Beethoven (1770-1827) - Beethoven Piano Concertos Nos.4, 5, Sonatas Nos.30, 32, Schubert Impromptus D.899 : Artur Schnabel(P)F.Stock / Chicago SO -The RCA Victor Recordings (2CD) - Import 2 CD

Credits:

Duo Morat-Fergo (Raoul Morat & Christian Fergo)

Description:

Artur Schnabel (1882-1951) was the greatest pianist of the first half of the 20th century and left a huge mark on the history of Beethoven performance as the first pianist in the world to record all of Beethoven's piano concertos and sonatas in the SP era. 19th Century The heretic and intellectual Schnabel, who emerged from the school of Leshtetsky, a famous teacher who was praised alongside Liszt, was fascinated by Beethoven and devoted the latter half of his life to the interpretation and performance of his works. He was also famous as a score reviser, and his recordings and performances of Beethoven's works, which show Schnabel at his best, were revolutionary performances at the time, devoid of excessive sentimentality and self-righteous interpretation. This 2-CD set was recorded after Schnabel's arrival in the U.S. in 1939, in sessions conducted for RCA in June and July of 1942. The two Beethoven concertos were recorded for the second time, this time with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by Frederick Stock. For some reason, the two piano sonatas were not released in the SP era, and were only released on LP in 1976 (previously available only on CD in Japan).Schnabel, 60 years old at the time, was in high spirits, and although his technique was slightly declining, he gave a free and noble performance with both delicacy and power, a masterful performance that only Schnabel, who had been involved in Beethoven's career, could have given. Schubert's Improvisation D.899, recorded at the same time as the sonata, is an important addition to Schnabel's discography, as it is a previously unreleased recording from a younger period than the famous 1950 EMI recording. Both are newly remastered from the original masters (metal masters and analog masters) held by Sony Classical. The booklet includes a new commentary by Jed Distler. Sony Music

Beethoven Collection List