Beethoven: Piano Sonatas Nos. 24 "À Thérèse" & 29 "Hammerklavier"

Beethoven: Piano Sonatas Nos. 24 "À Thérèse" & 29 "Hammerklavier"

Beethoven: Piano Sonatas Nos. 24 "À Thérèse" & 29 "Hammerklavier"
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CD Details

Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven
Performer: Glenn Gould
Edition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 1993-06-29
Music Label: Sony
Soundtracks:
  1. Piano Sonata No.24 In F Sharp Major, Op. 78 - A Therese
  2. Piano Sonata No. 24 In F-Sharp Major, Op.78 - A Therese
  3. Piano Sonata No. 29 In B-Flat Major, Op.106 - Hammerklavier
  4. Piano Sonata No. 29 In B-Flat Major, Op.106 - Hammerklavier
  5. Piano Sonata No. 29 In B-Flat Major,Op.106 - Hammerklavier
  6. Piano Sonata No.29 In B-Flat Major, Op.106 - Hammerklavier

Music reviews of Beethoven: Piano Sonatas Nos. 24 "À Thérèse" & 29 "Hammerklavier"

Music Review: Hammerklavier of Hammerklaviers
Rating: 5 Stars

You should think twice before criticizing any of Gould's recordings. If you don't like them, your first instinct should be to ask why you don't understand them. Gould possessed a musical intelligence so far beyond any of the critics here, even several degrees above that of most world-class musicians and critics, that you risk playing the fool if you utter Gould's name in the wrong tone of voice.

I am going to ignore No. 24 completely here because, although it is a good recording, it is beside the point. Gould's version of the Hammerklavier is not only a good recording, it is a landmark interpretion of the work. It is, from beginning to end, the deepest, most sustained, most conceptually unified version of the sonata that exists on record.

It seems much of the misunderstanding stems from the first movement. Gould's version is significantly slower than most others, and he sits on the rests between passages. Gould effectively breaks up the continuity of the melodic line, and this seems to put people off. What they don't hear is that Gould is showing them the melody within the individual segments of the melody. Gould did not record anything unless he could prove a point, and here he is taking one of the largest and heaviest concert pieces and saying, "No, it is even bigger. I can make it even bigger." It is as if he were taking one of Spielberg's Jurassic Park dinosaurs and, instead of having it fling cars around like everyone else, decided to focus on the texture of its reptilian skin in high resolution. He has magnified an enormous beast by 100 times.

The glory of this recording lies in the Adagio. Here Gould demonstrates that it was not merely his ability to play more notes with more dexterity than anyone else that made him a superior pianist; it was also his intellectual stamina, his ability to focus completely on a piece of music, to deliver a performance of menacing sustained mental concentration. This movement is notoriously long, yet Gould never for a second loses the thread of the material. This is something you cannot get listening passively: you must sit down in front of your stereo and do nothing but listen to the movement from beginning to end, actively following the variations of the theme. In fact, Beethoven in general must be listened to actively; too many expect his music to wash over them like Chopin.

It goes without saying that Gould handles the fugue better than anyone. But I challenge anyone to sit through the first three movements, listening actively, and say that this is not the most incredible version of the Hammerklavier he has ever heard.
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