Peter Takács plays Beethoven

[Holden]

I don't agree that Korstick's tone production is unmusical. But I suspect if you hear his Hammerklavier the main thing that will strike you is the EXTREMELY slow tempo of the Adagio, which stretches out for nearly 30 min.!

Returning to the central topic, I do look forward to hearing Takács' sonatas, which I've spotted in full at NML.

Yes, they are there to be enjoyed or not.

[Kontrapunctus]

For what it's worth, this set received an excellent review in the new issue of American Record Guide.

[Oldnslow]

Vroon must not have reviewed it then.......

[Kontrapunctus]

Vroon must not have reviewed it then.......

No, it is Koldys.

[Oldnslow]

What did he say about it?

[Kontrapunctus]

What did he say about it?

He praises Takac's ability to play powerfully without pounding, his clean technique, and especially the extraordinarily fine sound.  Of course, certain movements by certain pianists might be preferable, but overall, he puts it near the top of the list.

[Oldnslow]

I agree with that, and Takacs would make it into my top ten.  Not bad for a relatively unknown music professor who  it seems never had much of a concert career. The youtube piece was interesting, even if the interviewer wasn't the greatest. It would be nice if Takacs could at least tour some colleges with the sonatas. He would certainly be a nice addition to our local piano recital series at the University of Washington, for example. 

[Leon]

So this is a good cycle.  A very good cycle.  An excellent cycle.  But it is not a great cycle.  It does not come close to my top tier, which is no surprise.  Between the Buchbinder cycle and this one, I listened to part of Wilhelm Backhaus' first cycle again and was reminded anew how great the old master's LvB is, and how these new cycles jut don't quite achieve the same thing.  That written, I must say that of the four recent cycles I've listened to – Lortie, Buchbinder, and Jando being the others – Takács' is easily my favorite, and if he does not ascend to the highest heights, he's in good company

I recently bought this cycle and was very impressed by the entire presentation.  The hard cover book is an excellent survey of the sonatas and is a real value added feature.  I also liked immediately the engineering, which struck me as a small recital hall reflection, not too wet and not too dry - and a rich piano sound.  As to the performances, I still have not made my way through the entire box, but judging from the works I have heard, I generally agree with the comments quoted above. 

Recording a complete cycle of the Beethoven Sonatas it is almost impossible, IMO, for a pianist to achieve "the highest" standard across all the works.  So, I am not bothered by the fact that some works are stronger than others - overall this set joins Arrau and Kempff among my favorites of the sets I own (which is not exhaustive by any means, but does number around 15).

This is a very good cycle but I definitely suggest that anyone contemplating it should buy  the physical product and avoid settling for the download since it would be a shame to deprive yourself of the accompanying material and the full spectrum of the recorded sound.

[Kontrapunctus]

This is a very good cycle but I definitely suggest that anyone contemplating it should buy  the physical product and avoid settling for the download since it would be a shame to deprive yourself of the accompanying material and the full spectrum of the recorded sound.

It's best heard on a multi-channel SACD system--the sound is simply stunning.