Search - Beethoven, Curzon, Knappertsbusch :: Piano Concerto 5 " Emperor " / Eroica Variations

Timeless noblesse!

Hiram Gomez Pardo | Valencia, Venezuela | 08/10/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This version is one the purest , lyrics and passionate about the Emperor Concert . This is not merely a simple reacording . It breaths honesty all the way . The orchestra is so well syncronized with solist and conductor that literally is an odyssey for you to get such commitmen in the present times . There is an invisible rapport , a trascendence sense to leave a step , a clear statement which reveals an intends to express something , but the approach you feel is the final result pf a introspective journey in Curzon as pianist and Knapertsbuch as conductor .

This performance is one of the ten best recordings of the Emperor Concert ever made.

"

Three stars is a gift to this plodding snooze

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 10/04/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I don't want anyone to be deluded by a five-star review that calls this plodding 'Emperor' passionate. Leaving aside the listless finale, where Knappertsbusch loses all energy and the pianist must fall back on note-spinning, the overal thrust of Curzon's reading is elegant and gentle. In other words, there's no thrust at all. He's a lovely pianist in many works, but his inwardness is ill-suited to Beethoven. The opening few bars are promising, and Knappertsbusch isn't totally asleep at the wheel. There's poetic phrasing from Curzon in the slow movement, when he can retreat into is own world. Otherwise, this dull recording, in equally dull sound, is a misfire."