Search - Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven :: Andante With Variations in F Minor

Exceptional Value-- Both Money-wise & Music-wise

BLee | HK | 11/21/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For those who hesitates, I strongly recommend that they try this one for somewhat like Dohnannyi the pianist/composer, Gulda is underrated for non-musical reasons :



(1) The Viennese tradition (i.e. the non-Leschitizskian one), says once you can play these four composers, you can play anything else. Obviuosly, the repertoire here is non-arbitrary. It is there to show the most essential facets of one's pianism. Here you will not only be able to see "the personification of the Viennese tradition", you will also be awe-struck by Gulda's versatility and his colossal technique.



(2) It was not just total technical command that Gulda possesses, but it was combined with an interpretive aplom that left nothing to be desired which made him compares favouraby with Pollini, Gavriov, Zimerman, Bunin, whether at 16 or thereafter. There are times when Gulda compares favourably even with Richter...



(3) This recording was made in Gulda's prime and even though it was a live recording, I find his Mozart KV310 way better than Brendel's studio recording, his Schubert Impromtus D899 equally enlighhtening as Kempff's and his Waldstein almost as shattering as Arrau's...



(4) Despite it's low price, the recorded sound as excellent and in some ways, this even sounds better than his DG records!"