These performances mount the only serious competition as a complete set to the Leon Fleisher/George Szell versions on Sony Classical. Emil Gilels was an extraordinary virtuoso who decided to place his technical wizardry in the service of the most disciplined and demanding classical masterpieces. No piano concertos live up to this description more than the two by Brahms. Himself a pianist, Brahms placed every purely musical stumbling block that he could in front of the soloist--only audiences never notice because there's no gratuitous display at all. A performer who has not mastered these pieces doesn't necessarily miss notes; he or she just bores everyone to tears. Well, Gilels is never dull, and neither is Eugen Jochum, whose spontaneous-sounding yet sensitive accompaniments support his soloist every step of the way. --David Hurwitz
Emil Gilels is magisterial in these concertos, his playing volcanic and poetic at the same time. Eugen Jochum and the Berlin Philharmonic add considerable grandeur to the undertaking, spanning Brahms's long developmental arches with convincing sureness. Within the warm ambience of Berlin's Jesus-Christus-Kirche, where both concertos were recorded in June of 1972, the engineers do a good job of capturing the pianist's ringing tone. --Ted Libbey
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0
Very fine but falls short of greatness:
These concertos are monumental in all respects; power, elegance, vibrancy, complexity, angst, exaltation, heroic--more adjectives please. Its not the type of music one would want to relax to though; I reserve these concertos for when I want to be blown away by music. Not in the sense of treating the music as fireworks but to be shook at the very foundation of my being. Given Brahms' special way of fermenting struggle I believe that is the way he would have wanted it. As for the interpretations I am... more info
Brahms:
I have no recollection of any purchase of an Ottomar Borwitsky recording. I did order and get an Emil Gilels recording of the same three items. The whole is just wonderful and a most welcome addition to my library
Excellent CD, new, arrived in perfect condition:
Beautiful recordings of Brahms's Piano Concertos, excellent tempo, marvellous interpretation of both conductor and pianist. Item arrived quickly, just as described, and in perfect condition. I would certainly recommed seller!
ruined by sound engineering:
This is a good interpretation but the CD is ruined by the sound engineering that is over the top. The louds are much too loud and the softs too soft so that you have to constantly adjust the volume to compensate. As is the sound is nothing like a normal concert hall performance. It has been sound engineered to death by over the top engineers who think exaggeration is good. It isn't.
Tracks:
Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor, Op. 15: Maestoso
Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor, Op. 15: Adagio
Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor, Op. 15: Rondo
Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat major, Op. 83: Allegro non troppo
Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat major, Op. 83: Allegro appassionato
Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat major, Op. 83: Andante
Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat major, Op. 83: Allegretto grazioso
Fantasias (7) for piano, Op. 116: No. 1 'Capricio' in A minor
Fantasias (7) for piano, Op. 116: No. 2 'Intermezzo' in A minor
Fantasias (7) for piano, Op. 116: No. 3 'Capriccio' in G minor
Fantasias (7) for piano, Op. 116: No. 4 'Intermezzo' in E major
Fantasias (7) for piano, Op. 116: No. 5 'Intermezzo' in E minor
Fantasias (7) for piano, Op. 116: No. 6 'Intermezzo' in E major
Fantasias (7) for piano, Op. 116: No. 7 'Capriccio' in D minor
![Brahms: Complete String Quartets, Quintets and Sextets [Box Set]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51oDEPLBuPL._SL75_.jpg)
