Finnish pianist Paavali Jumpannen’s formidable repertoire includes cycles of Mozart and Beethoven, his Boulez Sonatas are critically acclaimed, and he is a vigorous champion of new music. Jumpannen’s scholarly and voracious approach is reflected in meticulously researched liner notes for this fourth instalment in his cycle of Beethoven’s Piano Sonatas. This set covers seven middle-period works: Sonatas 16-18 (Op. 31, from 1802), and 24-27 (Opp. 78, 79, 81a and 90, from 1809-14). These are deeply thoughtful readings, restrained and delicate, less volcanic than is often the case but with absolute technical precision and nuance. This is particularly evident in what the pianist terms the “enigmatic arpeggios” of the Tempest Sonata, which in his hands are more rippling than tempestuous and replete with contemplative pauses. The extraordinary trills of Op. 90 are rendered with high drama and expertly-judged balance between the hands, resulting in a breath-taking performance of this sonata, a precursor of the anguished emotionality that would receive fuller expression in Beethoven’s late works. The recording is rich and present with lovely depth, with a slight tendency to brightness in the upper registers. Listeners interested in these endlessly fascinating sonatas will find much of note in Jumpannen’s… Continue reading Get…

These are wonderful performances, beautifully and naturally recorded, showcasing an artist with beguilingly beautiful tone and rock solid technique and intonation. Beethoven’s cello sonatas punctuate his oeuvre and the two early sonatas were trailblazers (Mozart ignored the cello as a solo instrument: even his string quintets featured a second viola) and it was not until the “middle” period A Major work that the structure seems confident. Oddly, that said, even the second last sonata, composed on the cusp of the middle-to-late period, has a slow movement lasting just over three minutes and it’s only in the final sonata that we find a full blown Adagio. Among many features that impressed me here were the mysterious depths plumbed in the sometimes awkward-sounding opening Adagios of the two early works, (especially the darker G Minor), which can seem like mere introductions in the wrong hands. Other structural tripwires successfully negotiated include the way Capuçon and Braley make a seamless transition to the ensuing Allegros after the opening Adagios and their ability to contrast the consecutive fast movements of the first two sonatas. The rapport between cellist and pianist is impressive throughout, with especially brilliant and spontaneous interplay in the… Continue reading Get…

The great pianist treasured Beethoven’s kiss and incorporated it into his mythology, but did it occur in public or in private?

Novel arrangements see a trio of chamber wizzes shouldering an entire orchestra.

Brautigam's final furlong: The Diabellis are a satisfying conclusion to a superb survey.

A lifetime's experience served up in two hours of musical heaven.

Ahead of her Australian tour, the Canadian pianist explains why communicating with audiences is vital.

Barenboim’s new piano is a concert grand made by the Belgian instrument maker Chris Maene to the pianist’s specifications. It differs from the usual Steinway D in several crucial respects, one being the use of parallel rather than crossover strings. So far this Maene piano is the only one of its kind, and Barenboim has “fallen in love with it”. I hear less tonal homogeneity across the registers, less “blend” as the pianist puts it. The bass produces great warmth, shown off in Liszt’s arrangement of the March from Wagner’s Parsifal. The tone of the upper registers resembles a Classical period fortepiano (“hollow” is too strong a word), which makes it eminently suitable for Scarlatti. I’ve not heard Barenboim in Scarlatti before; he approaches these three sonatas in an unruffled but characterful way. Like the Fazioli piano, which it also resembles in the treble, the Maene seems incapable of producing a smooth, singing legato – rather a drawback in Chopin’s Ballade No 1 and Liszt’s Funérailles – and we are used to more upper-level brightness in Beethoven’s 32 Variations and Liszt’s Mephisto Waltz. The latter is neither diabolic nor exciting, although the tone colours are attractive. Big… Continue reading Get…

An exhilarating concert, led by a vigorous violinist.

The Fidelio Quartet has teamed up with Crohn’s & Colitis Australia to bring comfort to the sick through Beethoven's quartets.

Beethoven completed just one opera, but even that proved a tortuous effort. So was writing for the stage where the great composer met his match?

Freshly renamed, Gill's HIPsters excel on Benjamin Bayl's Grand Tour.