Complete Beethoven Piano Sonatas on Radio 3

[Andrew Slater]

A cycle of Beethoven's 21 piano sonatas is being broadcast in 12 lunchtime concerts over the next three weeks, from LSO St. Luke's. (They started yesterday, 6th December.)

I only know a few of them, and investigating them has been on my list for some time. So there's no excuse now.

[Panjandrum]

A cycle of Beethoven's 21 piano sonatas is being broadcast in 12 lunchtime concerts over the next three weeks, from LSO St. Luke's. (They started yesterday, 6th December.)

Not quite complete then?

[rauschwerk]

Er...there are 32 and there is an error on the R3 website. Anyway, enjoy your exploration, Andrew.

[Andrew Slater]

I did wonder whether to check the number, but I didn't think they would get something like that wrong ....

[Bryn]

There are 32 which were published in the composer's lifetime and have opus numbers allocated to them. There are also a few other early sonatas marked as WoO (works without opus number). I think there are around 35 in total, i.e. the 32 with opus numbers and the three WoO47 "Kurfürstensonaten" sonatas written when the composer was but 13 years old.

[amateur51]

Good to have them played by pianists who are not (as yet) the usual suspects

Looking forward to listening to this series

[VodkaDilc]

There are 32 which were published in the composer's lifetime and have opus numbers allocated to them. There are also a few other early sonatas marked as WoO (works without opus number). I think there are around 35 in total, i.e. the 32 with opus numbers and the three WoO47 "Kurfürstensonaten" sonatas written when the composer was but 13 years old.

The dreadfully pedantic new Associated Board edition of the sonatas claims to have 35. I can't be the only person who will NEVER be separated from my lovely old set of red hard-backed Sonatas in the familiar Craxton and Tovey edition. I've had mine for at least 45 years - and I don't intend replacing them just because of a few textural improvements.

Nice to see Barry Douglas playing the sonatas!

[Bryn]

Well I too only have the dots on page versions the 32 with opus numbers too, though not in the same edition as VodkaDilc. When it comes to recorded surveys, that on Claves, by Bilson and some of his students, included the three WoO47 sonatas, but that by Brautigam adds WoO50, the two Leichte Sonatinen (Knsky-Halm Anh. 5, and the so-called Leichte Sonate WoO51. To my ears, they are very much but curiosities demonstrating his very early development. I am happy to start my serious listening with the Opus 2 sonatas.

[aeolium]

Very good concerts so far, imo. I particularly liked Barry Douglas' second recital, yesterday, and Katia Bhuniatishvili's powerful performances of the "Tempest" and "Appassionata" sonatas today - throwing caution to the winds in the finale of the latter.

There seems to be a particular focus on Beethoven of late: the sonata series, quite a number of quartets being played, and IIRC all the symphonies played during the 'Symphony' series of programmes. And he's CotW next week....

[vinteuil]

Katia Bhuniatishvili's powerful performances of the "Tempest" and "Appassionata" sonatas today - throwing caution to the winds in the finale of the latter.

... diplomatically put! I'm quite happy for there to be handfulls of wrong notes in a live impassioned performance - but to my ears she was giving us armfulls of wrong notes towards the end.

But I have been much enjoying this Beethoven piano series - and Donald McLeod's survey of the Concerts Spirituels.
Almost enough to make one believe in Radio3 again!

[gradus]

Throwing caution to the winds and how!!!
She is a remarkable musician and I was thrilled by her playing, but what a brilliant series of recitals this is proving to be with gifted pianists of such differing musical sensibilities. I'd say its unmissable - R3 at its finest.

[aeolium]

Yes, vinteuil, but I thought it was thrilling to listen to - I can think of some pianists who would have gone for a more cautious tempo and perhaps a duller performance.

I agree about the CotW on the Concerts Spirituels, a lovely series of programmes (and what about that wind sinfonia concertante today by a composer I'd never heard of?).

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

Llyr Williams Beethoven Cycle

...must say i am enjoying this rather fine performance of the sonatas .... [apologies if there is another thread looked but not found]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b018090t

[aeolium]

I agree - I thought these sonatas suited Llyr Williams's poetic (llyrical?) style very well. The whole series has been very good so far imo.

[amateur51]

I realise that I shall sound like a party-pooper but I do find Buniatishvili's performances to be frequently chaotic. She is clearly not short of practice (which might explain the extended passages of wrongs notes) she just sets an initial pace that she can't maintain with clarity and so she delivers a right old jumble. I think there was also a memory lapse sopmewhere but those things happen to the best - it's her need to set a crazy tempo, rather than one that is fast but which she can sustain and then take even faster as in the final page of the Appassionata, that really bothers me.

I must listen to Barry Douglas & Llyr Williams next.