Beethoven - String Quartets Nos. 9 & 10

Quatuor Turner:

Alessandro Moccia, violin
Adrian Chamorro, violin
Jean-Philippe Vasseur, viola
Ageet Zweistra, cello

Lossless: Ape (img + cue + log) = 247 mb
Lossy: Mp3 (lame "preset standard") = 18 mb
Artwork @ 300dpi = 83 mb

Total playing time: 58:50
Recorded 1998 | Released 2001

Recording:
November 1998, Vereenigde Doopsgezinde Gemeente, Haarlem, Netherlands

Harmonia Mundi - HMC 905252

Track listing:
1. No.10, Op.74 'The Harp' - 1. Poco adagio - Allegro
2. No.10, Op.74 'The Harp' - 2. Adagio ma non troppo
3. No.10, Op.74 'The Harp' - 3. Presto
4. No.10, Op.74 'The Harp' - 4. Allegretto con variazoni
5. No.9, Op.59 No.3 'Razoumovsky' - 1. Introduzione. Andante con moto - Allegro vivace
6. No.9, Op.59 No.3 'Razoumovsky' - 2. Andante con moto quasi allegretto
7. No.9, Op.59 No.3 'Razoumovsky' - 3. Menuetto
8. No.9, Op.59 No.3 'Razoumovsky' - 4. Allegretto molto

Info:
"The music of a lunatic": this was the musical public's reaction to the three quartets of opus 59 dedicated to Count Razumovsky and published in 1807, a year after they were composed. It is true that this music is eminently surprising: if ever a work expressed triumph over tragedy whilst marking a decisive advance on its own time, it is the Quartet in C major, in the margin of which Beethoven wrote, "Henceforth, make no secret of your deafness, even in your art." As for opus 74 (1809), it represents (with opus 95) the painful transition between these revolutionary works and what we now call the "late quartets".

Reviews:
Amazon.com editorial review
The Turner Quartet is a period-instrument group that equals more traditional quartets in personality, warmth, and innate feeling for Beethoven's peerless works. They zero in on the right tempo for any given passage, display a comparable sense of structure and rhythmic drive, as well as a masterful sense of dynamics. In the "Harp Quartet," they capture the ghostly opening beautifully, albeit with the clipped-phrase endings that tell you their Beethoven interpretations look forward from an earlier style. The slow movements of both works are done lovingly, although the plucked cello in the Andante of Op. 59 No. 3 is not nearly as prominent as in less understated performances. Throughout, the Turner's instrumental blend is impeccable, and they negotiate the faster movements with admirable swing and precise articulation. Harmonia Mundi's excellent sound is an added attraction to performances that, while they don't supplant the Italiano, Emerson, Talich, and Vegh Quartets, can be welcomed as viable alternative recordings of these inexhaustible pieces.


Gramophone (click to enlarge)

ClassicsToday
Several years ago, Quatuor Turner taped a wildly unconventional and thrilling survey of Beethoven's Op. 18 quartets as its debut release on Harmonia Mundi's Les Nouveaux Interprètes series. Now the Turners are back, this time playing the Op. 74 "Harp" quartet and the last of the Razumovskys with similarly iconoclastic force, in performances that are constantly alive to the structural demands of the music. By coincidence, Op. 74 (with Opp. 95 and 135) was recently recorded by the British Eroica Quartet for Harmonia Mundi, and comparisons between the two are revealing.

With the Turners, you'll get playing that's more urgently incisive. But this bristling ferocity comes at a price, and there are moments when the Turners don't match their rivals' tonal refinement, nor do they explore the textural subtleties of the music so effectively. A key instance comes in Op. 74's mysterious preface to its first movement, where the Eroicas observe dynamics more astutely. But what grips the imagination so completely with the Turner performance is the way the players highlight dynamic and expressive contrasts: the portentous Adagio shocks and chills after the exaltation of the opening allegro and the six variations of the finale also are fully characterized.

Beethoven's sketches for the moto-perpetuo finale of the C major Razumovsky were inscribed, "let your deafness no longer be a secret, even in your art", and this courageous personal resolve and heroism is highly palpable in Quatuor Turner's exceptionally committed reading. There are many superb recordings of this quartet, but on period instruments the Turner Quartet seems unrivalled, and the recorded sound is outstanding.


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Beethoven - The Violin Sonatas [Kremer]

Gidon Kremer: violin
Martha Argerich: piano

Lossless: Ape (img + cue) = 962 mb
Lossy: n.a.
Artwork included

This post is kindly provided by dulcisruby! A big thank you!

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ALSO ON THIS BLOG:
Click here to download the Perlman/Ashkenazy version
Click here to download the Grumiaux/Haskil version

Beethoven - The Violin Sonatas [Perlman]

Itzhak Perlman: violin
Vladimir Ashkenazy: piano

Lossless: Ape (img + cue + log) = 960 mb
Lossy: Mp3 (lame "preset standard") = 329 mb
Artwork @ 300dpi = 25 mb

Total playing time: 239:08

Recorded:
Kingsway Hall, London
October 1973 (Nos. 2 & 9); May 1974 (Nos. 4 & 7); June 1974 (No.5); August 1975 (Nos. 1, 3 & 8); November 1975 (Nos. 6 & 10)

Released:
1988; Decca 421 453-2

Track listing:
1. Violin Sonata No.1 in D major,op.12,no.1 - Allegro con brio
2. Violin Sonata No.1 in D major, op.12,no.1 - Tema con variazzioni: Andante con motto
3. Violin Sonata No.1 in D major, op.12,no.1 - Rondo: Allegro
4. Violin Sonata No.2 in A major,op.12,no.2 - Allegro vivace
5. Violin Sonata No.2 in A major, op.12, no.12 - Andante, piu tosto allegretto
6. Violin Sonata No.2 in A major, op.12, no.12 - Allegro piacevolo
7. Violin Sonata No.3 in E flat major, op.12, no.3 -Allegro con spirito
8. Violin Sonata No.3 in E flat major, op.12, no.3 - Adagio con molt'espressione
9. Violin Sonata No.3 in E flat major, op.12, no.3 -Rondo: Allegro molto

1. Violin Sonata No.4 in A minor Op.23 -I- Presto
2. Violin Sonata No.4 in A minor Op.23 -II- Andante scherzoso, più allegretto
3. Violin Sonata No.4 in A minor Op.23 -III- Allegro molto
4. Violin Sonata No.6 in A Op.30 No.1 -I- Allegro
5. Violin Sonata No.6 in A Op.30 No.1 -II- Adagio molto espressivo
6. Violin Sonata No.6 in A Op.30 No.1 -III- Allegretto con variazioni
7. Violin Sonata No.8 in G Op.30 No.3 -I- Allegro assai
8. Violin Sonata No.8 in G Op.30 No.3 -II- Tempo di minuetto, ma molto moderato e grazioso
9. Violin Sonata No.8 in G Op.30 No.3 -III- Allegro vivace

1. Violin Sonata No.9 in A Op.47 'Kreutzer', I. Adagio sostenuto ; Presto ; Adagio
2. Violin Sonata No.9 in A Op.47 'Kreutzer', II. Andante con variazioni
3. Violin Sonata No.9 in A Op.47 'Kreutzer', III. Finale, Presto
4. Violin Sonata No.5 in F Op.24 'Spring', I. Allegro
5. Violin Sonata No.5 in F Op.24 'Spring', II. Adagio molto espressivo
6. Violin Sonata No.5 in F Op.24 'Spring', III. Scherzo & Trio, Allegro molto
7. Violin Sonata No.5 in F Op.24 'Spring', IV. Rondo, Allegro ma non troppo

1. Violin Sonata No.7 in C minor Op.30 No.2: I. Allegro con brio
2. Violin Sonata No.7 in C minor Op.30 No.2: II. Adagio cantabile
3. Violin Sonata No.7 in C minor Op.30 No.2: III. Scherzo: Allegro
4. Violin Sonata No.7 in C minor Op.30 No.2: IV. Finale: Allegro
5. Violin Sonata No.10 in G Op.96: I. Allegro moderato
6. Violin Sonata No.10 in G Op.96: II. Adagio espressivo
7. Violin Sonata No.10 in G Op.96: III. Scherzo: Allegro
8. Violin Sonata No.10 in G Op.96: IV. Poco allegretto

Reviews:
Amazon.com editorial review ("essential recording")
There are two really famous Beethoven violin sonatas, the Kreutzer and the Spring. The Kreutzer Sonata inspired the story by Leo Tolstoy, which in turn became the subject of Janácek's First String Quartet, so if you're into comparative studies in the arts, there's a thesis topic for you! The Spring Sonata was featured in Woody Allen's Love and Death, among other places. And perhaps most intriguingly of all, the scherzo of the late sonata, Op. 96, turns up quite clearly in the third movement of Mahler's Second Symphony. So you may already know more about this splendid music than you think. Why not take the plunge with these superb performances and get to know the sonatas at first hand? Just as there are two truly famous Mozart sonatas, there are also two sides to Itzhak Perlman's musical career--the flashy virtuoso and the considerate partner. Chamber-music recordings such as this feature Perlman in this second role, one that gets less attention than his other, more sensational, persona, but which for many listeners is even more musically rewarding. Ashkenazy, no mere accompanist, is very much involved in the proceedings, and the two musicians combine to produce one of the finest sets of Beethoven violin sonatas available as well as one of Perlman's very greatest recordings in any genre.

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Beethoven - Symphony No. 6 'Pastoral'; Overtures

Otto Klemperer - Philharmonia Orchestra

Birgit Nilsson: soprano [Incidental Music: Egmont Op. 84]

Lossless: Ape (img + cue + log) = 392 mb
Lossy: Mp3 (lame "preset standard") = 114 mb
Artwork @ 300dpi = 13 mb

Total playing time: 77:20

Recording:
Symphony No 6 in F major Op. 68 ‘Pastoral’
Recorded 7-8 October 1957

Overture: Prometheus Op. 43
Recorded 25 November 1957

Overture: Coriolan Op. 62
Recorded 21 October 1957

Incidental Music: Egmont Op. 84
Recorded 21 and 25 October and 25 November 1957

All recordings made in the Kingsway Hall, London

Released 2003

EMI Classics 7243 5 67965 2 2

Track listing:
1. Overture "Prometheus", Op.43
2. Overture "Coriolan", Op.62
3. "Egmont" - Incidental music, Op.84 - I. Overture
4. "Egmont" - Incidental music, Op.84 - II. Die Trommel gerühret
5. "Egmont" - Incidental music, Op.84 - III. Freudvoll und leidvoll
6. "Egmont" - Incidental music, Op.84 - IV. Klärchens Tod bezeichnend
7. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - I. Allegro ma non troppo
8. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - II. Andante molto mosso
9. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - III. Allegro
10. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - IV. Allegro
11. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - V. Allegretto

Reviews:
Musicweb
Yet more illustrious recordings emerge, proudly refurbished from EMI’s vaults. In this case just a cursory look at the recording details gives many indications of excellence. The performances date from 1957, perhaps the high noon of the relationship between Otto Klemperer and the Philharmonia. The recording was engineered by one of EMI’s best balance engineers, Robert Gooch and was produced by the eagle-eyed (or should it be "eagle-eared"?) Walter Legge. As if this were not enough the marvellous acoustics of the Kingsway Hall, allied to the skills of conductor, engineer and producer ensure that we hear a beautifully natural, musical sound.

It must be said straight away that Klemperer’s ‘Pastoral’ may not be to all tastes. Geniality was not one of the attributes with which one first associates him and, of course, geniality is at the heart of much of this music. That said, the performance has many insights and is characteristically thoughtful and trenchantly argued. In the first movement, Klemperer’s walk in the country is that of a sturdy hiker. The reading may lack something of a sense of wide-eyed wonder but there are abundant compensations. Klemperer is attentive to all the subtle nuances of the score, observing Beethoven’s accents and dynamic markings conscientiously but never pedantically. Here and, indeed, throughout the disc, the playing of the Philharmonia has a wonderful depth of tone, securely founded on a firm and sonorous bass line. The string playing is polished and we can also hear some top drawer wind playing.

In the second movement Klemperer lays before us not a "babbling brook" but one which runs slowly and deeply. The currents move with an imposing inevitability. There is much dignity here and, once again, every detail is keenly observed and allotted just its rightful place, no more, no less, in Beethoven’s musical landscape. This is a deeply satisfying traversal of one of Beethoven’s most lyrical inspirations.

However, I’m afraid I’m in danger of parting company with Klemperer in the third movement where the peasants’ dance is stolid almost to the point of being earthbound. It was of this movement that a member of the Philharmonia allegedly had the temerity to voice a reservation about the maestro’s tempo to his face to which Klemperer retorted that the player shouldn’t worry; he’d get used to it! Well, I’m afraid I’ve tried and I find great difficulty in getting used to it. To be sure, the performance does have an undoubted rustic feel and I do like the sturdy "clog dance" when both Beethoven and Klemperer pick up the tempo (track 9 from 2’05"). At random I got down from my shelves versions by three very different conductors. Toscanini’s 1952 NBC performance is surely too mercurial (he takes a mere 5’01" for the whole movement against Klemperer’s 6’33"). However, Willem Mengelberg (Concertgebouw, 1937) and Klaus Tennstedt (LPO, 1986) seem to be pretty much of the same mind as regards tempi; they weigh in at 5’34" and 5’38" respectively. I must say I feel much more comfortable with their pacing.

I’m much more at ease with Klemperer’s pacing for the remainder of the work. In his hands the storm is urgent and thrilling but, rightly, he keeps the speed on a tight rein; there is no rushing in the heat of the moment. In fact he exhibits a masterly control both of tempo and of dynamic contrast. One small typographical point. EMI’s track listing indicates that the storm movement lasts 8’43" whereas the actual timing is exactly five minutes shorter. However the overall timing given for the symphony is correct.

The skies clear magically in one of Beethoven’s most masterly transitions. Klemperer handles the join to the final movement with effortless mastery. He and the Philharmonia do the serene Shepherds’ Hymn of Thanksgiving superbly. Michael Steinberg has pointed out that in his sketchbooks Beethoven wrote the words "gratias agimus tibi" from the ‘Gloria’ of the Mass next to the theme of this movement, making quite clear to whom the hymn was addressed. It is beatific music and here it receives a devoted, majestic performance.

Despite my reservations over the third movement, and who am I to argue with a conductor who has so self-evidently thought through every note of the score in great detail, I am in no doubt that this is a masterly reading of the ‘Pastoral’. It is the product of Klemperer’s extensive performing experience of the score and of his deep reflection about it.

The remaining items are equally distinguished. The Prometheus overture is grand and splendidly articulated while the performance of its companion, Coriolan is patrician and magisterial.

In a recent review of a CD by Nicolai Malko and the Danish State Broadcasting Orchestra my colleague Jonathan Woolf fascinatingly suggested that Malko’s account of the Egmont overture was "Mendelssohnian rather than Wagnerian". Faced with such a choice I’d have to put this Klemperer reading firmly in the Wagnerian camp. It sounds as if it has been hewn from granite and I mean that as a compliment. I do wonder if the pace of the main allegro isn’t just a touch too deliberate but the blazing conviction and white-hot intensity of the performance sweep aside any such minor reservations. In his excellent and discerning liner note Richard Osborne comments: "No conductor in the present writer’s experience has shown a more precise sense of the balance between the overture’s symphonic and theatrical elements." I would also concur with his judgement that Klemperer’s way with the coda is "no vulgar grandstand finale … but a beautifully paced dénouement in which a sense of aspiration … is nobly maintained."

As well as this splendid account of the familiar overture Klemperer adds three of the other eight movements from the incidental music to Goethe’s tragedy which Beethoven wrote for the play’s Vienna premiere in 1809. Two are short vocal items, both sung by Klärchen, Egmont’s mistress. These are performed here by Birgit Nilsson, luxury casting indeed, who invests these two short items with all her great theatrical skill and presence. The extracts are completed by a brief oboe-led lament which is heard following the suicide of Klärchen. It’s a very moving piece, especially when played with the stoic dignity on display here. These pieces may not be top drawer Beethoven but their inclusion is much to be welcomed.

As I’ve said, the notes by Richard Osborne are of the high standard you’d expect from such a source. EMI’s recording wears its forty-six years lightly and has come up here as if new-minted. The sound is very full and truthful.

In summary, this is a highly distinguished release. Not every listener will agree with every interpretative decision. However, the performances are thoughtful and thought-provoking. These are Beethoven recordings of the highest distinction which have the power both to humble and exalt the listener. They fully merit their inclusion as Great Recordings of the [Twentieth] Century and I highly recommend them.

Classicstoday
Yes, it's mostly slow and sober, but the sheer concentration, textural clarity (notably in the forward-balanced woodwind writing), and spiritual integrity of Otto Klemperer's 1957 Beethoven Pastoral stand the test of time. So does Birgit Nilsson's statuesque, laser-like soprano that graces the Egmont selections. This is the Pastorale's fourth CD remastering, and it sounds virtually identical to EMI's previous 1998 version. In fact, A/B comparisons yielded so little difference that I found myself blocking out the music to focus on sonic issues. As it happens, this Great Recordings of the Century edition boasts marginally less tape hiss and a bit more presence--but don't replace the 1998 transfer if you already own it. The present option's your best bet, however, if you've yet to acquire Klemperer's Pastoral.

Gramophone
This is a tremendous performance, measured, controlled and completely confident ; and in the result wonderfully convincing. It is at least as convincing as Toscanini's though utterly different. Toscanini pushes the music serenely on. He is very close to Beethoven's metronome marks, but, except in the first movement, a little quicker. Klemperer at first sounds almost plodding by comparison. Except in the finale (where he is "dead-on ") he is much slower than the metronome marks, a purist might say too slow. Yet it works. He has all the time in the world as he unfolds this pleasantly long-winded music, and moulds it into transcendental shape. The orchestra clearly sense his high purpose and they have responded with playing that must surely have gratified him.

I found it fascinating to compare this performance, presumably made in 1957, with Klemperer's previous recording for Vox, made about 1952. Both playing and recording are much better ; perhaps of more interest, the interpretation has changed. Rhythms are more rock-like. With more years, he takes more time. The first and last movements, and also the "Storm ", are all much slower. He no longer has any desire to push the players along, and he now eschews such tricks as going a shade faster at bar 53 of the scherzo. He varies his tempi astonishingly little and yet nothing could be less boring. He has acquired a few new tricks : in the development of the first movement each chain of four tied minims starts by dropping to pianissimo and then grows to a climax ; in bars 479-487 he treats all the forte marks as comparatively mild accents (which I now see is what Beethoven meant ; otherwise why put so many ?), dropping the tone immediately after each so that for once the clarinet can be heard ; in bars 133-9 of the finale he emphasises the horn phrases (which I never remember noticing before they are inaudible on most records) to match up with the violin figures a few bars earlier, and he plays the first subject of this movement much quieter and much slower with mesmeric effect. The whole performance is a bit mesmeric ; it persuades you for the moment that this is as good a symphony as Beethoven ever wrote. Which it isn't, not that it matters.

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Beethoven - Missa solemnis, Op. 123

Otto Klemperer - New Philharmonia Chorus and Orchestra

Elisabeth Söderström: Soprano
Marga Höffgen: Contralto
Waldemar Kmentt: Tenor
Martti Talvela: Bass

Lossless: Ape (img + cue + log) = 417 mb
Lossy: Mp3 (lame "preset standard") = 116 mb
Artwork @ 300dpi = 17 mb

Total playing time: 79:31

Recorded 30.IX & 1, 4-8, 11-13.X.1965, Kingsay Hall, London.

Released 2001

EMI Classics 7243 5 67546 2 1

Track listing:
1. Kyrie
2. Gloria - Gloria in excelsis Deo
3. Gloria - Qui tollis
4. Gloria - Quoniam tu solus sanctus
5. Credo - Credo in unum Deum
6. Credo - Et incarnatus est
7. Credo - Et resurrexit
8. Sanctus - Sanctus
9. Sanctus - Benedictus
10. Agnus Dei - Agnus Dei
11. Agnus Dei - Dona nobis pacem

Reviews:
Classicstoday
I've owned Otto Klemperer's classic 1965 recording of Beethoven's Missa solemnis in many guises, from LP and reel-to-reel tape to cassette and compact disc. Yet it's never sounded so good as it does via EMI's latest CD incarnation. Compared with the previous CD transfer, there's more bloom in the higher frequencies, with slightly greater definition in the bass, and the massed voices register with increased heft and presence. Best of all, EMI now gets the whole work on one midpriced disc, as opposed to its two-CD outlay coupled with Beethoven's Choral Fantasy. Klemperer secures stark, weighty textures from the New Philharmonia, whose forceful playing never loses linear clarity. Moreover, Klemperer's inexorable inner rhythm and carefully worked out tempo relationships (try the second half of the Gloria) provide gripping continuity in a work that can easily sprawl in the wrong hands. Wilhelm Pitz's expertly trained chorus is beyond cavil, as are the well-matched and radiant soloists. Not only is this reissue fully worthy of EMI's Great Recordings of the Century sobriquet, it's also quite a bargain. Don't let your collection be without it.

Gramophone
"I must end on a note of heartfelt gratitude to all concerned: conductor, orchestra, soloists, chorus, engineers, for a recording that must take its place on the heights among the greatest recordings of our time. As Riezler so truly says in his book on the composer, before mentioned, "having pictured in music, in the Kyrie and especially in the Benedictus, the self-existent majesty of God and the eternal peace of heaven, Beethoven was concerned in the prayer of mankind for peace, with something quite different. . . the unrest of human existence". This is why "he dared to allow the confusion of the outside world to invade the sacred domain of church music". (Haydn, however, had anticipated him in the Agnus Dei of his C major Mass" in tempore belli".) Beethoven, like Haydn, does not seek to preach, it is not his aim to rebuke directly the vulgarities, trivialities, or worse, and the lack of faith of his age; or, prophetically, of ours. This irascible, contradictory, ailing man, realizing his highest potential, the best in him, warns that man is not selfsufficient. Warfare, inward or outward— and he styles the movement "a prayer for outward and inward peace"—is timeless and elemental. "All a poet can do is to warn", Wilfred Owen wrote in the preface to a planned edition of his poems, and it is all a musician can do. This Britten has shown us in his War Requiem and Beethoven. in this last movement. But that is far from the whole of Beethoven's message to us. Even more important is his blazing confession of faith in God from which our small torches, often barely alight, can renew themselves. This, however we may interpret the message, is the true value of this great recording: we can study the unique work, contemplate it and reflect on it, with wonder and awe, in our homes in a manner naturally impossible in the concert hail. It is after we hear great music that it becomes creative in us."

Full review (click to enlarge):




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Beethoven - The Violin Sonatas [Grumiaux]

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) - The Violin Sonatas

Arthur Grumiaux (violin)
Clara Haskil (piano)

Decca - 475 8460

Eac / Ape (img+cue+log) / Mp3 (lame vbr --alt preset)
Total playing time: 68:25 + 68:23 + 76:35
Full covers & booklet (scan @ 300dpi)

Recording dates:
September 1956 (Sonatas 2, 3, 8)
December 1956 (Sonatas 7, 10)
January 1957 (Sonatas 1, 4, 5)
September 1957 (Sonatas 6, 9)


Track listing:

CD 1
1. Sonata No 1 in D, op. 12, no. 1: I. Allegro con brio
2. Sonata No 1 in D, op. 12, no. 1: II. Tema con variazioni
3. Sonata No 1 in D, op. 12, no. 1: III. Rondo. Allegro
4. Sonata No 2 in A, op. 12, no. 2: I. Allegro vivace
5. Sonata No 2 in A, op. 12, no. 2: II. Andante piu tosto allegro
6. Sonata No 2 in A, op. 12, no. 2: III. Allegro piacevole
7. Sonata No 3 in E-flat, op. 12, no. 3: I. Allegro con spirito
8. Sonata No 3 in E-flat, op. 12, no. 3: II. Adagio
9. Sonata No 3 in E-flat, op. 12, no. 3: III. Rondo. Allegro molto
10. Sonata No 4 in a, op. 23: I. Presto
11. Sonata No 4 in a, op. 23: II. Andante scherzoso piu allegretto
12. Sonata No 4 in a, op. 23: III. Allegro molto

CD 2
1. Sonata No 5 in F, op. 24 "Spring": I. Allegro
2. Sonata No 5 in F, op. 24 "Spring": II. Adagio molto espressivo
3. Sonata No 5 in F, op. 24 "Spring": III. Scherzo, allegro molto
4. Sonata No 5 in F, op. 24 "Spring": IV. Rondo, allegro ma non troppo
5. Sonata No 6 in A, op. 30, no. 1: I. Allegro
6. Sonata No 6 in A, op. 30, no. 1: II. Adagio
7. Sonata No 6 in A, op. 30, no. 1: III. Allegretto con variazioni
8. Sonata No 7 in C minor, op. 30, no. 2: I. Allegro con brio
9. Sonata No 7 in C minor, op. 30, no. 2: II. Adagio cantabile
10. Sonata No 7 in C minor, op. 30, no. 2: III. Scherzo: Allegro
11. Sonata No 7 in C minor, op. 30, no. 2: III. Finale: Allegro

CD 3
1. Sonata No 8 in G, op. 30, no. 3: I. Allegro assai
2. Sonata No 8 in G, op. 30, no. 3: II. Tempo di menuetto ma molto moderato e grazioso
3. Sonata No 8 in G, op. 30, no. 3: III. Allegro vivace
4. Sonata No. 9 in A, op.47 "Kreutzer": I. Adagio sostenuto - Presto
5. Sonata No. 9 in A, op.47 "Kreutzer": II. Andante con variazoni
6. Sonata No. 9 in A, op.47 "Kreutzer": IIa. Var. I
7. Sonata No. 9 in A, op.47 "Kreutzer": IIb. Var. II
8. Sonata No. 9 in A, op.47 "Kreutzer": IIc. Var. III
9. Sonata No. 9 in A, op.47 "Kreutzer": IId. Var. IV
10. Sonata No. 9 in A, op.47 "Kreutzer": IIe. Coda: Molto adagio
11. Sonata No. 9 in A, op.47 "Kreutzer": III. Finale: Presto
12. Sonata No. 10 in G, op.96: I. Allegro moderato
13. Sonata No. 10 in G, op.96: II. Adagio espressivo
14. Sonata No. 10 in G, op.96: III. Scherzo. Allegro
15. Sonata No. 10 in G, op.96: IV. Poco allegretto

Info (from the liner notes):
During the first half of the eighteenth century (and earlier) the vast majority of sonatas for "one-line" instruments such as the violin, the cello, the flute, and the oboe, with keyboard accompaniment, were written on two staves, with the melodic line on top and a figured bass below it, to be amplified by the harpsichordist largely at his own discretion, and supported by a bass instrument such as a cello, a viola da gamba, or a bassoon. The attention was therefore focused on the melodic instrument, the accompaniment being of secondary importance (though of more or less prominence depending on the skill of the musician sitting at the harpsichord). All of Handel's sonatas except one — an early work for viola da gamba and harpsichord — follow this formula, as do several of Bach's. The more important of Bach's sonatas, however — six for violin, three for viola da gamba, and three for flute — anticipate later practice in that they contain fully written-out, obbligato harpsichord parts and that the two instruments are of equal importance. In the second half of the century, when the severity of the contrapuntal style yielded to the insinuating charm of the galant, the earlier relationship was reversed: the harpsichord (or, as the years went by, the piano) became the dominating factor in the partnership, and the violin or flute dwindled to a mere accompaniment which could often be omitted without seriously prejudicing the structure and flow of the music. The earliest of Mozart's violin sonatas are of this type, though those he wrote from 1778 onwards show a distinct, if gradual, reversion to the conception of the accompanied sonata as a true duo.
In Beethoven's ten sonatas for violin and piano the process is continued, and the stringed instrument achieves its full emancipation in the "Kreutzer" Sonata, composed in 1802-03. Their composition spans a period of fifteen years, from 1797 to 1812, and although they neither offer such a representative picture of his attitude to the duo sonata as do his five sonatas for cello and piano (which, though only half as numerous, cover a wider span — 1796 to 1815 — and are more evenly spaced) nor, since some of them were designed for various virtuoso acquaintances and not for Beethoven's own exclusive performance, form such an impressive and inexhaustible compendium of his art as do his thirty-two piano sonatas, they nevertheless include among their number at least three works that are among the very finest of their kind, and for whose loss music would be immeasurably the poorer.

Reviews:
Penguin Guide to Compact Discs:
The performances are wonderfully civilized and aristocratic and no one investing in them will regret it.

Amazon.com customer review:
This splendid three CD box set of Beethoven's complete Sonatas for Violin and Piano features perhaps the finest such duo of the mid-20th Century: Violinist Arthur Grumiaux and Pianist Clara Haskil. They are equally renowned for their Mozart performances and Grumiaux produced a splendid recording of the Bach solo Violin Sonatas and Partitas. Haskil's various Mozart recordings, especially of the Piano Concertos, are some of the finest, most lyrically eloquent ever made. Both musicians represent the summa of music's Germanic core at mid-century in its recorded state.

These three CDs place Beethoven's Sonatas in chronological order, making it easier to follow the progression of his musical thought and the evolution of his style. What one discovers quickly, aided by such splendid playing, is how swiftly (certainly by the Opus 30 Sonatas, written in 1802) Beethoven relinquished Mozartean lyricism in favor of a motoric rhythmic drive and much shorter melodic lines. There is often an expansion and contraction of the musical pulse (much like the intake and release of breath), frequently in the very same movement. This requires rhythmic flexibility, a subtly different, exquisitely free sense of time a la Furtwangler: a trait more common in the 40's and 50's than today's more rigid linearity. In other words, Beethoven had learned how to breath life into his music and Haskil and Grumiaux were positioned to express it effortlessly. That's what makes these recordings so good, so necessary for a serious Classical collection. Both performers are lyrical, capable of great beauty of tone, yet they are intellectual enough to convey the profound musical architecture of these pieces. You will enjoy these performances on several levels simultaneously: they are multi-dimensional performances as opposed to today's all-too-often 'single-note' musicality.

These recordings were made in early stereo between September 1956 and September 1957. They are beautifully recorded, clear and full with somewhat narrow separation. Comparing these to Mutter/Orkis and Argerich/Kremer, there is a beauty of tone and a level of confident music making that stands just slightly above. Beethoven's Sonatas are great enough to merit several different interpretations. One of them should be this set. Most strongly recommended.

Grumiaux interview - Gramophone 1971:



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