Brahms Piano Concertos

[Manish]

Hi all,

Could anyone give me recommendations for both of Brahms' Piano Concertos.  I prefer buying a stereo recording at this point rather than a historical one.  Any recommendations will help.

[MishaK]

Lengthy discussion here: http://www.good-music-guide.com/community/index.php/topic,200.0.html

[dirkronk]

Two sets that I think you should hear, both very satisfying in different ways.
Gilels/Jochum: gorgeous, beautifully shaped, slightly soft-grained compared to...
Fleisher/Szell: taut, powerful, but still poetic where called for.

Single performances of #1:
Curzon/Szell.
Rubinstein/Reiner.

Single performances of #2:
Richter/Leinsdorf. Oh MAN, what a performance. However, if you must have another take, try...
Rubinstein/Krips or Bachauer/Dorati.

All are stereo and offer good sonics though some go back to the mid-1950s. There's another set that's impressive, though the sound is a bit more shrill--Serkin/Szell. Have you noticed a trend here, with all the Szell performances...?

Have a great time finding your own faves. Come back for more recs if you ever delve into mono.



Dirk

[Bogey]

Have a great time finding your own faves. Come back for more recs if you ever delve into mono.



Dirk

Your top two for mono would be appreciated if you have a moment Dirk.

[dirkronk]

Your top two for mono would be appreciated if you have a moment Dirk.

Hmmm. This is hard, and we have to delve into historic (read: limited or even drek sonics) editions, which puts it beyond the OP's criteria. For #1, probably Backhaus with (IIRC) Bohm (Backhaus did some good #2s, as well). For #2, Fischer/Furtwangler would have to be up there, though the near-mania of Horowitz/Toscanini should be experienced at some point. However, there are a couple of Solomon mono performances that I really want to revisit...



Dirk

[Que]

Hmmm. This is hard, and we have to delve into historic (read: limited or even drek sonics) editions, which puts it beyond the OP's criteria. For #1, probably Backhaus with (IIRC) Bohm (Backhaus did some good #2s, as well). For #2, Fischer/Furtwangler would have to be up there, though the near-mania of Horowitz/Toscanini should be experienced at some point. However, there are a couple of Solomon mono performances that I really want to revisit...



Dirk

Yes Dirk! 

Yes to Backhaus and yes to Solomon:



The more recordings I know, the more I like these.

Q

[Haffner]

Single performances of #1:
Curzon/Szell.

Stongly agree here.

[BachQ]

Let's start yet another Brahms Piano Concerto thread . . . . . .

[longears]

I like the Fleisher/Szell performances very much, but don't care for the recording quality.  Are there any recent recordings in good sound favored by this community's Brahms PC faithful?

[George]

I like the Fleisher/Szell performances very much, but don't care for the recording quality.

I also have issues with the recording quality. No real pianissimo. However, its sure better than Szell's recordings with Serkin (in sound at least).   

Are there any recent recordings in good sound favored by this community's Brahms PC faithful?

I got the Moravec set recently. I will revisit it this week if I can and get back to you, but I believe its a digital recording. I'm sure it meets the sound portion of your requirements, but I need to clarify my opinion on the performance.   

[MishaK]

Are there any recent recordings in good sound favored by this community's Brahms PC faithful?

The Nelson Freire/Riccardo Chailly/Gewandhaus/Decca recordings which were just made last year (I think) have been very warmly received generally. I don't have them (yet) so can't comment personally.

[longears]

The Nelson Freire/Riccardo Chailly/Gewandhaus/Decca recordings which were just made last year (I think) have been very warmly received generally. I don't have them (yet) so can't comment personally.

Thanks, O.  I just looked it up on Amazon and saw that one of my favorite reviewers there didn't like it, so it's probably very, very good (he has execrable taste).  It went straight into my cart.

[BorisG]

Hi all,

Could anyone give me recommendations for both of Brahms' Piano Concertos.  I prefer buying a stereo recording at this point rather than a historical one.  Any recommendations will help.

1, Kovacevich (EMI) or Douglas (RCA). 2, Kovacevich (Philips).

[val]

In the first concerto Curzon and Szell are my favorite. But I love the color, the deep inspiration of Arrau and Giulini.
Backhaus and Böhm (in mono) are good, but I prefer them in the 2nd concerto.
The version of Brendel and Isserstedt is also very beautiful.

In the 2nd Concerto, I would place before all the others Gilels and Jochum. But Backhaus and Böhm, Richter with Leinsdorf and the so beautiful version of Richter-Haaser with Karajan are also among my favorites.

[Dancing Divertimentian]

Katchen's recordings of both concertos fly under the radar but do make their mark (on Decca).

Still give Gilels/Jochum the ultimate nod, however.

[Steve]

I've just received the Serkin/Szell, quite as wonderfully played as expected.

[longears]

The Nelson Freire/Riccardo Chailly/Gewandhaus/Decca recordings which were just made last year (I think) have been very warmly received generally. I don't have them (yet) so can't comment personally.

Have heard only the D minor from this set so far and that was at the end of a long day, but my capsule review follows:

Wow!

Thanks for the suggestion, O.