Beethoven's Piano Sonatas

[Todd]

I had a hankering to put together an updated list of all available complete cycles.  By my reckoning, 112 complete cycles exist, of which I possess 104.  Of the 112 cycles, either five or six might not be considered complete since in some cases the pianist died or stopped before recording all sonatas in a given cycle, or in the case of HJ Lim, she purposely left out the Op 49 sonatas.  That brings the total available to either 106 or 107, and my total to either 98 or 99 cycles.  With all the cycles underway, these totals will change.  I also decided to include the country each pianist is from to determine a geographical breakdown of sonata cycles, just for fun.  (Yes, I consider that fun, and yes, I know that it is not entirely accurate since a pianist can be born in one country but become an essentially permanent resident of another country, like Irina Mejoueva or Anton Kuerti, but I took a stab at it, anyway.)  It will be in the next post.

Country		Pianist		Complete		Copy
Lebanon		Abdel Rahman El Bacha (Forlane)		Y		Y
Lebanon		Abdel Rahman El Bacha (Mirare)		Y		Y
Japan		Akiyoshi Sako		Y		Y
Italy		Aldo Ciccolini		Y		Y
Austria		Alfred Brendel (Philips, 1970s)		Y		Y
Austria		Alfred Brendel (Philips, 1990s)		Y		Y
Austria		Alfred Brendel (Vox)		Y		Y
Chile		Alfredo Perl		Y		Y
Hungary		Andras Schiff		Y		Y
Belgium		Andre De Groote		Y		Y
Italy		Andrea Lucchesini		Y		Y
Denmark		Anne Oland		Y		Y
Hungary		Annie Fischer (Hungarton)		Y		Y
Canada		Anton Kuerti		Y		Y
Austria		Artur Schnabel		Y		Y
UK		Bernard Roberts		Y		Y
Italy		Christian Leotta		Y		Y
USA		Claude Frank		Y		Y
Chile		Claudio Arrau (1960s)		Y		Y
Chile		Claudio Arrau (1980s)		N		Y
USA		Craig Sheppard		Y		Y
Argentina		Daniel Barenboim (DG)		Y		Y
Argentina		Daniel Barenboim (EMI, 1960s)		Y		Y
Argentina		Daniel Barenboim (EMI, 2005)		Y		Y
Russia		Daniela Varinska		Y		N
South Africa		Daniel-Ben Pienaar		Y		Y
USA		David Allen Wehr		Y		Y
Germany		Dieter Zechlin		Y		Y
Italy		Dino Ciani		Y		Y
Spain		Eduardo del Pueyo		Y		Y
Russia		Emil Gilels		N		Y
France		Eric Heidsieck		Y		Y
France		Francois Frederic Guy		Y		Y
Austria		Friedrich Gulda (Amadeo)		Y		Y
Austria		Friedrich Gulda (Decca)		Y		Y
Austria		Friedrich Gulda (Orfeo)		Y		Y
USA		Garrick Ohlsson		Y		Y
France		Georges Pludermacher		Y		Y
Australia		Gerard Willems		Y		Y
Germany		Gerhard Oppitz		Y		Y
Germany		Gotthard Kladetzky		Y		N
Japan		Hiroaki Ooi		Y		N
Korea		HJ Lim		Y		Y
UK		Ian Hobson		Y		Y
Japan		Ichiro Nodaira		Y		Y
Turkey		Idil Biret		Y		Y
Japan		Ikuyo Nakamichi		Y		Y
Russia		Irina Mejoueva		Y		Y
France		Jean Bernard Pommier		Y		Y
Luxembourg		Jean Muller		Y		Y
France		Jean-Efflam Bavouzet		Y		Y
Hungary		Jeno Jando		Y		Y
UK		John Lill		Y		Y
Ireland		John O'Conor		Y		Y
Japan		Kazune Shimizu (Sony)		Y		Y
Korea		Kun-Woo Paik		Y		Y
Canada		Louie Lortie		Y		Y
Mixed		Malcolm Bilson, et al		Y		N
UK		Malcolm Binns		Y		Y
Japan		Mari Kodama		Y		Y
Russia		Maria Grinburg		Y		Y
Germany		Martin Rasch		Y		Y
Italy		Maurizio Pollini		Y		Y
Switzerland		Melodie Zhao		Y		Y
New Zealand		Michael Houstoun (Morrison Trust)		Y		Y
New Zealand		Michael Houstoun (Rattle)		Y		Y
Germany		Michael Korstick		Y		Y
France		Michael Levinas		Y		Y
USA		Michael Steinberg		Y		N
Austria		Paul Badura-Skoda (Gramola)		Y		Y
Austria		Paul Badura-Skoda (JVC/Astree)		Y		Y
UK		Paul Lewis		Y		Y
Finland		Pavaali Jumppanen		Y		Y
Germany		Peter Rösel		Y		Y
USA		Peter Takacs		Y		Y
USA		Richard Goode		Y		Y
Greece		Rita Bouboulidi		Y		Y
Germany		Robert Benz		Y		Y
Norway		Robert Riefling		Y		N
Canada		Robert Silverman		Y		Y
USA		Robert Taub		Y		Y
Netherlands		Ronald Brautigam		Y		Y
Austria		Rudolf Buchbinder (RCA)		Y		Y
Austria		Rudolf Buchbinder (Teldec)		Y		Y
Austria		Rudolf Buchbinder (Unitel)		Y		Y
USA		Russell Sherman		Y		Y
Argentina		Sebastian Forster		Y		Y
Portugal		Sequeira Costa		Y		Y
USA		Seymour Lipkin		Y		Y
Japan		Shoko Sugitani		Y		N
USA		Stephen Kovacevich		Y		Y
USA		Steven Herbert Smith		Y		Y
USA		Steven Masi		Y		Y
Canada		Stewart Goodyear		Y		Y
Japan		Takahiro Sonoda (Denon)		Y		Y
Japan		Takahiro Sonoda (Evica)		Y		Y
Russia		Tatiana Nikolayeva		Y		Y
USA		Timothy Ehlen		Y		Y
Russia		Vladimir Ashkenazy		Y		Y
Germany		Walter Gieseking (EMI)		N		N
Germany		Walter Gieseking (Tahra)		N		Y
Germany		Wilhelm Backhaus (mono)		Y		Y
Germany		Wilhelm Backhaus (stereo)		N		Y
Germany		Wilhelm Kempff (1961, King International)		Y		Y
Germany		Wilhelm Kempff (DG, mono)		Y		Y
Germany		Wilhelm Kempff (DG, stereo)		Y		Y
Japan		Yaeko Yamane		Y		Y
Korea		Younwha Lee		Y		Y
Japan		Yu Kosuge		Y		Y
Japan		Yukio Yokoyama		Y		Y
Japan		Yusuke Kikuchi		Y		Y
France		Yves Nat		Y		Y

[Todd]

Cycles by country of origin of pianist:

Country		Count
Germany		14
USA		14
Japan		13
Austria		12
France		7
Russia		6
UK		5
Italy		5
Canada		4
Argentina		4
Korea		3
Chile		3
Hungary		3
Lebanon		2
New Zealand		2
Ireland		1
Spain		1
Australia		1
Netherlands		1
Turkey		1
Finland		1
Portugal		1
Belgium		1
South Africa		1
Denmark		1
Switzerland		1
Luxembourg		1
Mixed		1
Greece		1
Norway		1

[Todd]

For Amazon Music users, the Malcolm Bilson led cycle is available for streaming.  I have no interest in buying the cycle, but I will likely stream it.

Also, Muriel Chemin's three volumes from her never finished cycle are available for streaming.

[SurprisedByBeauty]

Cycles by country of origin of pianist:

Country		Count
USA		14
Japan		13
Germany		13
Austria		12
France		7
Russia		6
UK		5
Italy		5
Canada		4
Korea		3
Argentina		3
Chile		3
Hungary		3
Lebanon		2
New Zealand		2
Ireland		1
Spain		1
Australia		1
Netherlands		1
Turkey		1
Finland		1
Portugal		1
Belgium		1
South Africa		1
Denmark		1
Switzerland		1
Luxembourg		1
Mixed		1
Greece		1
Norway		1

Awesome!

[SonicMan46]

Awesome!

Hi Todd - excellent compilations - thanks! Agree w/ the above!  Dave

[prémont]

I had a hankering to put together an updated list of all available complete cycles.  By my reckoning, 110 complete cycles exist, of which I possess 102.

I only own 60 of these.

Is there hope for me anymore?

[Todd]

Is there hope for me anymore?

There is always hope.

[kishnevi]

I only own 60 of these.

Is there hope for me anymore?

Don't feel bad. I only have 18.

[amw]

I have uh...... six. And ten fingers but that doesn't count.

[Baron Scarpia]

Korea

HJ Lim

Y

Y

Why listed as complete? She skipped two sonatas because they were published against Beethoven's wishes.

[Todd]

Why listed as complete? She skipped two sonatas because they were published against Beethoven's wishes.

Oversight.  Maybe I'll fix the list later.

[Todd]

Where does Robert Benz's set stand for instance?

Fourth tier for me.  YMMV.  I'll have to update my list.  There are up to 111 complete cycles, which is a nice number, however temporary.

[prémont]

I have more than 100 . No sane human being needs more than 10

Well, I definitely feel I need more then ten - so I must consider myself insane.

[San Antone]

Well, I definitely feel I need more then ten - so I must consider myself insane.

I don't know exactly, somewhere between 10-20 - but I keep playing the same ones: Lucchesini, Guy, Tackas, and Biss, although his is not complete yet.

[Baron Scarpia]

I don't know exactly, somewhere between 10-20 - but I keep playing the same ones: Lucchesini, Guy, Tackas, and Biss, although his is not complete yet.

Takacs is attractive, but the publisher has let it go out of print.

[Madiel]

I have uh...... six. And ten fingers but that doesn't count.

That's 5 more than me. Note: I don't mean a deficit of fingers.

[DaveF]

Cycles by country of origin of pianist:

My second thought (my first being what an amazing piece of research) was Ha! you've missed Cyprus, but then discovered that although Martino Tirimo has performed them all (in the Shire Hall in Hereford, of all places, about 20 years ago, most of which concerts I attended) he doesn't seem to have recorded a single sonata, which given the quality of his live performances is rather a shame.

[Jo498]

That's 5 more than me. Note: I don't mean a deficit of fingers.

Which one do you have?

I have barely six: Schnabel, Arrau, Gulda, Heidsieck, Lucchesini, Gilels (incomplete, therefore barely). I also have all pieces (although not necessarily all alternative recordings) recorded by Gould and Serkin and most of the ones recorded by Richter, Edwin Fischer and Gelber. And dozens of single discs etc.
I have put any further acquisitions of that repertoire on hold but at some later time the most likely additions are the completion (or preferably a box, but I have already 5 single discs, so a box would have to be quite cheap) of the Brautigam HIP cycle (they sound very good for historical instruments and the interpretations are also good but fairly mainstream and not really as revealing or different as one could expect historically informed recordings to be, that's one reason I stopped buying more of them) or the famous "standard recommendations" Kempff and Backhaus. I have heard several discs from these last two and so far not yielded to their charms.

[Madiel]

Which one do you have?

Kovacevich.

I do have about 3 CDs of other sonata recordings, but just the one cycle. Getting a 2nd is on my to-do list.

[Jo498]

With the cheap re-issue the Kovacevich is also somewhat on my radar although not high priority as I have his older Philips recordings and about three singles from the EMI where I concurred with the often heard opinion that both playing and sound are a little too much on the aggressive side.