Yu Kosuge Plays Beethoven

[Todd]

The Japanese always angle for my dollars.  Literally all the time, fascinating recordings of core rep get issued in Japan only, forcing me to to exert effort surfing the web and compelling me to buy high-priced discs.  A bevy of pianists have recorded the New Testament for the island nation with nary a hope of widespread distribution.  Mostly, the pianists are Japanese – no surprise there – though some (potentially) neglected European pianists have also recorded sets designed for consumption in the Japanese market - Peter Rösel and Irina Mejoueva come to mind.  With the global race to the bottom in currency markets still underway, most Japanese recordings are much more affordable now, and since I must hear pretty much any new Elveebee sonata cycle, when Yu Kosuge's cycle was completed early this year, I just went ahead and pre-ordered the last set and the four already released sets.

Ms Kosuge is not new to me.  A few years ago, I spied the first two volumes of her then progressing cycle at HMV Japan, and I decided I should try something before hearing her in Beethoven.  I settled on her recording of Liszt's Études d'exécution transcendante.  While not the best version I've heard – at the time, that would have been Vladimir Ovchinnikov's, and now, that would be Bertrand Chamayou's – Ms Kosuge displays chops aplenty and keen musical sense.  Ms Kosuge is young-ish, having been born in 1983, and she's won awards, studied abroad, counts Sir András Schiff among her mentors, performs with notable ensembles and artists around the world, and records for Sony Japan.  (A bit redundant, I know.)  Her cycle is presented in five two-disc sets, each titled auf Deutsch: Aufbruch, Liebe, Leben, Transzendenz, and Botschaft.  The liner notes, however, are all Japanese, indicating this set will most likely not see worldwide distribution, at least in its current incarnation.  So, how is it?

Disc one contains the first three sonatas.  2/1 starts with a vigorous, taut Allegro, then moves to a slow, beautiful, tender Adagio.  Is tender proper?  Don't know, but it works well enough, though I could have done without the heavy breathing.  Others may find it too precious by half, or otherwise irksome.  The Menuetto continues on in a similar vein, with some nice dynamics thrown in, and the repeatless Prestissimo, taken at a just quick enough clip, with more tender playing in the middle section, ends the sonata in suitably intense fashion.  2/2 opens with a repeatless Allegro vivace.  At times, the playing seems a bit low energy, but at other times it sounds plenty energetic.  Kosuge plays with extremely fine dynamic gradation, especially at the quieter end of the spectrum, but her clarity in the fastest passages is sometimes a bit lacking.  Of special interest is her subtle rubato, often combined with diminuendo playing.  The Largo is slow and generally quite lovely, but it doesn't sound very ''appassionato'' much of the time.  The Scherzo also lacks a bit of energy much of the time, though Kosuge belts out some passages.  The Rondo has a stormy middle section and fun, lively, definitely grazioso outer sections.  2/3 follows the now established pattern: the opening movement, the Scherzo, and the Allegro assai are all at least a little on the lower energy than normal side, though all have at least moments of great drive, and the Adagio is slow, lovely, and at times delicate, tender, searching, or whichever adjective one might prefer.  So the set starts off well, but with some reservations. 

Disc two gets right into the good stuff: Op 31.  31/1 opens with an Allegro vivace of essentially perfect tempo, and the main attraction here ends up being Kosuge's dynamics, vary from very quiet to satisfyingly loud.  There's enough rhythmic snap and fun to make the movement work.  Kosuge then plays the Adagio grazioso very slowly, with a nice mix of beauty and purposely clunky, humorous playing in the outer sections, and a bit more energy in the middle section, and she ends with some extended, quiet chords, letting them fade away to silence.  The slightly slow Rondo has enough energy to satisfy, and Kosuge emphasizes the right hand playing a lot, but the left hand playing is very clean and insistent and almost ''sneaky'' or sly sounding in parts.  It's extremely effective.  Great stuff, comparable to the best available.  The opening movement of 31/2 ends up benefiting from Kosuge's style, too.  In the opening movement, the slow, quiet music is very quiet and very drawn out, creating a nice, brooding atmosphere, and the faster music benefits from wide dynamics, even if it is not the last word in intensity.  The Adagio offers a lot more of the drawn out, atmospheric style, and the occasionally slow-ish Allegretto offer a wide dynamic range, at times nicely intense, biting sound.  31/3 opens with an excellent Allegro.  Well paced, fun, dynamic, it's just right.  The Scherzo is just a bit on the broad side, and Kosuge likes to end some phrases with long sustains that sap a bit of energy, but it's still nice.  The Menuetto is lovely, tending toward tenderness much of the time, and works well.  The Presto con fuoco sounds a bit lumbering and heavy for a good portion of its duration, almost ruining the first three movements.  Still, it's a good sonata, and a strong showing overall for the critical 31, capped by a world-class 31/1.

The second volume, called Liebe for some reason, opens with the Op 14 sonatas.  Kosuge fares very well here.  14/1 is light fun in the opening movement, with some nimble fingerwork and a leisurely feel.  The Allegretto is a bit restrained even in the faster sections, and downright Largo-y in the slower passages, with Kosuge seeming to want to let notes and chords fade to silence before proceeding.  The Rondo offers some more nimble playing and superb dynamics.  14/2 is likewise a bit on the leisurely side in the outer sections, with the middle section dashed off with more than a hint of virtuosity and some willful and fun left hand hand playing and fluid right hand runs.  The Andante starts off with a crisp, jaunty march theme, and the variations follow suit appropriately.  The Scherzo combines jauntiness and at first judicious and then perhaps excessive use of small pauses, but overall, it sounds swell, especially with the both subdued and obvious left hand playing in the coda.  Op 78 follows.  More of the same follows, with slightly leisurely, nuanced playing throughout the opening movement.  The Allegro vivace has some hefty loud playing and dynamically shaded playing.  (Kosuge's dynamic range, and variability and nuance in that range is quite impressive.)  A really solid performance.  The disc ends with Op 90.  Here Kosuge opts to start off playing the first movement in purposely super-sluggish fashion, underlining every note and distending some arpeggios to almost Pogorelich-playing-Brahms dimensions.  It's unique, sure, but not terribly effective.  But for pitch, the effect is rather like listening to a 45 rpm single played at 33 rpm.  Likewise, the second movement is excessively slow, and it doesn't even flow.  There is some lovely playing in places, but next to no energy.  Definitely one on the unique/odd end of the interpretive spectrum.  A mixed disc.

Disc four opens with 27/1.  Kosuge plays with notable beauty and a pleasing softness of touch, and plays some arpeggios with a nice, unique touch in the Andante.  The Allegro is suitably swift and very cleanly articulated, and the return to the opening movement sounds just as lovely the second time around, with a very delicate coda.  After a pause, the Allegro molto e vivace is approached similar to the first Allegro, and Kosuge deftly alternates her focus between left and right hand playing.  The Adagio con espressione is taken very slowly and deliberately, with the left hand playing achieving a hypnotic effect, and the trills just before the transition to concluding Allegro vivace are just wonderful.  Kosuge then plays the final movement with rhythmic flair and verve, except when she plays the slow music beautifully.  A superb performance and recording.  27/2 follows.  Kosuge plays the Adagio sostenuto in slow, somber, almost dirge-like fashion, and she plays at a mesmerizing, steady pace throughout.  The Allegretto, with its leisurely pace, lovely right hand playing, and lilting accompaniment, comes across as  sort of dance movement.  The Presto agitato is generally fast, has satisfying low end heft, benefits from Kosuge's wide dynamic range, and fits perfectly with her overall conception, including her use of long pauses and sustains.  Another superb performance and recording.  The disc closes with Op 101 (again, why Liebe?), and Kosuge opens the first movement slower than slow.  Each note is very deliberately played.  Not bad for a Largo; not so good for an Allegretto, or at least not usually.  While I can't say that this cracks the top ten performances, Kosuge's focus and steadiness pay off.  The Vivace alla marcia is likewise slow, and displays a slightly 'off' rhythmic pulse, but strangely enough, it works.  The Adagio is slower than normal – I'd call it a Largo – though here that doesn't quite matter as much, and it is here that the first hints of transcendental Beethoven appear.  The final movement finds Kosuge playing the fugue quite well and with admirable clarity, but it seems every chance she gets she relishes playing some music slower and softer than normal.  Again, this is a very individual take, and while it's not a favorite, it is intriguing and compelling.  An excellent disc.

Volume three, Leben, opens with Op 28.  Kosuge plays the Allegro at a leisurely pace, and, despite a lack of rhythmic verve, she keeps the music flowing along beautifully, and the loud passages, with even more noticeable than normal breathing betraying the effort, plays the loudest passage without sounding too hard.  A few diminuendos have volume fall off geometrically, to good effect.  The very Adagio-like Andante finds Kosuge playing the melody in slightly exaggerated, distended fashion in the outer sections, while the inner section sounds a wee bit scampish.  The effect is somewhat like Celibidache translated to solo Beethoven.  Make of that what you will.  The Scherzo is more conventional in the outer sections, and the trio, while conventional in overall style and approach, seems to have each and every note cleanly delineated, and Kosuge's left hand articulation is really something.  The Rondo is, for Kosuge, a bit on the swift side, and alternates nicely between lyrical playing, and fiercer, more rambunctious playing, and the coda is dashed off with a big dollop of showwomanship.  Op 79 follows.  The Presto alla tedesca is swift-ish and energetic fun, with every detail again on display.  The Andante is lyrical and detailed, and the Vivace is fun and hyper-detailed.  It is fair to say that Kosuge's playing highlights certain figurations in a way I've not heard before.  The fifth disc closes with Op 53.  Kosuge starts off the Allegro con brio all soft and feathery, cranks up the volume a bit, then returns to soft and feathery and proceeds to play with impressive virtuosity.  Who says one must play loud when playing quick and nimble?  Kosuge displays her broad dynamic range again throughout the movement as appropriate, but she keeps this quieter than normal (presumably using the una corda pedal very liberally) for much of the movement.  Partly due to the almost oppressively close microphones, the loudest left hand passages sound congested and almost like they are poised for overload, though that never happens.  A unique opener.  Kosuge plays the Introduzione slow, and again plays more quietly, more delicately than the norm, to good effect.  The Rondo starts off with the gentlest pianissimo, with a fair amount of sustain, and gradually builds up until at about a minute in, when Kosuge plays with more heft and bite, though even then she holds back in all but some passages.  Her left hand playing, while not prominent, sounds steady and clear – how does she make it the focus of the playing without making it the focus of the playing?   Neat trick.  As in the opening movement, Kosuge revels in the quieter playing, using her outsize dynamics to excellent effect when she does play more loudly.  She dispatches the fastest music with seeming ease.  There's much to admire and enjoy in this recording.  It's more about the trees than the the forest – and really, it's more about the bark patterns and burls than even the trees sometimes – but what beautiful trees!  Unique and enthralling.  A superb disc. 

Disc six opens with the Op 49 sonatas.  Except for a wider than normal dynamic range and detail enhanced by the recording technique, Kosuge plays both of them pretty straight, the doozy of an embellishment on the 49/1 Rondo and some minor embellishments in the Menuetto of 49/2 aside.  Both sound swell.  Op 7 follows.  Kosuge plays the Allegro molto e con brio at an appropriate tempo, but it is all so controlled that it would sound contrived if it didn't sound so great.  Her delicate right hand dynamics on the quiet end, her large scale and heft in heavy passages, the attention lavished on each and every note as she ascends and descends the keyboard around halfway through, Kosuge delivers.  Then there's the Largo.  Slow and largely quiet, with some stilted left hand playing, pregnant pauses for effect, rubato sprinkled throughout, and some chords arpeggiated in a way I don't recall having heard before, she delivers.  The Allegro comes across as sweet sounding and leisurely in the outer sections, and more vigorous and with a somewhat lurching effect in the bass during the trio.  Kosuge then opens the Rondo at a slower than normal tempo, and proceeds to inject all manner of personal touches.  The more intense passages are handled deftly, and as the piece plays on and the coda approaches, it begins to sound like a meandering fantasy peppered with felicitous pianistic touches everywhere.  It's really quite something.  The disc and volume closes with 81a.  The Adagio is slow and stretched out and gentle, and the Allegro is potent, but as played by Kosuge, the movement doesn't really cohere, with the transitions being somewhat abrupt and the flow interrupted and the focus on phrases and notes.  Yet it works well.  The Andante espressivo offers more of that wide dynamic range, generally slow playing, and as before, the playing often focuses on individual phrases and notes more than the whole.  But when each note can sound magnificent, well, that's fine.  Kosuge then displays her chops with a brisk, lively, and showy Vivacissimamente.  She bursts forth, playing some passages at breakneck speed, though everything stays under the firmest of firm control.  Exuberance, verve, drive, all are on display, but Kosuge never seems to miss an opportunity to play with a delicate touch when possible.  The only caveat has to do with the slightly distended playing just before the boisterous coda.  Overall, a superb closer to a generally superb disc and volume. 

Volume four, Transzendenz starts with the Op 10 trio.  (?)  Kosuge launches 10/1 with an ascending arpeggio of virtuosic accomplishment, and while she plays the slower bits just a bit slower than normal, she lets loose a bit more than normal in the faster passages.  Once again, her left hand playing is uncommonly easy to follow without being unduly prominent.  The Adagio is slow and beautiful, and Kosuge compliments largely languid left hand playing with right hand playing that alternates between lovely and deliberate and delightfully dextrous when she plays runs.  Kosuge plays the Prestissimo at a nice pace, and one de-arpegiatted arpeggio side, plays it pretty straight, with plenty of clean articulation, wide dynamics, and individual rubato confined to slower sections for effect, or affect, depending on taste.  Superb.  10/2 opens with a swift but slightly held back, dynamically nuanced Allegro.  In the middle section, she plays with a halting gallop.  The Allegretto includes more of her standard style, and the repeatless (boo!) Presto is all energy and good fun.  Superb.  10/3 opens with a Presto of more than adequate energy and drive, yet Kosuge manages to deploy her normal interpretive devices.  The piano sound is just a bit rounded off, a bit soft, so there's not as much bite as there could be, but whatcha gonna do?  The Largo finds Kosuge firing on all cylinders.  The tempo is slow; the dynamic gradations are nuanced to n-th degree; pauses are deployed effectively; certain notes and phrases are most definitely ''interpreted'' (some might say idiosyncratic); the build up to the climax is extended slightly and very effective.  Only the undernourished volume at the climax could be considered mildly disappointing.  Or not.  The Menuetto is well nigh perfect, with somewhat relaxed outer sections, and a delightful middle section.  The Allegro is pretty nifty, too, with plenty of verve and drive where needed, and some slightly longer than normal pauses and slightly slower than normal playing sprinkled throughout.  A superb closer to the superb first disc of the volume.

Disc eight opens with Op 22.  (Transzendenz?)  The Allegro con brio sounds spiffy.  Nicely paced, with nice drive, beefy bass on occasion, more of that splendid leading from behind left hand playing, and x-ray detail, it gets things off to a nice start.  The Adagio plays to Kosuge's strengths, as she plays at a nice pace with plenty of gentle dynamic gradations, lovely legato and tone, with details gently emerging throughout.  The Minuetto is lovely and flowing in the outer sections, and the trio displays something close to bite, and certainly sounds quite clear.  Kosuge ends the sonata with a very slightly leisurely Rondo, again with each and every note and chord crystal clear, though in the faster passages, Kosuge plays with more pep.  An excellent performance, if not up there with the best.  Op 106 follows.  Kosuge plays the opening movement at a nicely paced 10'38''.  There's less slowing down and lavishing delicately nuanced attention on notes and phrases – though there is still more than normal – but the detailed sound is still there, and Kosuge plays some upper register passages with a flintiness not displayed to this point.  I'm thinking it's purposeful in this meticulously produced set.  While it sounds satisfyingly large in scale and heft, it sounds due more to the recording technique than the playing.  A bit of congestion also creeps in at times, indicating that the movement takes a fair amount of work for the pianist.  I shan't hold that against her.  Except for the middle section, the Scherzo is a bit slower, returning to the standard Kosuge soundworld.  (Truth to tell, I was hoping she would have gone slower and more detailed in the opening movement.)  Kosuge takes over 21' to play the Adagio, and at the outset it is slow and very small in scale, very intimate, almost confessional.  She ratchets up intensity a bit after a bit, but then she backs off again.  The playing doesn't sound cold or desolate, but rather assumes a sense of detached melancholy.  Then, around 12'30'' or so, Kosuge plays louder and sharper, and the playing takes on a kind of desperation, before reverting back, and then, with some almost static playing, and some pregnant pauses, achieving a sense of despair.  The final movement opens with a fine but unexceptional Largo, and then moves into a fugue that benefits from the detailed approach so common in this set, and also ends up having some passages played much slower than normal, though others are more conventionally paced.  The Adagio ends up the strong point in a compelling recording, and the disc is excellent. 

The final volume, Botschaft, kicks off with Op 13, and Op 13 starts off super slow, with the opening chord of the Grave setting the pace, extended out of proportion, and Kosuge adds, to borrow from Zoolander, really, really, ridiculously long pauses for effect.  Kosuge then maximizes contrast by playing the Allegro fast.  The soft-edged sound remains, but there is plenty of energy, if not drama, though, a few times, when she abruptly plays more loudly, hints of bite can be heard.  Kosuge then proceeds to play the Adagio in very slow, mostly very quiet fashion.  She has that talent that allows her to play the music at very slow tempi without breaking the musical line.  The movement seems perhaps just a bit too subdued, but it fits in with the conception just fine.  Kosuge keeps up the slow, slower, slowest approach in the Rondo.  Here it hampers the movement quite a bit.  Sure, one can marvel at the clarity of every note and phrase, so carefully played, but there's essentially no energy.  Op 26 follows.  The Andante sounds lovely and poised, and then Kosuge proceeds to play the variations in highly varied form, slow, beautiful, somber, swift, rhythmically snappy, she covers all the bases, though some of the playing can easily be described as too fussy.  The Scherzo is much closer to conventional in the outer sections, which are played quickly, with superb clarity and drive, and thundering bass, while the middle section offers a little oasis of prettiness.  The funeral march is predictably slow, and largely very somber and funereal, but parts sound halting and stilted, somewhat blunting the effect.  Kosuge then dispatches the Allegro at a zippy pace, with weighty but rounded sforzandi and a really peppy rhythm.  The opening movement of Op 54 ends up benefiting mightily from Kosuge's style.  The minuet is lovely and lyrical, never more so than when Kosuge plays some amazing trills, and the triplets sections are suitably vigorous and insistent.  The Allegretto is fluid is zippy and occasionally hefty and potent, and occasionally lithe and slick, with an incredibly fast and intense coda.  It's one of the best recordings in the cycle.  Op 57 ends the disc.  The Allegro assai starts off slow, quiet, and mysterious, then quickly transitions to loud, thundering playing, before fading back to something more subdued, and at times almost feathery light.  The somewhat extreme contrasts do become somewhat episodic, though not enough to prevent thorough enjoyment.  The Andante con moto lowers the musical temperature as Kosuge plays in subdued and cool fashion through the theme and variations.  She then launches into the final movement with some crashing chords, though they are not ear-splitting, before dialing back the volume, and going for some more subdued playing, before ratcheting up the tension, volume, and speed again.  Throughout, Kosuge rarely unloads, preferring instead to keep things tense and controlled, though when she does unload, it offers excitement and contrast and sounds effective, if a bit contrived, at least sonically.  An excellent disc.

The cycle ends with the last three sonatas.  Op 109 starts with a slightly soft-edged Vivace ma non troppo, but that smallest of small quibble aside, Kosuge otherwise delivers a lovely, spacious, at least partly transcendent opening movement, and the clarity and detail add to the allure.  The Prestissimo has uncommonly wide-ranging dynamics, particularly on the piano to pianissimo end of the spectrum, and manages to sound both forceful and restrained.  The Andante, opening at more of an Adagio or even Largo tempo, is among the most beautiful I've heard, and Kosuge maintains a serene transcendence through the first variation.  The second variation has hints of the 'little stars' section of the second movement of Op 111, and the third is swift but not pushed and the volume remains restrained, and the right hand playing is a marvel of clarity.  The remaining variations, even when played fast, display more than hints of transcendence, with a wonderfully elongated end to the fifth variation that trails off to silence before Kosuge ends the piece with almost static playing.  Perhaps the playing becomes a little episodic and it has an analytical feel – or at least a presentation that makes hearing each section uncommonly easy – but Kosuge holds it all together splendidly.  Op 110 keeps the good, transcendent times going.  Kosuge plays a fair portion of the music gently and with great delicacy and beauty, and her left hand playing, when not displaying that clear but subdued style she commands, simply and effortless moves to the fore.  The Allegro molto never achieves a particularly loud forte, but if somewhat muted in that regard, every other aspect remains compelling and clear.  The final movement starts off with a tense and quietly desperate and subtly beautiful recitative and arioso.  The fugue displays admirable clarity, steady forward drive, and satisfying volume, and then transfers to another beautiful and perhaps just slightly melancholy second arioso.  The repeated chord transition to the inverted fugue starts very quiet and builds up in volume to a decent but not quite loud enough climax, and the inverted fugue itself sounds generally superb, some possible left hand wobbliness just before the coda potentially excepted.  Op 111 starts with a somewhat dark hued but not particularly intense Maestoso, moves to a swift, clear Allegro, though one without a great deal of intensity.  That written, the right hand playing ends up achieving a bright, colorful sound in the loudest passages that is most appealing.  The Arietta starts off in a predictable manner: slow and lovely, and the second half moves into a static soundworld.  The segue to the first variation is seamless, and the playing is transcendent and lovely, with a few spots where Kosuge adds micro-pauses.  The second variation is noticeably quicker and more rhythmically jaunty, which makes way for a vigorous, rich and bright boogie woogie variation where Kosuge achieves a satisfying volume.  As the movement progresses beyond that point, Kosuge enters the realm of the transcendent, delivering dry, pointed, almost fragile 'little stars', with the left hand playing especially delicate.  The trills are steady and played with a pleasing legato, and a few times Kosuge comes close to Yamane levels of quietude.  A few passages seem a bit clunky or disjointed, and though they last mere seconds in total, they do detract just a smidge from the proceedings.  That written, the transition to the coda and the coda itself end the work on a high note.  The cycle ends with an extremely strong disc and volume.

Another new cycle down, and it is something, but it will definitely not be everyone's cup of tea.  Kosuge's style is highly interventionist; it can easily be considered fussy and mannered.  It is.  But this offers an example – like Heidsieck or Sherman – where such an approach works, in contrast to others – Kuerti or Lim – where it does not.  I can see people disliking it as much as I like it.  Throughout the cycle, Kosuge tends to favor playing slowly, beautifully, and with almost ridiculous levels of detail.  This last facet is aided by the extremely close sound, complete with heavy breathing throughout the set, which also ends up blunting the edges of sforzandi and limiting true dynamic range.  At least part of Kosuge's incredible piano-to-pianissimo dynamic subtlety is due to the recording technique.  The sound also seems a bit processed.  This gives the cycle a very studio-bound feel, but that's quite alright by me.  I get the feeling that Kosuge sounds different in person.  As I listened, I couldn't help but think of this set as a sort of updated version of Yaeko Yamane's cycle.  (I realize I am one of probably less than a hundred people outside Japan who has heard both cycles.)  Kosuge's style is personal, exploratory, and feminine.  There's more to Beethoven's music, or at least there can be, than storming the heavens all the time.  If one wants stormy-only Beethoven, or realistic piano perspectives, or harshness, or unyielding intensity, this set is to be avoided.  Me, I dig it.  It joins my second tier with some heavy-hitters in the repertoire.   

[mabuse]

I had discovered this very good pianist during a concert some time ago...

Today, wanting to listen to her recordings (https://www.deezer.com/en/artist/462337), I am glad to find here Todd's very relevant analysis !

Many thanks to him 5 years later

[Mandryka]

Just discovered her Haydn sonata 42! On her Carnegie Hall disc. She's got ideas alright -- it's music I don't know well really so I quite like her ideas.

[Todd]

Kosuge is fantastic.  She has a 'four elements' themed set of four discs on Orchid that may also be worth hearing.

[Mandryka]

Kosuge is fantastic.  She has a 'four elements' themed set of four discs on Orchid that may also be worth hearing.

Listening to Water now - very nice too! 

[Klavierman]

Thanks for bringing her to my attention. I have plenty of Beethoven Sonatas, but I enjoyed her "Piano Fantasies" this morning via Qobuz.