Beethoven, Piano Concerto No.5 in E flat major, op.73 “Emperor”
Beethoven’s Fifth Piano Concerto, his longest and most forceful, was composed in 1809. The opening movement immediately proclaims the concerto’s air of command, with its unexpected beginning by the soloist alone. This very long first movement is followed by a compressed, intense second movement. Over a sustained, expectant low note held by the horns at the very end of the movement, the piano begins to build a theme which turns out to be the choppy, powerful rondo theme of the third movement. This work represents a synthesis of all the contrary forces at work in Beethoven’s oeuvre. Though it is often called the “Emperor” in English-language music literature, Beethoven did not call it thus. The work was premiered in Leipzig on 28 November 1811. Soloist Maurizio Pollini is one of the most distinguished pianists of our time, who has performed with the world’s leading orchestras. A committed advocate of contemporary music, Pollini frequently performs works by Schoenberg, Berg, Webern, Nono, Boulez and Stockhausen. However, he has also given complete cycles of the Beethoven sonatas in Berlin, Milan, New York, Munich and other cities. On the occasion of a performance of the Beethoven concertos at New York’s Carnegie Hall, the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra presented him with its “golden ring”, a rare distinction awarded to only few musicians.
Strauss, Burleske for Piano and Orchestra in D minor
A versatile and highly respected conductor, Christoph von Dohnányi has pursued a remarkable career both in Europe and the United States. After completing a long tenure as musical director and manager of the Frankfurt Opera, he was appointed to the same posts at the Hamburg State Opera. In 1984 he succeeded Lorin Maazel as principal conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra. He became first guest conductor of the London Philharmonic in 1994 as well. His commitment to new music is evident both in concert and in recordings. He led the premieres of Henze’s “Der junge Lord” and “Die Bassariden”. The Austrian pianist Rudolf Buchbinder launched his international career as a soloist after winning the Lipatti Medal in 1962 and, particularly, the Special Prize in the Van Cliburn Competition in 1966. The “Burleske” was recorded in 1977 at Vienna’s Musikvereinssaal in a concert also featuring Bartók’s “The Miraculous Mandarin” Suite and Mendelssohn’s “Scottish” Symphony.
Mendelssohn, Symphony No.3 in A minor, op.56 “Scottish”
One of the leading conductors of our time, Christoph von Dohnanyi was born in Berlin in 1929 and studied law in Munich after the war, later deciding to devote himself exclusively to music. His most important teacher was his grandfather, the composer Ernst von Dohnanyi, with whom he studied at the University of Florida. Dohnanyi also took conducting courses in Tanglewood. His career began when Georg Solti called him to the Frankfurt Opera in 1953, where he was choral conductor and later orchestral conductor. He then took posts in various German cities before serving as principal conductor and general manager of the Hamburg State Opera from 1978 to 1984. In 1984 he succeeded Lorin Maazel as permanent conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra. It is rare to find a conductor of Dohnanyi’s eminence who devotes such a great deal of time and energy to contemporary music. He has led the world premieres of Hans Werner Henze’s operas “Der junge Lord” and “Die Bassariden,” Gottfried von Einem’s “Kabale und Liebe” and Friedrich Cerha’s “Baal,” along with a number of orchestral works. One of the highlights of Unitel’s recordings of 20th-century works is Gustav Rudolf Sellner’s Berlin production of Henze’s “Der junge Lord” with several members of the world premiere, including Edith Mathis, Donald Grobe and Loren Driscoll. Also available are recordings of Richard Strauss’s “Burleske,” Béla Bartók’s “The Miraculous Mandarin” and Mendelssohn’s “Symphony No. 3,” the “Scottish” – all three of which were recorded with the Vienna Philharmonic in 1977 at Vienna’s Musikvereinssaal.
Bartók, The Miraculous Mandarin, Suite, op. 19
A versatile and highly respected conductor, Christoph von Dohnányi has pursued a remarkable career both in Europe and the United States. After completing a long tenure as musical director and manager of the Frankfurt Opera, he was appointed to the same posts at the Hamburg State Opera. In 1984 he succeeded Lorin Maazel as principal conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra. He became first guest conductor of the London Philharmonic in 1994 as well. His commitment to new music is evident both in concert and in recordings. He led the premieres of Henze’s “Der junge Lord” and “Die Bassariden”. The “Miraculous Mandarin” was recorded in 1977 at Vienna’s Musikvereinssaal in a concert also featuring Richard Strauss’s “Burleske” and Mendelssohn’s “Scottish” Symphony.
Beethoven, String Quartet No.14 in C sharp minor, op.123
The introverted and personal quality of Beethoven’s late style is evident in this string quartet, written the year before the composer’s death. At this stage in Beethoven’s life, he was composing more for himself than for an audience, for he no longer felt it necessary to prove himself to his public. Despite the popular belief that Beethoven (at that time) was indifferent to the sound of his music because of his deafness, his sketchbooks show that he rewrote the last four bars of the variations of the quartet 12 times. It is the music of a man who has experienced life. The composer thought that this was his greatest string quartet. A traditional string quartet consists of two violins, one viola and one cello, and is usually in four movements; the String Quartet in C sharp minor contains seven movements, played without a pause. Leonard Bernstein said: “The C sharp minor Quartet seems to cry out for the whole string section.” In this performance, the work is played by an orchestra of 60 strings. This recording is part of Leonard Bernstein’s Beethoven cycle, recorded primarily with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in the early 1980s. Writing in The New York Times, critic John J. O’Connor stated: “As Mr. Bernstein says, there is ‘no single body of work in the universe of orchestral music that is in any way comparable to this one.’ Conducted with intense dedication and soaring spirits by Mr. Bernstein, these recordings are superb, both visually and aurally.”
Beethoven, Leonore Overture No.3 in C major, op.72a
Beethoven’s only opera, Fidelio, was composed about 1803. As do so many of the composer’s works, it glorifies the struggle against tyranny and celebrates heroism and humanitarianism. The first performance, which took place in Vienna in 1805, was ill-received; and the opera required 10 years of revision before it was accepted by the public in 1814. Beethoven wrote four overtures to his opera: three are known as the “Leonore Overtures” (named after the heroine of the opera); the fourth, the Overture to Fidelio, is the version now used as a prelude to the opera .The music of Leonore No. 3 refers to the climax of the story in the last act of Fidelio. Today, it is usually played as an interlude between the second and third acts of the opera. This recording is part of Leonard Bernstein’s Beethoven cycle, recorded primarily with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in the early 1980s. Writing in The New York Times, critic John J. O’Connor stated: “As Mr. Bernstein says, there is ‘no single body of work in the universe of orchestral music that is in any way comparable to this one.’ Conducted with intense dedication and soaring spirits by Mr. Bernstein, these recordings are superb, both visually and aurally.” Leonard Bernstein recorded this work in an all-Beethoven concert with the Orchestra of the Bavarian Radio at Munich’s Deutsches Museum in 1976.
Beethoven, Symphony No.9 in D minor, op.125
Recorded live at the Berlin “Philharmonie” on New Year’s Eve 1977, this rousing interpretation of Beethoven’s most popular symphony with the Berlin Philharmonic under Herbert von Karajan weaves a rich tapestry of emotional contrasts. The Ninth is an affirmation of optimism and beauty, written when Beethoven was almost completely deaf. The final movement is considered by many to be the composer’s crowning glory. It had been Beethoven’s lifelong dream to set Schiller’s “Ode to Joy” to music, for the poem put into words Beethoven’s most impassioned desire: peace and brotherhood in the world. Giving eloquent voice to this plea are the world-renowned soloists Anna Tomowa-Sintow, Agnes Baltsa, René Kollo and José van Dam.
Josephs Legende
“Composed to a libretto by Harry Graf Kessler and Hugo von Hofmannsthal and premiered by Sergei Diaghilev’s Ballet Russes in the summer of 1914, Strauss’ Josephs Legende was one of the earliest cultural casualties of the First World War. The leads in John Neumeier’s production from 1977 are terrific, especially the sensational Judith Jamison as Potiphar’s Wife. The Wiener Philharmoniker sounds sumptuous and conductor Heinrich Hollreiser keeps the drama from dragging without getting in the way of the dancers.” (James Leonard, ALLMUSIC.com)