Search - Ludwig van Beethoven, Johannes Brahms, Jean Sibelius :: David Oistrakh: The Complete EMI Recordings

"Captivating"

John Keating | 03/08/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For the money, you really can't do much better - this is simply a steal. This man was one of the greatest violinists of the 20th century. The recordings here are crystal clear and beautiful-I listen to the cds in six channel stereo mode on a Yamaha receiver - what a joy! 17 discs full of absolutely stunning, captivating music - full orchastra, trios, sonatas... a smorgasborg for the classical music lover.



I have listened to the cds from start to finish - honestly there is not a bad one in the package. True, I do have favorites, but I never felt while listening at any time that I needed to stop listening. My point is that all the music is enjoyable...all the music is pleasant to the ears.



Once again, 17 cds of beautifully rendered music for such a reasonable price - buy this boxed set - you'll thank me and the others who have made it a part of our collections - make it a part of your collection!"

A great deal in this box

Robert Coulter | Delaware, USA | 11/27/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For those who do not have a problem with shelf space, or those who have not yet collected much of Oistrakh's EMI legacy, this box really is a great deal.



David Oistrakh was inarguably one of the 20th century's supreme artists. He won several major competitions in his life time (though, perhaps more famously, he finished 2nd to Ginette Neveu in the Wieniawski competition of 1935). He worked with many of the greatest artists of his day, was the dedicatee of several famous works, and Shostakovich wrote both of his violin concertos for him. The respect of his peers is evident in numerous writings, and many violinists of today view him as a role model. His influence on the next generation is large, having, at some point, taught many of the professional violinists to emerge from the USSR during his long tenure wth the Moscow Conservatoire. He received several awards from the Soviet state, most notably the Stalin Prize in 1942 following his performing on the front (there is a wonderful tale of him performing during the bombing of Stalingrad).



The contents of this 17 cd box set includes an awful lot of top grade material available in other releases. These include:



-- Brahm's violin concerto with Klemperer and Mozart's Sinfonia concertante with Oistrakh on viola, his son Igor on violin.



-- Mozart's violin concertos, released in two disks: 1 to 3 and 4 and 5.



-- The violin concertos of Beethoven and Sibelius with Ehrling (on Testament).



-- The famous recording of Beethoven's triple concerto with Oistrakh, Richter and Rostropovich, released with Oistrakh's recording of Brahms' double concerto with Rostropovich.



-- The box also includes Oistrakh's preferred recording of the double concerto of Brahms, his recording with Fournier. This comes in several releases. For instance, it is coupled with Bruch: Violin concerto No.1. It is also in an earlier 2 cd set which includes Oistrakh's recordings of the Mozart violin concerto #3 (mentioned above), the Prokofiev violin concerto #2, and Brahms' triple concerto again, this time with long-time partners in crime, Oborin and Knushevitsky. (All of these recordings are also in the box set under review!)



-- The "creator's" recording of Khachaturian's violin concerto, with the composer conducting, Oistrakh being both the dedicatee and the author of the cadenza.



-- A wonderful selection of showpieces for violin and piano with one of Oistrakh's most regular accompanists, Vladimir Yampolsky.



I could go on; the above were pulled up in about 10 minutes. I suspect if I felt utterly compelled (and believed the reader had infinite patience!), then I could find releases of all of the works in this box from within the last 10 years or so. For the sake of the reader's sanity, I'll refrain!



Now, the observant reader will have noticed there are several doublings in this set. None of the doublings are disappointments; in fact most of them are viewed as classics in their own right (another testament to Oistrakh's talent). Specifically, the doublings are



-- 2 recordings of Beethoven's violin concerto: one with Cluytens, one with Ehrling (both are wonderful).



-- 2 recordings of Beethoven's triple concerto: one by Oistrakh, Richter and Rostropovich with von Karajan conducting, the other by Oistrakh, Oborin and Knushevitsky with Sargent conducting (I admit I prefer the latter one).



-- 2 recordings of Brahms' violin concerto: one with Klemperer, one with Szell (I like both, but in fact prefer a recording of the work by Szeryng).



-- 2 recordings of Brahms' double concerto: with Rostropovich and Szell, the other with Fournier and Galliera (I agree with Oistrakh, the Fournier does seem better).



-- 2 recordings of Mozart's violin concerto #3: the Berliner Philharmoniker and the Philharmonia Orchestra.



Before ending this (to everyone's relief!), it would be remiss of me to fail to mention two more things. Firstly, Oistrakh gives a magnificent performance of the solo cadenza in the 3rd movement of Shostakovich's violin concerto #1. And secondly, the last disk provides a really excellent performance of Schubert's octet (this was released most recently by Monopole in 2007, only a year before this box set was released). In fact, much of the chamber work in this release is first rate.



So to end this, what can I say? Those who own and love Oistrakh will already own much of what lies in this (not so) little box. For those, the benefit of purchasing this set lies in the fact that pretty much everything here appears to have been remastered relatively recently. For the rest, especially those in the process of building a quality personal collection, face up to the reality that you are always going to end up with an odd doubling or two, grab this opportunity by the scruff of the neck, and buy this great release by EMI."