Search - Ludwig van Beethoven, Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky, Daniel Barenboim :: Pathétique: Beethoven & Tchaikovsky

Brilliant sixth with incredible pace

Tyler S. Clark | Youngstown, OH | 12/01/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Barenboim takes the helm for an incredible look at Tchaikovsky's 6th and Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 8. These works, linked by their shared subtitle "Pathetique", find a surprisingly comfortable place side by side.Barenboim starts at the piano, and his approach to the Beethoven is smooth and relaxed. So many pianists, when confronted with the "Pathetique", pound away, believing probably that the music needs real aggressiveness and certainly that it can be difficult to keep up with the fast tempo they feel necessary to create the aggressiveness. Our hero, however, knows otherwise. The result is a moving, exciting approach to a piece that frequently gets the rushed, underconsidered "classical warhorse" treatment.Tchaikovsky's B minor symphony is another piece that is performed frequently, and whose performances frequently are identical, fluffy and overwrought. Barenboim's fresh approach to the score, however, means the tempos are considered with regard to the score itself, not everyone else's performance.I have conducted the Sixth with a pick-up orchestra, heard it several times in concert and a hundred times on record, and studied the score with devotion. Daniel Barenboim and the CSO's performance on this disc is the most exciting, most original version I've ever encountered."

Pathetique in Brucknerian Sublimity & Grandeur!!

Scriabinmahler | UK | 04/20/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have over 30 recordings of Symphony Pathetique including Karajan's all official recordings, Svetlanov/Mravinsky's deeply Slavic accounts and Furtwangler's outrageously powerful and gripping 1951 Cairo live recording, but this account by Barenboim has a special place in my collection, for in this live recording, he manages to lift the music above the conventional emotional drama, by creating Brucknerian grandeur and sublimity with careful attention to detail and mastery grasp of ebb and flow in the music.



The way he introduces the lyrical second theme and treats it slightly differently with added intensity each time it returns, is a sheer miracle. The climax in the outer movements is not as devastatingly powerful as Karajan's 70s' stereo recordings, yet the stark contrast between the overwhelmming force and the profound sense of serenity makes it deeply moving listening experience. The second and third movement is played with real grace and perfect control over the subtle change in tempi.



Overall this performance is in the class of it own, just like Furtwangler's DG version, for its revelatory interpretation and depth of expression. Chicago SO's playing is simply second to none with their trade mark of glorious and sumptuous sound. Beautifully recorded live in 1998, Orchestra Hall, Chicago."