Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 4
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Music CD Cover
Performer: Pascal MoraguesComposer: Ludwig van Beethoven
Conductor: Christoph Eschenbach
Orchestra: Orchestre de l'Op?ra de Paris
Orchestra: Paris Orchestra
Performer: Lang Lang
Edition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 2007-05-08
Music Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Soundtracks:
- Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 15: 1. Allegro con brio
- Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 15: 2. Largo
- Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 15: 3. Rondo. Allegro
- Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58: 1. Allegro moderato
- Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58: 2. Andante con moto
- Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58: 3. Rondo. Vivace
Free Music Notes for Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 4
Free Music Review: A Limited Interpretation of Beethoven
Hit: 2 Stars
I've always felt that Lang Lang should restrict himself to Mozart and early Beethoven, and this recording of the Beethoven concertos convinces me further of this. His recording of the first concerto is fine; he gives a real sense of the classical period through a bold approach. However, when this same approach is applied to the fourth concerto, it comes across as raw and bland. Lang Lang has no depth of mood; he shifts between the only three colors he knows without bothering to connect passages together. This approach simply does not pass when performing a piece where the first movement alone is twenty minutes long. With such a piece, it is crucial to keep the "big picture" intact. Lang Lang knows how to make the piano sound strong, sensitive, or excited, but doesn't know anything between. This is not often a limitation with Mozart's piano works, which have the same sudden, constant mood-swings that characterize Mozart's personality, hence why I say Lang Lang should stick to the classical period.
What depth Lang Lang lacks aurally he tries to make up for with grandiose swaying and gestures in front of audiences, but with a recording there is nothing to cover up his disconnected, shallow sound. As a previous reviewer noted, the orchestra is quite subpar, though it doesn't detract too often from the piano, which is quite clear. Lang Lang shows off his technique through excellent articulation and velocity when necessary. However, his musicality is substantively lacking, and the essence of the music is left behind.
Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 4 Poster
Lang Lang delivers his first-ever Beethoven recording, a stunning reading of the extensive Concerto no. 4 and the jubilant Concerto no. 1. Even though he has performed this repertoire extensively in concert, Lang Lang waited for the perfect moment and the perfect team to record his first pair of concertos from these milestones of piano repertoire When Lang Lang embarked on his international career, Christoph Eschenbach became one of his first and most enthusiastic proponents - and a mentor and close friend ever since, Eschenbach was the ideal collaborator for Lang Lang's first Beethoven recording. Nimbly supported by Eschenbach's superb Orchestre de Paris, with its tradition of having been the first orchestra ever in France to perform music by Beethoven, Lang Lang's performance gives further proof as to why he is one of today's most acclaimed pianistsWhat a beautiful recording! Perhaps the most exciting thing about Lang Lang's playing is that when he plays softly and lyrically, he doesn't sound as if he's holding back; when he opts to stomp and yell, it sounds equally natural. The First Concerto is played with lightness and bounce in the outer movements and is as tuneful as imaginable in the stunning second movement's Largo. The Fourth Concerto is a whole other matter - mature Beethoven - and Lang rises easily to the occasion, playing with potency and handsome tone. The first movement makes us sit and admire his skill, and he is poetic and sensitive in the second movement. It would have been easy for him to run away with the final movement in a blaze of virtuosity, but he sticks to its classical outlines. These are superb performances, and the sonics are gloriously rich. --Robert Levine
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