Mozart Complete Piano Concerto

Volume 4 of the complete survey of Mozart's Piano Concertos undertaken by Naxos in the late 1980s and early 1990s contains two of his most-loved works, masterpieces both. This particular CD was recorded in the Italian Institute in Budapest and produced by Ibolya Tóth (her recordings are almost always entirely splendid) in October 1989. Piano Concerto No.23 in A major, K488 is often regarded as one of Mozart's sunniest compositions, but the central Adagio is deep and complex, and the piano part is equally balanced with the orchestra, making the Concerto work on several levels.

This disc, like the others in this series featuring pianist Jeno Jando, is a world-class recording. Mozart would complete twenty-seven concertos for piano and orchestra during his lifetime, many of them the greatest works for that idiom ever created. No. 25 was Mozart's most symphonic effort in the genre he revolutionized during the 1780s. In many of these brilliant concertos, he pitched the piano and orchestra against each other, but in this masterwork they work together as one instrument to produce something extraordinary, even for Mozart. Concerto No. 16 is also a pleasure to hear, the first movement especially. The thoughtful rondo for piano in A major at the end of this disc is a nice extra that Jando plays wonderfully.

This box set packages the prizewinning complete edition of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart s piano concertos which were recorded with Christian Zacharias and the Chamber Orchestra of Lausanne over the past 12 years.
With his distinctive combination of integrity, unique style, surpassing linguistic expressiveness, deep musical insight and assured artistic instinct paired with his charismatic and captivating personality, Christian Zacharias has made a name for himself not only as one of the world s leading pianists and conductors, but also as a musical thinker. Beginning as a pianist and later moving on to work as a conductor as well, his international career burgeoned through numerous widely acclaimed concerts with the world s leading orchestras, renowned conductors not to mention several awards and recordings.

No classical music collection would be complete without the music of the divine Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart! For this installment of the Premium Composers Series, two of the brightest jewels from the hänssler CLASSIC catalogue have been selected. Both of these recordings of Mozart Piano Concertos by Ivan Moravec and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields with Sir Neville Marriner received global acclaim, and remain among the most perfect interpretations of Mozart's Piano Concertos committed to disc!

For those new to Mendelssohn's music, this might look like a recording of some major works of the composer; be aware that they're virtually unknown music of Mendelssohn's early teens, first published in complete form only in 1999. For those already a fan of Mendelssohn, however, they're very intriguing works that show the developing talents of the young composer in a different light than do the set of twelve-string symphonies that are his most frequently performed works of the period.

Recorded over 13 years between 1975 and 1988, Murray Perahia's cycle of the complete piano concertos of Mozart, including the concert rondos and double concertos, remains perhaps the most enduring monument to his art. What is it about Perahia's art, some skeptics might ask, that is worth enduring? For one thing, as this 12-disc set amply demonstrates, there is his incredible tone.

This gargantuan 35-disc set of Alfred Brendel's complete Vox, Turnabout, and Vanguard recordings released in late 2008, concurrent with his retirement from concert life, will be mandatory listening for anyone who reveres the Austrian virtuoso. When these recordings were made between 1955 and 1975, Brendel was at the start of his international career, and his performances here have a fire, energy, and a drama that his later recordings sometimes lack. Brendel devotees, however, may also find his performances lack the intellectual rigor of his middle period recordings and the poetic depths of his later recordings. Compare his demonic account of Mozart's Twentieth Concerto here, for instance, with his more elegant later account. The difference is clear.

Celebrating the 100th Birthday of the “troubadour of the keyboard”, Géza Anda on November 19th, we present a limited edition 17-CD set including memorable recordings of Bartók, Brahms and Schumann, a pioneering Mozart concerto cycle conducted from the piano, and the Beethoven ‘Triple’ Concerto with Wolfgang Schneiderhan and Pierre Fournier.