Ludwig 3

Trio Zimmermann - Ludwig van Beethoven: String Trio Op.3; Serenade Op.8 (2014)

Trio Zimmermann - Ludwig van Beethoven: String Trio Op.3; Serenade Op.8 (2014)
Frank Peter Zimmermann, violin; Antoine Tamestit, viola; Christian Poltéra, cello

EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 292 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 162 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: BIS | # BIS-SACD-2087 | Time: 01:07:55

The Trio Zimmermann’s previous release of Beethoven’s Trios received excellent reviews and won them the BBC Music Magazine’s Chamber Award in 2013. This next instalment shows us the ‘lighter’ side of Beethoven’s chamber works. The Trio in E flat major and Serenade in D major consist of sequences of six and eight movements respectively, with minuets and marches reminding us of courtly music from an earlier period. However, they are far from ‘old-fashioned’. The adventurous spirit of the young Beethoven is plain to hear, in the exceptionally creative use of textures, thematic development and formal innovation. In this music Beethoven gives each instrument an equal importance and a highly individual treatment. A first-class chamber ensemble is required to meet these demands and this is exactly what the Trio Zimmermann offer, comprised of three exceptional soloists.
Sviatoslav Richter - Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonatas Nos. 8 & 23; 8 Bagatelles; Choral Fantasy, Op.80 (2003)

Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonatas Nos. 8 & 23; 8 Bagatelles; Choral Fantasy, Op.80 (2003)
Sviatoslav Richter, piano; All-Union Radio Large Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Kurt Sanderling
USSR State Russian Chorus, Artistic Director Alexander Sveshnikov

EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 304 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: Melodiya | # MEL CD 10 00732 | Time: 01:19:37

This live Appassionata, from a Moscow recital of 1959, is one of the most thrilling piano performances ever recorded. Sviatoslav Richter fills every moment of the first movement with intense drama, creates the illusion of total repose in the central variations, and then takes off in the finale with an exhibition of musical virtuosity and ever-increasing tension that becomes almost unbearably intense (and unbelievably fast and accurate). The studio Pathétique is quite fine, and the Fantasy (sung in Russian!) well performed by all but still rather quaint in its effect. But don't miss that Appassionata!
Grumiaux Trio - Ludwig van Beethoven: Complete String Trios (1997) 2CDs

Ludwig van Beethoven - Complete String Trios (1997) 2CDs
Arthur Grumiaux, violin; Georges Janzer, viola; Eva Czako, cello

EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 679 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 335 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: Philips | # 456 317-2 | Time: 02:18:15

Beethoven was the last great composer to write string trios, and his are the finest works of their type. Mozart hardly touched this particular combination, and Haydn wrote quite few very early works which are now completely unknown. In any case, Haydn used two violins and a cello, whereas with Beethoven the standard combination became violin, viola, and cello. These are all early works, expert examples of all that Beethoven learned from Haydn and Mozart in preparation for the writing of his first great string quartets. But far from being mere composition exercises, these are highly rewarding works on their own, and these outstanding performances make the best possible case for their claim to be ranked among Beethoven's chamber music masterpieces.
Boris Berezovsky, Thomas Dausgaard - Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos. 1-5 (2001-2015) 4CDs

Simax Classics The Complete Orchestral Works of Ludwig van Beethoven, Volumes 3, 5, 7, 12 (2001-2015)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Concerto No.1 in C major, op.15;
Piano Concerto No.2 in B flat major, op.19; Rondo in B flat Major, WoO 6
Piano Concerto No.3 in C minor, Op. 37; Triple Concerto in C minor, Op.56
Piano Concerto No.4 in G major, op.54; Piano Concerto in D major, op. 61a (arr. from Violin Concerto)
Piano Concerto No.5 in E flat major 'Emperor', Op.73; Choral Fantasy, Op.80
Boris Berezovsky, piano; Swedish Chamber Orchestra Örebro; Thomas Dausgaard, conductor

EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 1 Gb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 692 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: Simax Classics | # PSC 1181, 1183, 1280, 1285 | Time: 04:23:27

There's a tendency on the part of some performers to play Beethoven's First and Second Piano Concertos as if they were really by Mozart–all elegance, poise, and refinement. Happily, Boris Berezovsky finds the Beethovenian fire burning beneath the Mozartian surface. Right from his vibrant entrance in Concerto No. 1, Berezovsky plays with fierce energy (despite his generally light touch) and a clearly discernible enjoyment. This is matched Thomas Dausgaard's equally electric reading of the orchestral part, which in many ways reminds me of the classic Szell/Fleisher recording. Of course the small-scale sound of the 38-member Swedish Chamber Orchestra cannot possibly equal the full sonority of the Cleveland Orchestra in its heyday, but it's remarkable how Szell's clear textures and crisp articulation match Dausgaard's, who, by the way, is using the new Barenreiter editions. Berezovsky seems to be of like mind with Fleisher, at least terms of his singing tone and mercurial style.
Alfred Brendel, Chicago CO, James Levine - Ludwig van Beethoven: The Five Piano Concertos (1983) 3CD, Remastered 1997

Ludwig van Beethoven: The Five Piano Concertos (1983) 3CD, Remastered 1997
Alfred Brendel, piano; Chicago Symphony Orchestra, conducted by James Levine

EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 725 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 402 Mb | Scans ~ 29 Mb
Genre: Classical | Label: Philips | # 456 045-2 | Time: 02:54:44

Recorded live in 1983, Alfred Brendel's third go-round with these works drastically improves on his previous Beethoven concerto cycles. He finds a calmer, more direct route to the Emperor Concerto, although the Fourth's first movement is still pock-marked with finicky phrase adjustments that pull focus from the music's poetic arcs. Levine provides sympathetic and alert support, yet is much more than a mere deferential accompanist.
Ludwig Güttler, Virtuosi Saxoniae - Zelenka: Missa Dei Patris; Psalms; Capriccios

Ludwig Güttler, Virtuosi Saxoniae - Zelenka: Missa Dei Patris; Psalms; Capriccios (2013)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue & Log) ~ 602 Mb | Total time: 69:59+66:50 | Scans included
Classical | Label: Brilliant | # 94691 | Recorded: 1986-1994

Jan Dismas Zelenka (1679–1745) is one of the most enigmatic figures in the history of Baroque music. Very little is known of his early years, where he studied and who taught him. Born in a village to the south of Prague, he later travelled to Dresden where he joined the court of the Elector of Saxony, Friedrich August I. His position at the court was a lowly one, but he nonetheless composed many works there and his output of church music was particularly prolific.
Rudolf Kempe, Munchner Philharmoniker - Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 5 & 6 'Pastoral' (2012)

Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 5 & 6 'Pastoral' (2012)
Münchner Philharmoniker, conducted by Rudolf Kempe

EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 311 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 169 Mb | Scans ~ 50 Mb
Genre: Classical | Label: Warner Classics | # 50999 6 02303 2 4 | Time: 01:13:47

Major documents from Rudolf Kempe's later years at the head of the Munich Philharmonic. Beethoven's Fifth, that masterpiece of emotional tension, and his Sixth, all vivid depiction of nature, are both readings of maturity and perfection.
Ludwig van Beethoven - BTHVN 2020: The New Complete Edition - Vol.1 Orchestral Music [118CD Box Set] (2019)

Ludwig van Beethoven - BTHVN 2020: The New Complete Edition - Vol.1 Orchestral Music [118CD Box Set] (2019)
MP3 CBR 320 kbps | Run Time: 29:16:22 | 5.46 Gb | Booklet 1.54 Gb
Genre: Classical, Romantic, Choral, Opera | Label: Deutsche Grammophon / Decca

Over 175 hours of music, featuring recordings by over 250 of the greatest Beethoven performers, ranging from Karl Böhm to Alfred Brendel, Claudio Arrau to the Amadeus Quartet, Wilhelm Furtwängler to Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Emil Gilels to John Eliot Gardiner, Wilhelm Kempff to Herbert von Karajan, Yehudi Menuhin to Anne-Sophie Mutter, and Murray Perahia to Maurizio Pollini. Includes more than two hours of newly recorded music including several world premieres with Lang Lang, Daniel Hope and Tobias Koch. Over 30 discs of alternative recordings including historic performances and period instrument recordings. Limited & Numbered Edition.
Ludwig van Beethoven - BTHVN 2020: The New Complete Edition - Vol.3 Keyboard Music [118CD Box Set] (2019)

Ludwig van Beethoven - BTHVN 2020: The New Complete Edition - Vol.3 Keyboard Music [118CD Box Set] (2019)
MP3 CBR 320 kbps | Run Time: 24:30:03 | 3.53 Gb | Booklet 1.54 Gb
Genre: Classical, Romantic, Choral, Opera | Label: Deutsche Grammophon / Decca

Over 175 hours of music, featuring recordings by over 250 of the greatest Beethoven performers, ranging from Karl Böhm to Alfred Brendel, Claudio Arrau to the Amadeus Quartet, Wilhelm Furtwängler to Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Emil Gilels to John Eliot Gardiner, Wilhelm Kempff to Herbert von Karajan, Yehudi Menuhin to Anne-Sophie Mutter, and Murray Perahia to Maurizio Pollini. Includes more than two hours of newly recorded music including several world premieres with Lang Lang, Daniel Hope and Tobias Koch. Over 30 discs of alternative recordings including historic performances and period instrument recordings. Limited & Numbered Edition.
Ludwig van Beethoven - BTHVN 2020: New Complete Edition - Vol.9 Classic Performances+Period Instrument [118CD Box Set] (2019)

Ludwig van Beethoven - BTHVN 2020: The New Complete Edition - Vol.9 Classic Performances+Period Instrument Performances [118CD Box Set] (2019)
MP3 CBR 320 kbps | Run Time: 22:29:23 | 3.26 Gb | Booklet 1.54 Gb
Genre: Classical, Romantic, Choral, Opera | Label: Deutsche Grammophon / Decca

Over 175 hours of music, featuring recordings by over 250 of the greatest Beethoven performers, ranging from Karl Böhm to Alfred Brendel, Claudio Arrau to the Amadeus Quartet, Wilhelm Furtwängler to Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Emil Gilels to John Eliot Gardiner, Wilhelm Kempff to Herbert von Karajan, Yehudi Menuhin to Anne-Sophie Mutter, and Murray Perahia to Maurizio Pollini. Includes more than two hours of newly recorded music including several world premieres with Lang Lang, Daniel Hope and Tobias Koch. Over 30 discs of alternative recordings including historic performances and period instrument recordings. Limited & Numbered Edition.