Mozart piano sonatas

[Todd]

And how does Pires DG match up to the earlier Pires cycle in your view?

Alas, I cannot say at this point.  I have yet to hear the earlier cycle.

[Todd]

First things first: this set is outrageously priced.  I mean, $180 for only seven discs is more than a bit steep.  When I first saw the price on the IsoMike website I was dumbstruck.  The only recordings I buy at (or above) that price point are obscure Beethoven sonata cycles from Japan or Ring cycles conducted by men with the last name Keilberth.  (The latter was really something of a mandatory purchase for me.)   Granted, IsoMike had an introductory price of around $120 or so, but even then I thought it a bit pricey, so I dilly-dallied, and when I went back to buy, the price was back up to its original list price.  I figured I would be priced out the market until a used set showed up, but then Amazon dropped their price to $125 for the set and I bought it.  After all, I did buy Eric Heidsieck's Mozart sonata cycle for the same price from HMV Japan, so why not this one?  (I was none too happy about paying $125 for Heidsieck's cycle, either, as good as it is; the touted SHM CDs are nothing special – maybe SHM really means Super High Markup.)  I know IsoMike is a micro-label, and I know they need to turn a profit, and I know the set is limited (to 2400 sets, based on a sticker on the box), but that doesn't mean I have to like paying such a high price.

Second things second: the sound is quite good.  Superb, actually.  But not necessarily any better than a good number of other piano recordings I own.  The attack and decay of the notes, the tone, the dynamics: everything about the piano sounds just right, and exceedingly natural, by which I mean it sounds like a piano sitting in a nice sounding hall without a hint of obtrusive knob twiddling.  But.  But the sound is not perfect.  There is noise throughout the set.  It's very low in level, and sounds rather like analog hiss from days of yore, but I don't know if it's hiss.  It may simply be the sound of the empty hall, though it is higher up the frequency spectrum than such noise usually is.  It could be something electronic in the hall.  It could be hiss, indicating that something analog was used somewhere in the recording chain.  I don't know.  What I do know is that it does not detract from the music in any way, and is only audible in the quietest – ie, silent – passages.  Should it be there in such an expensive set?  Well . . . 

Anyway, now to the most important part of the set, the music.  Truth to tell, the cycle didn't start especially auspiciously for me.  Mr Silverman's take on K309 is good enough overall, but some of his phrasing just doesn't sit well with me, especially in the last movement.  Silverman obviously knows far more about the music than I ever will, but I know what I like, and this just doesn't capture my fancy.  Since I was able to only listen to this sonata in my first listening session, this made me worry.  Any worries were unfounded.  After this initial work, everything moves along nicely.  For instance, there's a dramatic but not overcooked K311, a work that can easily be overdone.  Then there's K330, which I must say is truly top-notch.  K331 has some niftily delivered variations and a lovely menuetto and an alla turca movement that charms.  There's also a nicely stormy C minor sonata, prefaced by the C minor Fantasia, where one almost wishes the IsoMike array had been moved back from the piano a few more feet!  Even in the most intense music, Silverman keeps things classical, if you will; he doesn't try to make the music sound like it's from the 19th Century, as a few pianists have done, nor does he play it in precious or even fussy fashion, and he certainly doesn't play it in the Dresden Doll fashion of Walter Gieseking.  (Please note that I'm not criticizing the great Gieseking in any way; I rather like his set.)  His tempi tend to be on the leisurely side, but things never drag.  In fact, or rather, in opinion, they move along most swimmingly. 

That's not all!  The late sonatas are all superb, every last one.  And such tasteful, beautiful embellishments in the slow movement of K570.  The early sonatas can, at times, be troublesome, by which I mean boring and too long (I'm talking to you, K284), but not here.  Silverman obviously enjoys playing at least some of this music – and I wouldn't doubt he likes playing it all – as his discreet vocalizing demonstrates (it happens throughout the set), and he delivers some wonderful playing.  It's hard for me to think of a more beautiful rendition of the adagio from K280 than this one, for instance.  And few takes on the aforementioned K284 are more entertaining.

All told, K309 excepted, this is a quite fine set.  As is inevitable for a collector such as myself, I compared this set mentally to other cycles in my collection.  I cannot say that Silverman quite matches up to my personal Holy Trinity in this repertoire – Michael Endres, Walter Klien, and Lili Krauss (mono, Music & Arts) – but the set is well worth many listens.  I'm still not at all happy about the price, but I'm happy to own the set.  Good stuff, indeed.

[SonicMan46]

 

First things first: this set is outrageously priced.  I mean, $180 for only seven discs is more than a bit steep........

Todd - thanks for your usual superb comments, but the price - YIKES! 

I assume the same Silverman who did the LvB piano sonatas for Stereophile?

For me, a newly arrived and 'less expensive' alternative - Lubimov on the fortepiano - just over $20 from MDT - 

[Todd]

I assume the same Silverman who did the LvB piano sonatas for Stereophile?

Yep.  Incidentally, it appears that Mr Silverman will be recording another LvB sonata cycle.  Might be interesting.

[Todd]

Do you like your Mozart piano sonatas played in an almost relentlessly fast, jittery way?  Do you like your piano recordings to sound mostly boxy and resonant, with a blurry middle register and limited tonal reproduction?  If so, you'll love Daniel-Ben Pienaar's Mozart cycle. 

When I played the first disc, I immediately thought of Friedrich Gulda's recording of the sonatas.  Pienaar plays fast, displaying superb technique and dizzying dexterity, and there's an intensity, a nervous energy about the playing.  The comparatively poor sound quality, for a modern recording, also made me think of Gulda's Mozart sonatas (excluding the single properly recorded studio disc, of course).  Sure enough, when I perused the liner notes a bit I saw some praise for Gulda's recording of ten sonatas.  I wonder what Mr Pienaar thinks of the six that were released after the liner notes were written.

While a bit of bite in Mozart sonatas doesn't hurt, such an approach can become tiresome, and that is mostly the case here; Pienaar comes off as pretty much a one trick pony.  The opening variations to K331 – fast and jittery!  K475 – fast and jittery!  (OK, throw in loud as well.)  The opening movement to K310 – fast and jittery!  The closing movement to K545 – almost ridiculously fast, and jittery!  A few slow movements here and there show a bit more character, and K332 is really quite good, but overall the set is monotonous.  Pienaar very obviously can play the music in any way he sees fit, and some may like this approach, seeing it as "fresh," perhaps (I saw the set described that way).  For me, I want something different.  This set is a dud.

[Leon]

Do you like your Mozart piano sonatas played in an almost relentlessly fast, jittery way?  Do you like your piano recordings to sound mostly boxy and resonant, with a blurry middle register and limited tonal reproduction?  If so, you'll love Daniel-Ben Pienaar's Mozart cycle. 

While I don't like those attributes in piano recordings, I also don't like smug and sarcastic reviewers.

[PaulSC]

Thanks for the review Todd. I appreciate your candor as always. Who are some of your favorites for the Mozart sonatas? (Possibly best answered by pointing me to an existing post...)

[Todd]

While I don't like those attributes in piano recordings, I also don't like smug and sarcastic reviewers.

Well golly, Leon, I'll try to remember to keep things more serious for you since you are obviously a very serious person.  What you like is very important to me.  (Incidentally, I'm not a "reviewer" in that I get paid nothing to write.)

Thanks for the review Todd. I appreciate your candor as always. Who are some of your favorites for the Mozart sonatas? (Possibly best answered by pointing me to an existing post...)

In terms of complete cycles, Michael Endres, Lili Krauss (mono, M&A), and Walter Klien are my favorites.  Endres has the advantage of being in superb sound.

[Bulldog]

While I don't like those attributes in piano recordings, I also don't like smug and sarcastic reviewers.

I enjoyed Todd's short review.  He left no doubt as to his opinions of the set and presented his opinions in a interesting fashion.

Most important, he related how a style that might sound advantageous for one or two tracks can become a pain over the long haul.

[Leon]

Different strokes for different folks, (FWIW, which is probably not much to you guys) but I'm never impressed by sarcasm. 

[Bulldog]

Different strokes for different folks, (FWIW, which is probably not much to you guys) but I'm never impressed by sarcasm.

Well, record reviews can be a very dry and uninteresting business, so I appreciate reviews that show a little of the reviewer's personality and juice up the presentation.  Also, Todd gave up quite a bit of info. and insight in three short paragraphs.

[Todd]

Different strokes for different folks, (FWIW, which is probably not much to you guys) but I'm never impressed by sarcasm.

And I thought I was being ironic.  In any event, I'm heartbroken that you were not impressed, given how important you are in my life.

[Leon]

And I thought I was being ironic.  In any event, I'm heartbroken that you were not impressed, given how important you are in my life.

Yeh, I got the point the first time.  I guess I don't care that you don't care what I think.

[Bulldog]

Yeh, I got the point the first time.  I guess I don't care that you don't care what I think.

Don't expect the man to give you some warm feedback after you insult him.

[Scarpia]

Yeh, I got the point the first time.  I guess I don't care that you don't care what I think.

Todd wrote an entertaining review and you insulted him.  Now you think you are the aggrieved party.   

[PaulSC]

Well golly, Leon, I'll try to remember to keep things more serious for you since you are obviously a very serious person.  What you like is very important to me.  (Incidentally, I'm not a "reviewer" in that I get paid nothing to write.)





In terms of complete cycles, Michael Endres, Lili Krauss (mono, M&A), and Walter Klien are my favorites.  Endres has the advantage of being in superb sound.

Thanks, this has piqued my interest in Endres's set in particular...

[SonicMan46]

Thanks, this has piqued my interest in Endres's set in particular...

Todd - I agree w/ Paul above; my collection of these works include a couple on fortepiano & two on modern instruments, i.e. Uchida & Eschenbach (the latter ADORED by the Amazonians!) - but now your high regard for the Endres' recording also interests me; plus, Classics Today HERE gives the performance/sound a 9/10! 

[George]

In terms of complete cycles, Michael Endres, Lili Krauss (mono, M&A), and Walter Klien are my favorites.  Endres has the advantage of being in superb sound.

To me, there's Lili Krauss and then everyone else. Her interpretations are really wonderful.

[Todd]

Uchida & Eschenbach (the latter ADORED by the Amazonians!)

I share the enthusiasm for the Eschenbach set.  It is really quite fantastic.  Endres is better still. 

[PaulSC]

Carmen Piazzini's budget box is the only complete set I own (plus a smattering of individual sonatas). It's quite good, if not consistently inspired. At any rate, I've always been drawn more to the Haydn and Bethoven sonatas, but I know a compelling interpretation of the Mozart sonatas will please me.