Rosenbaum Brings These Works Home
Robert L. Berkowitz | Natick, MA United States | 02/11/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is the single most satisfying recording I own of Beethoven's last three piano sonatas. I rank it alongside Gilels' offering.
Claudio Arrau was once noted to have observed that you can't really play the late Beethoven sonatas unless you're at least 50 years old. By that, I believe he meant that you have to have lived and contended with a certain minimum set of important emotional milestones and experiences that can only occur with maturity. I have come to increasingly appreciate Arrau's observation, especially listening to the performances of younger artists. It seems that some of what is being said in these late works simply goes over their heads. In contrast, none of the emotional terrain these works cover is lost on Maestro Rosenbaum.
I had the pleasure of meeting Maestro Rosenbaum and playing for him in a master class. I also observed him with other pianists during their master class sessions as well. Rosenbaum brings a rare and refreshing psychological-mindedness to his interpretation of a composer's work. His playing reflects this approach in that his performance of a work feels like the unfolding of a compelling and inevitable emotional drama. After listening to him, I feel I've been told a story, even if I can't remember any of the words.
If you are looking to be emotionally moved by these works, you will be very pleased with this disc."