# Let's talk about Beethoven's piano concertos



## Razumovskymas (Sep 20, 2016)

Aren't they just wonderful!!! All five of them!

What all other piano concerto's lack in modesty (especially post Beethoven) Beethoven makes up without compromising on genius and bravura. Ok, modesty and bravura aren't exactly complementary but yet Beethoven's piano concertos do exactly combine these two.

Also I was going to ask recommendations of a cycle with lot's of energy and dynamics something in the style of Toscanini, but then I find out there are recordings of Toscanini conducting the concertos (still have to listen to them though). Any way, any recommendations are welcome.

greetings to you all!


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## Razumovskymas (Sep 20, 2016)

I forgot to mention the lack of (classical) elegance in post Beethoven concerto's which Beethoven again seems to effortlessly (we know it's not effortlessly with Beethoven but he definitely makes it sounds like that) make up without compromising on bravura..... BINGO: another impossible combination! :tiphat:


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## beetzart (Dec 30, 2009)

I agree, amazing pieces of music. I've been listening Gould's rendition of late mainly, very enjoyable.


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## MarkW (Feb 16, 2015)

An excellent cycle with no real dead spots is the Fleisher/Szell/Cleveland one from the late 1960s.


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## Olias (Nov 18, 2010)

If you would like a cycle on period pianofortes then I highly recommend this one:


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## wkasimer (Jun 5, 2017)

The ones that have stayed in my collection are Brendel/Levine, Schiff/Haitink, and Bronfman/Zinman. For HIP, I love Arthur Schoonderwoerd's set, but it's played by a very small orchestra, which isn't to all tastes.


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## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

I've liked Kovacevich/Davis for some time, mostly in Nos. 1-4. For the Emperor, I'll usually reach for Fleisher/Szell.

1-4 can be had on a cheap Philips double...

https://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Co...=sr_1_6?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1543111022&sr=1-6


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## SONNET CLV (May 31, 2014)

Too, these Beethoven concertos are the sorts of works well worth exploring in alternative versions since one never quite gets tired of hearing them, and each new hearing reveals something more.


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Serkin, Barenboim ( first recording) Perahia, Lupu, Zimerman and recently Leif Ove Andsnes.


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## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

The cycles I have:

Kovacevich 1
Serkin
Gould
Ashkenazy 1
Fleisher
Kempff (both mono and stereo)
Perahia
Barenboim 1
All certainly worth hearing in these endlessly fascinating works.


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## david johnson (Jun 25, 2007)

I have: Barenboim/Klemperer, Backhaus/Schmidt-Isserstedt, and a few singles. It's all good.


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## Razumovskymas (Sep 20, 2016)

Thanks all for the recommendations!

I'm only familiar with the Gould cycle (which I like) and then I have Frank Braley's recording of concerto no 4. He won the Queen Elisabeth competition 1991 with that concerto, that recording is a bit too subtle to my taste, but how cool to win a competition with a Beethoven concerto; now it's all Rach 3 if you want to win a competition. And yesterday I listened to some Toscanini on youtube and that was what I expected: the power I want in Beethoven but a little too fast now and then.

Lot's more to choose from!!


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

I have (some picked up as part of large box sets):

Rubinstein x 3 (and some one-offs)
Perahia
Weissenberg/Karajan
Fleisher
Barenboim/Klemperer

A variety of individual recordings.

Fleisher Szell may be imprinted more deeply than any other classical album. I bought it on LP when my entire classical library was less than a foot wide, and I listened to it a lot. I am hoping that the recent Szell box improves the sound over my early budget CDs.

I need to spend some more time with Perahia.


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## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

The only time Toscanini recorded Beethoven 4 was with Serkin. It is available but the recording is poor


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## Merl (Jul 28, 2016)

Im gonna throw Berzovsky / Dausgaard into this debate. Excellent recordings. Highly recommended.


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## Enthusiast (Mar 5, 2016)

I certainly agree about Serkin, Kempff and Kovacevich. I have never really got on with the Barenboim/Klemperer recordings - there was real chemistry and electricity there but dourness and the slow speed kills the works for me. I do like the set that Aimard made with Harnoncourt and I also greatly enjoy Sudbin with Vanska. And I also enjoyed the set that Andsnes made with the Mahler CO (no conductor). Then there was Solomon. I'm not sure whether any of these are Toscanini-like. I suspect not.


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## jdec (Mar 23, 2013)

No love for Zimerman/Bernstein/VPO? Their 3rd/4th concerti are my favorite versions.


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## merlinus (Apr 12, 2014)

Michelangeli/Giulini -- 1, 3, and 5. Gould is also excellent.


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

Gould's Emperor sounds great! I'll grab that set. The Zimerman set is out of print, unfortunately.


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## wkasimer (Jun 5, 2017)

DavidA said:


> The cycles I have:
> 
> Kovacevich 1


Kovacevich's second traversal, on which he plays and conducts the Australian Chamber Orchestra, is even better than the earlier cycle with Davis.


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## Zhdanov (Feb 16, 2016)

Beethoven 3rd - Richter, Sanderling & Wiener SO:


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## APL (Oct 27, 2018)

My two favourite cycles
F. Gulda/ H. Stein 1970

Pollini/Böhm, Jochum DG edition


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## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

Fleisher & Szell. 60 years and still going strong.

But what about the 6th concerto? The transcription Beethoven made of the violin concerto? That's not well-known, but should be. It's beautiful. I like this one, and the Schmidt coupling is brilliantly appropriate.


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## Dimace (Oct 19, 2018)

Enthusiast said:


> I certainly agree about Serkin, Kempff and Kovacevich. I have never really got on with the Barenboim/Klemperer recordings - there was real chemistry and electricity there but dourness and the slow speed kills the works for me. I do like the set that Aimard made with Harnoncourt and I also greatly enjoy Sudbin with Vanska. And I also enjoyed the set that Andsnes made with the Mahler CO (no conductor). Then there was Solomon. I'm not sure whether any of these are Toscanini-like. I suspect not.


Serkin is THE KING! Try also *Yukio Yokoyama's edition* and see how a Japan pianist can blow you into the air. SUPER!!!

(sacd hybrid or not... I'm not sure)


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## WildThing (Feb 21, 2017)

Are there any good historic (pre-stereo) recordings out there besides the Kempff?


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## Jhawn55 (Nov 28, 2018)

They’re all beautiful. The 4th is my favorite by far. Attended the Beethoven competition in Indpls over 25 years ago. I heard the 4th piano concerto three times in succession. Slight differences in performance, but every performance was beautiful. I never tire of this amazing work.


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## wkasimer (Jun 5, 2017)

WildThing said:


> Are there any good historic (pre-stereo) recordings out there besides the Kempff?


Schnabel's recordings from the 1930's.


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## Haydn man (Jan 25, 2014)

I will give the Perahia/Haitink cycle another recommendation


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## Mifek (Jul 28, 2018)

jdec said:


> No love for Zimerman/Bernstein/VPO? Their 3rd/4th concerti are my favorite versions.


Seconded. I love their version of the 3rd concerto, and the whole box set is truly excellent.


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## Josquin13 (Nov 7, 2017)

I've decided to write two posts for this thread--the first will be a summation of the best complete Beethoven Piano Concerto 1-5 cycles I've heard (most of them box sets), and the second, a list of some of my favorite individual recordings for each concerto:

I agree that these are "wonderful" works. They're among my favorite music by Beethoven, as I never tire of hearing them. The Piano Concertos 1-5 (& Choral Fantasia) are among the music that I think Beethoven would have been most proud of, within his opus. They're remarkable, each in their own way, I agree, "all five of them".

I'm not sure which set is the most "Toscanini-like" in approach (as I can find Toscanini's Beethoven surprisingly HIP at times!), but here's a list of the 8 finest Beethoven Piano Concerto 1-5 cycles that I've heard over the decades (listed in no particular order):

1. Claudio Arrau/Bernard Haitink, Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam (stereo)--This set contains one of the great 5ths on record, IMO, as the "Emperor" was one of Arrau's specialties (like his Liszt B minor Sonata). Arrau is one of the few pianists on record that enters very faintly and quietly in beautiful Largo movement. Most pianists play too loudly here, in my opinion. However, I don't think that Arrau is an ideal pianist for the first two piano concertos in this set, not as he is in the 3rd, 4th, & 5th PCs. The cycle was one of Bernard Haitink's earliest recording projects for Philips, so he was an inexperienced, young conductor at the time. The cycle was actually begun in 1964 when Eugen Jochum was still grooming & coaching Haitink to become the Concertgebouw's Orchestra's next principal conductor. It was a part of Jochum's contract when he took the position in Amsterdam that he would work with Haitink to get him ready. Nevertheless, it's long been one of my favorite Beethoven PC cycles--although if the more seasoned Jochum had taken on the project, I think it would have been an even more special cycle (despite that I think highly of Haitink's Beethoven today); especially when you consider that Arrau once said Jochum was the only conductor he'd ever worked with in his career that truly understood Beethoven's 4th Piano Concerto. That is of course high praise. Unfortunately, I can't find a link to the complete Haitink set on You Tube, but there are parts of it there:













https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Pia...=1-1&keywords=arrau+claudio+haitink+beethoven
https://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Pi...=1-2&keywords=arrau+claudio+haitink+beethoven

2. Claudio Arrau/Alceo Galliera, Philharmonia Orchestra (stereo)--this set was made earlier in Arrau's career, in the late 1950s, and it's excellent too. Here Arrau's performances of the first two piano concertos are preferable to those in his later cycles with Haitink & Davis, IMO: https://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Pi...4196&sr=8-2&keywords=arrau+beethoven+galliera. While I may slightly prefer Galliera's conducting to the young Haitink's, I find Arrau's interpretations of the 3rd, 4th, & 5th PCs to be deeper and more profound with Haitink. Although Arrau's playing is technically more dazzling with Galliera, since Galliera tends to adopt faster tempi; whereas in his later cycles Arrau had a tendency to slow down a bit more. Yet, Arrau is no slouch with Haitink, either:






















https://www.amazon.com/ICON-Claudio...&qid=1543527521&sr=1-6&keywords=arrau+claudio

As for Arrau's final 1980s digital set in Dresden with Sir Colin Davis, I'd say Arrau tends to be even more special & profound in the slow movements than he was on his earlier two cycles. There is a gained wisdom (& perception) that only comes from playing this music over the course of a lifetime. Such as with Arrau's playing of the beautiful Largo movement in the 5th, which is somehow even more exceptional than on his benchmark recording with Haitink. The digital sound quality is superior, too. However, technically, in the outer movements, it occasionally becomes apparent that Arrau was no longer in his prime--even though Arrau claimed that he was playing as well as ever in his 80s, & had lost nothing. Nevertheless, the musical interplay between Arrau and the excellent musicians of the Staatskapelle Dresden is very, very special. Sir Colin Davis' conducting isn't dull either, as it was on his enervated Beethoven symphony cycle with the Staatskapelle (sometimes I can find Davis an even more erratic conductor than Bernstein). All in all, I wouldn't want to be without this set, as the 4th PC is likewise excellent:





https://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Cl...eywords=arrau+claudio+davis+dresden+beethoven
https://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Pi...eywords=arrau+claudio+davis+dresden+beethoven
https://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Pi...eywords=arrau+claudio+davis+dresden+beethoven

3. Wilhelm Kempff/Paul Van Kempen, Berlin Philharmonic (mono--but in exceptional sound, as it's hard to tell it's mono): I've found that with Kempff, the earlier you go, the better he is. Indeed, I prefer this mono cycle with Paul Van Kempen, who was a great Beethoven conductor, to Kempff's later stereo set with Ferdinand Leitner. It's a very consistent set, overall, played in a spacious older style; though, for me, Kempff wasn't at his best in the 1st PC, where he can occasionally sound slightly challenged, technically (unlike Michelangeli, Pollini, & Schiff in this concerto). Even so, this is one of the great Beethoven Piano Concerto cycles on record, IMO, and not to be missed!:

Kempff/Van Kempen:





https://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Co...5&sr=1-4&keywords=kempff+van+kempen+beethoven

4. Rudolf Serkin/Rafael Kubelik, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (stereo): an orchestra that was founded by Eugen Jochum, before he passed on the baton to his chosen successor, Rafael Kubelik, who was likewise a very fine Beethoven conductor. There is some wonderfully spontaneous music making on this live 1977 concert set, which captures Serkin in slightly better form than on his later cycle with Seiji Ozawa. I'd also consider Kubelik to be a more interesting Beethoven conductor than Ozawa. With that said, Serkin made some exceptional individual Beethoven PC recordings with Bernstein, Toscanini, & Ormandy, earlier in his career, when he was arguably more in his prime. Nevertheless, Serkin was one of the great Beethoven pianists of the 20th century, and the music making on this live set is very, very special.

Serkin/Kubelik:





















https://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Di...r=1-1&keywords=serkin+kubelik+orfeo+beethoven

Serkin/Bernstein (3 & 5):









Serkin/Toscanini (PC #4):





5. Wilhelm Backhaus/Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt, Vienna Philharmonic (stereo)--While I'm big fan of Backhaus's playing on this cycle, I don't like the cadenza that he uses in the first movement of 3rd PC, as it's inferior to Beethoven's, which leaves me wondering why he didn't play the cadenza that Beethoven composed (i.e., to prevent pianists from playing their own inferior cadenzas!)? Backhaus also has a tendency to play in a slightly brusque, direct manner, at times, at least in comparison to Arrau, Solomon, & Schnabel. He'll also sometimes start a movement out slowly and then speed it up, which won't be to all tastes. Nor am I overly a fan of Schmidt-Isserstedt's Beethoven conducting either (except for his 9th Symphony in Vienna), which I can find rhythmically inflexible and straightforward (with some rather odd dynamic overemphases that sound punchy to me, as they jump out at you), and occasionally on the slow side. I don't think the two always approach this music in the same way (but perhaps that's a strong point, in parts). In addition, Backhaus was in his 70s when he recorded the cycle, and no longer in his prime, although I seldom find that an issue, as he doesn't sound like an older pianist most of time (even if he was more dazzling on his earlier Beethoven PC recordings, such as with Bohm). Nevertheless, the Vienna Philharmonic plays exceptionally well & it's a very fine set, and one that deserves to be heard, at the very least for Backhaus' engaging, remarkable playing, despite that I have a few reservations about the set. I certainly wouldn't want to be without it.

Backhaus/Schmidt-Isserstedt:





6. Solomon (Cutner)/Herbert Menges (PCs 1,3,5), Andre Cluytens (PCs 2, 4) (mono)--a classic old EMI set that has been reissued by Testament. It was recorded in the 1940s & 50s. The set is split between two conductors, unless you have the earlier EMI References set, which includes a 1944 performance of the 3rd PC conducted by Sir Adrian Boult, instead of the Menges 3rd. (Btw, there's also a 1952 Solomon 3rd with Beinum, too). Of interest, Solomon plays a cadenza by Clara Schumann in the 1st movement of the 3rd PC, & not Beethoven's. Which I found unusual. My guess is that his choice of cadenza may have had something to do with his first piano teacher, Mathilde Verne, who was a student of Clara Schumann's. (Perhaps she had insisted on it when he first learned the piece?) Although Solomon also later studied with a pupil of Theodor Leschetizky's & with Lazare Levy & Marcel Dupré in Paris, as well, who he credited with rebuilding his technique after an "awful, terrible" childhood experience with Verne, who had put him under contract for 5 years at aged eight and then exploited him (causing an eventual nervous breakdown at aged 15). According to the pianist's biographer, Bryan Crimp, Solomon was dissatisfied with his collaboration with Cluytens in concertos 2 & 4, and some feel these are the weakest performances in the set. While other's disagree, and consider the Solomon/Cluytens PC 2 to be among the finest ever recorded. Personally, I don't think their approach to this music always matches up well. Moreover, don't expect technical perfection in Solomon's 1950s recordings, as tragically, he had already begun to have a series of mini-strokes, leading up to the major stroke that would end his career as a pianist in 1956. Sadly, you can, at times, hear him struggling with a degree of stiffness or rigidity in his fingers, as well as the occasional finger lapses: which was what stopped him from finishing his EMI Beethoven Piano Sonata cycle with Walter Legge.

However, Solomon plays with such a rare artistry & integrity that I don't mind these minor technical blemishes at all. He's still one of the greatest Beethoven pianists of the 20th century (& btw, I find his Chopin very underrated). Walter Legge saw him as an ideal Beethoven interpreter, and his Beethoven PC recordings are well worth hearing (as are his 16 Beethoven Piano Sonatas). I especially appreciate that Solomon isn't afraid to slow down in Beethoven's slow movements, and play them more quietly and at times more faintly than most other pianists (in similarity to Arrau & Schnabel). Indeed, he has just the right reticence of tone and delicate touch to play this music exceptionally well, unlike the many pianists that play Beethoven's slow movements too loud and fast. (For instance, the Adagio movement of Solomon's Hammerklavier Sonata is a prime example of his rare integrity & insight as an artist and pianist--as his playing here brings the listener closer to Beethoven's heart, mind, emotions, and creative inspiration than nearly all other pianists on record: 



).


























In the digital era:

7. Andras Schiff/Bernard Haitink, Staatskapelle Dresden, Teldec (digital)--among those I've heard, this (rather HIP) 1997 Teldec set gets my vote for the best modern instrument cycle made during the digital era. Although I don't prefer it to several of the older cycles listed above. Nor would I prefer it to the Lubin/Hogwood period cycle mentioned below. Even so, it's a very fine cycle, and worth hearing for the excellent playing of the Staatskapelle Dresden alone. (I prefer it to the Staatskapelle's earlier digital cycle with pianist Christian Zacharias & conductor Hans Vonk--which is a good set, too). At this point, I think it's fair to say that Haitink knows his way around Beethoven Piano Concertos, having recorded three previous cycles, with Arrau, Brendel, & Perahia, before coming to this project with Schiff in the mid-1990s: Indeed these concertos have become something of a Haitink specialty (who, at his best, is an underrated Beethoven conductor, IMO). Here Schiff is exceptional in the first two concertos, and even better than I had expected in 3, 4 & 5. All in all, a terrific set.














8. Steven Lubin/Christopher Hogwood--this is a very fine period instrument cycle, & it ranks highly on my list of favorite cycles. Lubin & Hogwood understand the classical style in which this music was composed better than most (especially the fascinating mixture of Mozart & Beethoven's individual styles). As you might expect, they are invaluable in the first two piano concertos, as you won't hear the 2nd Piano Concerto (which was written partly as an imitation of Mozart) played in a more authentic Mozartian style. So, if you want to understand what Beethoven was hearing in his mind, in regards to the sounds of the instruments of his time, this is the set to buy. I find it easily preferable to the Levin/Gardiner cycle, who unwisely placed the fortepiano back in the midst of the orchestra, and it becomes difficult to hear at times, & even occasionally gets drowned out--whatever the merits of their set otherwise.

There's also an Alpha label period cycle--which WKasimer mentions favorably--from fortepianist Arthur Schoonderwoerd, which I like as well. However, the size of the Cristofori Ensemble is reduced to one instrument to a part (making for a total of 20 musicians), and I'd consider it more or less a chamber cycle, & too different from Lubin's set to choose between them. You'll either prefer one or the other approach, or want to have them both for the sake of variety. Personally, I find Schoonderwoerd's set fascinating, but it wouldn't surprise me if some listeners dislike it. Btw, Schoonerwoerd plays a Johann Fritz fortepiano from 1807-10, and his cycle additionally includes the "6th" Piano Concerto--Beethoven's fortepiano arrangement of his Violin Concerto:

Lubin/Hogwood:






With that said, I've never heard the Fleischer/Szell cycle (although I'm not usually a big Szell fan). Nor have I heard Wilhelm Kempff's recently released 78-rpm pre-war cycle (1925-1942) on APR, either (and very much liked his "late sonatas" in this APR series). Judging purely from the samples, the youthful Kempff sounds more energized on this early pre-WW2 set, & technically better too, as he doesn't sound at all challenged by the more difficult passages. Indeed his playing of the PC #1 sounds cleaner & more immaculate than on his later sets, despite the poorer sound quality: https://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Pi...43432515&sr=1-2&keywords=kempff+beethoven+apr

I didn't include Emil Gilels' cycle with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra, either, despite that Gilels is one of my favorite Beethoven pianists, and his piano playing is remarkable here. The reason being that I find Szell's conducting stiff, uninspired & mediocre on this set, at times. I don't know what the problem was, but I don't think this was one of Szell's better outings as a conductor. So, I can't recommend the cycle; although it will no doubt be worth hearing for Gilels fans (if a bit frustrating). (I find that Szell surprisingly became a different & more inspired conductor when he got out of Cleveland, or recorded with David Oistrakh.) I don't know Gilels' other two cycles, with Kurt Masur and Kurt Sanderling in Prague, but would like to hear them someday. However, I do know and treasure his performance of Beethoven's 4th Piano Concerto with Leopold Ludwig on Testament--which I'd consider a 'classic' 4th, and not to be missed:





https://www.amazon.com/Piano-Concertos-4-EMIL-GILELS/dp/B000003XJY


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## Josquin13 (Nov 7, 2017)

To conclude my post above, in addition, I have some treasured individual recordings of the concertos, too--since a number of my favorite Beethoven pianists didn't record a complete cycle:

1. Sviatoslav Richter: his classic 3rd Piano Concerto with Kurt Sanderling & the Vienna Symphony on DG: 



, and a fine 1st PC with Charles Munch in Boston (on RCA--although the latest remaster isn't ideal).

2. Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli--his live Vienna Symphony recordings with Carla Maria Giulini on DG (of 1, 3, & 5), which have been newly remastered in 2017 by Tower Records Japan in superior sound, on 2 hybrid SACDs: 



. I've long admired Michelangeli & Giulini in the 1st PC, but Tower's improved remasters have allowed me appreciate his "Emperor" more than I did in the past. I'd consider Michelangeli one of the great--and to a certain degree unsung--Beethoven pianists of the 20th century; despite that he was a perfectionist & didn't leave a large quantity of Beethoven records behind. (It's a pity that Michelangeli and the other Arturo, Toscanini never made any records together.)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Beethoven-...h=item468af4bf51:g:IOUAAOSwN-la3T-A:rk:1:pf:0
& on single layer SACD: https://www.ebay.com/itm/ARTURO-BEN...h=item56bbb5979f:g:8qoAAOSwKV9b-8W7:rk:1:pf:0

3. Annie Fischer--her legendary, 'classic' DG recording of the 3rd Piano Concerto with Ferenc Fricsay, which is not to be missed!, as it's one of the great 3rds, IMO: 




4. Edwin Fisher--Fischer's 'classic' 4th PC with Eugen Jochum: 



, and famous 5th with Wilhelm Furtwängler are likewise not to be missed: 




5. Bruno-Leonardo Gelber--his 3rd & 5th with Ferdinand Leitner (on EMI): 



, and an excellent 2nd PC recorded live with Klaus Tennstedt (on Testament).

6. Youra Guller--her sole (live) recording of a Beethoven Piano Concerto, the 4th PC--yes, it's got some flaws, but Guller is such an imaginative pianist that it's worth hearing: 



 (By the way, Guller's late Beethoven Piano Sonatas are among the finest I've ever heard.)

I've also liked specific performances from cycles that I otherwise wasn't necessarily completely overwhelmed by--such as (1) Maurizio Pollini's wonderful DG recording of the 1st PC (& 2nd PC) with Eugen Jochum & the Vienna Philharmonic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkgjY76CnCE; (2) Alfred Brendel's superb 1st & 2nd PCs with Bernard Haitink on Philips (& their Choral Fantasia, too): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qk7leWMcEYQ; (3) Arthur Schnabel's sublime playing of Beethoven's 3rd PC, with Dubrowen (& Sargent)--as Schnabel had the most ideal piano touch for the Largo movement, which he plays as well as anyone, in my opinion (as Rachmaninov once said, the man could play adagios...):https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-KUv-R5nYo; (4) Alicia De Larrocha's beautiful & appropriately 'Mozartian' 2nd PC with Riccardo Chailly: 



, and in light of Arrau's comment about Eugen Jochum's unique understanding of the 4th PC (mentioned above), (5) a wonderful live recording by Julius Katchen and Jochum of the 4th PC (on Doremi--though it isn't ideally recorded): 



.


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## Enthusiast (Mar 5, 2016)

WildThing said:


> Are there any good historic (pre-stereo) recordings out there besides the Kempff?


I'd already mentioned Solomon's recordings. They are classics and sound pretty good, too.


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## Sandrine Piau (Dec 8, 2018)

Gulda's Beethoven concertos are my only choice. But I need another 3rd concerto. Maybe Schnabel's cycle.


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## larold (Jul 20, 2017)

I also enjoyed Solomon and grouping of aged Klemperer with the young Barenboim. For a period alternative this is a wonderful set that includes the violin concerto and cello sonatas:

https://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Pi...815216&sr=1-5&keywords=beethoven+anner+bylsma

Period afficianados shouldn't overlook Paul Badura-Skoda's performance of the 4th concerto linked to the only period group doing the Triple concerto:

https://www.amazon.com/Ludwig-van-B...815216&sr=1-4&keywords=beethoven+anner+bylsma


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## BiscuityBoyle (Feb 5, 2018)

Josquin13 said:


> I didn't include Emil Gilels' cycle with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra, either, despite that Gilels is one of my favorite Beethoven pianists, and his piano playing is remarkable here. The reason being that I find Szell's conducting stiff, uninspired & mediocre on this set, at times. I don't know what the problem was, but I don't think this was one of Szell's better outings as a conductor. So, I can't recommend the cycle; although it will no doubt be worth hearing for Gilels fans (if a bit frustrating). (I find that Szell surprisingly became a different & more inspired conductor when he got out of Cleveland, or recorded with David Oistrakh.)


I would agree with this assessment - moreover, I feel _some_ of Szell's stiffness rubs off on Gilels, though there's a lot of great playing there from him. However the live recording of the 3rd they did at the Salzburg festival shortly thereafter is simply electric.


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## zelenka (Feb 8, 2018)

I only like the 5th tbh


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

zelenka said:


> I only like the 5th tbh


Special recording/ performer is ....who?


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## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

Zhdanov said:


> Beethoven 3rd - Richter, Sanderling & Wiener SO:


This is certainly my favourite version of this. There is another coupling I've got with a tremendous performance of Mozart K 466. Richter was never a completist. He performed 1 and 3 only I think. There is an early performance of no 1 which is superb. His later one us, alas, very dry and sober.


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## fliege (Nov 7, 2017)

I like Grimaud's recording of the 5th. In particular the beginning of the slow movement is very touching.


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

I like the 3d and the 4th, clearly ahead of the 5th. The first two don't do much for me.


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

Leif Ove Andsnes (piano & direction)
Mahler Chamber Orchestra, Prague Philharmonic Choir






I like this more recent recording.


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## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

Just listened to Annie Fischer with Friscay. One of the greatest performances on disc.


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