give him.

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