Schubert Piano Sonatas on Brilliant Classics
Jaime Jean
Can you comment on the above? The pianists featuring in this set are unknown
to me (Klára Würtz and others).
Thanks
Jaime
Mexico City
Jan Depondt
"Jaime Jean" <jj...@data.net.mx> wrote in message
news:37eR8.5555$oo4.2...@news.ca.inter.net...
|
| Can you comment on the above? The pianists featuring in this set are unknown
| to me (Klára Würtz and others).
I cannot comment myself, but I have a review (by a contribuant in a Dutch ng)
on my website in Dutch (probably not your favorite language):
http://home.wanadoo.nl/jdpt/bijlagen/brilliant/Schubertsonates.htm
--
Jan Depondt
____________________________
Classical Budget cd's in Holland
http://home.wanadoo.nl/jdpt/
mail: jdptATwanadoo.nl
Jon Butler
played by Wurtz taht appeared on the British web site "Classical Music
Web": http://www.musicweb.uk.net/classrev/2001/Aug01/SchubertWurtz.htm
Franz SCHUBERT
Piano Sonata in B flat D960;
Piano Sonata in B D575
Lebensstrume for two pianos D968
Klara Wurtz (piano)
Klara Wurtz (and Pieter van Winkel, piano) in D968
BRILLIANT CLASSICS 99678/1 (DDD) [78.08]
When I reviewed Anthony Goldstone's splendid discs of the Schubert
sonatas I expressed my misgivings about the quality of Schubert's
piano sonatas. I received some rather strongly worded mail slating me
for daring to speak about the weaknesses in Schubert's works. I was
asked the question as to why I bothered to review music by a composer
that I clearly did not like.
The answer is obvious.
Good music can be played badly and bad music, if there is such a
thing, can be played well. Tony Goldstone's performances were very
fine and I said so. Being a professional I did not allow my assessment
of Schubert's music to cloud my judgement as to how it was played.
And so more Schubert has landed on my desk this time played by Klara
Wurtz whose Mozart sonatas I reviewed earlier this year (Regis
Records) and they were very fine performances full of sparkle, vigour
and vitality.
This disc begins with the B flat sonata which is a work I cannot
identify with. The opening movement is marked on the disc as allegro
moderato whereas my scores call it molto moderato. Allegro means
merry, quick and lively and this movement is not. Counting the repeat
this movement is 481 bars in 4 time and lasts 21 minutes thirty nine
seconds which is 1924 beats making up 1800 seconds thereby giving a
metronome marking of crotchet equals 64 and that is very slow. It is
an adagio not an allegro or even a moderato. The second movement is
marked andante and lasts 582 seconds with a total of 516 beats which
is crochet equals 67 which is another very slow movement, another
adagio.
Therefore we have two successive movements lasting over 30 minutes
which make up very slow and unadventurous music. It takes a lot of
stamina to listen to slow music of this length unless it is of
exceptional quality. An example of excellent slow music of length is
the slow movement of Bruckner's Eighth Symphony.
Consequently, the Schubert is rather anaemic. Not only are the first
two movements slow but lacking in dramatic content. The music is
predominantly quiet. This is often justified by the definition
'serene'. The third movement is a scherzo and trio wanting to be a
fast waltz and is marked con delicatezza and so we have three
movements so far lasting 35 minutes of very subdued music. The finale
is marked allegro ma non troppo which some music scholars say is a
contradiction in terms. Allegro means quite lively and merry. Non
troppo means not too much. This movement begins with accented octaves
G s which stand out like sore thumbs and is repeated in bars 10, 32,
64, 224, 233, 312, 344, 490 and 496. This is very wearisome. It is
repetition and lack of development in Schubert that many of us find
unsatisfactory.
The big opening movement has its main theme some 15 times although
twice it is slightly varied. There are no fewer than 14 fermatas which
hinders the music's progress and development. Apart from the written
repeat of the first 120 odd bars there are also repeats in the music
itself. We have constant vamping of the same chord, for example 15
vamps of the tonic of D minor (bar 82 ff.) and many other examples.
Another weakness is the reliance upon broken chords and arpeggios, for
example bar 140 onwards and so on. Put all this together and we can
see that Schubert padded his music out and how he had no real idea as
to how to develop his material as did Haydn and Beethoven, for
example. Yet it will be said that he wrote good melodies.
But the good news is that Ms Wurtz's performances are first rate. She
has the courage to put in Schubert's 'wrong note' in bar 2 and the
legion of other times it appears. Her attention to details is
remarkable and her fingerwork a source of great delight. Her playing
has an innocence and charm that exceeds Anthony Goldstone's.
I could analyse the B major sonata in the same way but, in the last
investigation the fact is that the performance could hardly be
bettered. Ms Wurtz style might convince me to listen to Schubert
whereas no other pianist has.
The concluding piano duet has a charm.
If you love Schubert, this disc and its companion is for you. For
music students having to play for examinations I recommend this disc.
It is also at a bargain price.
And to the unprejudiced, consider my comments about Schubert and you
may find, as many others have, that he may well be over-rated.
David Wright
Brian Cantin
> jon.b...@yale.edu (Jon Butler) schreef
> op 23 Jun 2002 15:25:27 -0700:
>
> > For what it's worth,
>
> Musicweb loves Brilliant Classics. Let's hope it's not paid love.
Considering that Brilliant Classics go for $1.99 at Berkshire,
if the Musicweb reviewers are whores, they must be cheap whores.
--
Brian Cantin
An advocate of poisonous individualism.
To reply via email, replace "dcantin" with "bcantin".
Jaime Jean
Around $7 a pop... which is considerably more than in the US, from what I've
heard.
"Eltjo Meijer" <spamv...@deadspam.com> wrote in message
news:0jcchugjkei32q8s8...@4ax.com...
> "Jaime Jean" <jj...@data.net.mx> schreef
> op Sun, 23 Jun 2002 01:46:34 -0500:
>
> > Can you comment on the above? The pianists featuring in this set are
unknown
> > to me (Klára Würtz and others).
>
> How much are they in your country?
>
> Eltjo Meijer
> 1m1i...@doo.nl
>
> (a=@=a, 1=e)
>
Margaret Mikulska
per CD, which is even cheaper than at Berkshire. I think you are being
extremely unfair to them.
-Margaret
Brian Cantin wrote:
>
> Considering that Brilliant Classics go for $1.99 at Berkshire,
> if the Musicweb reviewers are whores, they must be cheap whores.
>
> --
> Brian Cantin
> An advocate of poisonous individualism.
> To reply via email, replace "dcantin" with "bcantin".
--
mikulska at silvertone dot princeton dot edu
Ypres
>
>Musicweb is British, and in Europe Brilliant sells for about Euro 1.50
>per CD, which is even cheaper than at Berkshire. I think you are being
>extremely unfair to them.
>
>-Margaret
>
>Brian Cantin wrote:
>>
>> Considering that Brilliant Classics go for $1.99 at Berkshire,
>> if the Musicweb reviewers are whores, they must be cheap whores.
>> --
>> Brian Cantin
We prefer the term frugal whores.
Ypres, whore
Brian Cantin
> Musicweb is British, and in Europe Brilliant sells for about Euro 1.50
> per CD, which is even cheaper than at Berkshire. I think you are being
> extremely unfair to them.
>
> -Margaret
>
> Brian Cantin wrote:
> >
> > Considering that Brilliant Classics go for $1.99 at Berkshire,
> > if the Musicweb reviewers are whores, they must be cheap whores.
Suppose I said(in response to a remark): if Mozart was an idiot, he
was an extremely prolific idiot. Would you then think I accused
Mozart of being an idiot?
The point I was trying make is that Brilliant Classics cannot be
generating enough revenue from their cds to afford generous payoffs to
reviewers. In other words, I was making fun of the notion that
Musicweb reviewers were being bought.
I think I've only demonstrated, yet again, that USENET is a poor
medium for sarcasm.
Margaret Mikulska
-M
--
Joshua Kaufman
>
> Margaret Mikulska <miku...@europe.com> writes:
> > Musicweb is British, and in Europe Brilliant sells for about Euro 1.50
> > per CD, which is even cheaper than at Berkshire. I think you are being
> > extremely unfair to them.
> >
> > -Margaret
> >
> > Brian Cantin wrote:
> > >
> > > Considering that Brilliant Classics go for $1.99 at Berkshire,
> > > if the Musicweb reviewers are whores, they must be cheap whores.
>
> Suppose I said(in response to a remark): if Mozart was an idiot, he
> was an extremely prolific idiot. Would you then think I accused
> Mozart of being an idiot?
>
> The point I was trying make is that Brilliant Classics cannot be
> generating enough revenue from their cds to afford generous payoffs to
> reviewers. In other words, I was making fun of the notion that
> Musicweb reviewers were being bought.
>
> I think I've only demonstrated, yet again, that USENET is a poor
> medium for sarcasm.
Use the smileys, Luke.
:)
-Joshua
--
AOL-IM: TerraEpon ICQ: 5404138
Brian Cantin
> Did you REALLY think I was being serious???
Yes, I REALLY thought you were serious. The reason I thought you were
serious is that I've never noticed you telling a joke before. Of
course, there is the distinct possibility that you have generated any
number of jokes too subtle for me to notice.
What we have here is a failure to communicate.