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Track(s) taken from CDA67327

Allegretto in B flat major, WoO39

composer
June 1812; composed for Maximiliane Brentano

The Florestan Trio
Studio Master FLAC & ALAC downloads available
CD-Quality:
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CD-Quality:
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Recording details: September 2002
Henry Wood Hall, London, United Kingdom
Produced by Andrew Keener
Engineered by Simon Eadon
Release date: January 2003
Total duration: 5 minutes 5 seconds

Cover artwork: Portrait of Beethoven, Vienna (c1804). Willibrord Joseph Mähler (1778-1860)
AKG London
 

Reviews

‘A recording that immediately, from the first impetuous bars of Op 70 No 1, feels just right’ (Gramophone)

‘For an exhilarating sense of live music-making, of players constantly challenging and coaxing each other to new insights, these irresistible performances make this one of the discs of the year’ (BBC Music Magazine)

‘This new Florestan account of the two Op. 70 trios is outstanding in every way. The playing is quite gripping and masterly, and the sound is vivid and well balanced. These are arguably the most satisfying accounts in the catalogue, and certainly the best we have had in recent years’ (The Penguin Guide to Compact Discs)

‘This is playing of quite extraordinary sensitivity and depth. I can hardly wait until the next volume’ (The Independent)

‘This is a highly auspicious beginning to the Florestans’ survey of the Beethoven piano trios … totally convincing’ (The Guardian)

‘Should grab even the most casual listener … a real winner’ (The Times)

‘Hugely enjoyable’ (The Sunday Times)

‘Susan Tomes' controlled, musical piano playing is a constant source of delight’ (The Strad)

‘The Florestan Trio plays them with great immediacy and vigour; everything is beautifully balanced and argued out’ (Classic FM Magazine)

‘I can’t say I have ever heard better’ (Fanfare, USA)

‘Dash, energy, exuberance, tempered by an acute awareness of each other … a highly enjoyable disc’ (Pianist)

‘Hyperion’s ability to pick outstanding musicians from the universal crop has rarely been better directed than in the case of The Florestan Trio’ (Music Week)

‘No current trio conveys such a spontaneous sense of enthusiasm and discovery as The Florestan … the performers bounce ideas off one another, stimulating and persuading each to reveal fresh insights and creating a wonderful sense of live music making. With very good engineering this now has to be the first choice among recordings of these works’ (Hi-Fi Plus)

‘The Florestan embark on the complete Beethoven piano trios, the first release pointing to a cycle that is going to be very special. The playing is unfailingly perceptive and full of musical insights … However many times you have these works in your collection, this is an essential purchase’ (Yorkshire Post)

‘There’s such unanimity of purpose here, three minds united in their common musical goal, and yet able to realise it without surrendering their individual character … buy this now, and wait impatiently for Beethoven volume 2’ (bbc.co.uk)
Beethoven composed the little Allegretto in B flat in June 1812 for ten-year-old Maximiliane, daughter of Antonie Brentano who is now the favourite candidate as the composer’s ‘Immortal Beloved’. This deliberately easy piece is a sonata movement in 6/8 ‘pastoral’ metre, wholly free of Beethoven’s trademark developmental tension yet full of gentle, guileless charm.

from notes by Richard Wigmore © 2003

Beethoven composa le petit Allegretto en si bémol majeur en juin 1812 pour Maximiliane, la fille de dix ans d’Antonie Brentano, laquelle est actuellement la candidate favorite au titre d’ « immortelle bien-aimée » du compositeur. De coupe sonate à 6/8, la mesure de la pastorale, cette pièce délibérément facile évite totalement la tension développement typiquement beethovénienne pour un charme franc plein de douceur.

extrait des notes rédigées par Richard Wigmore © 2003
Français: Isabelle Battioni

Beethoven komponierte das kleins Allegretto in B-Dur im Juni 1812 für die zehnjährige Maximiliane komponierte – sie war die Tochter von Antonie Brentano, die heutzutage als bevorzugte Kandidatin bei der Identifizierung der “Unsterblichen Geliebten” des Komponisten gilt. Dieses bewusst leicht gehaltene Stück ist ein Sonatensatz im “pastoralen” 6/8-Takt, gänzlich frei von der für Beethoven ansonsten so typischen Spannung in der Themenverarbeitung, doch voller sanftem, arglosem Charme.

aus dem Begleittext von Richard Wigmore © 2003
Deutsch: Anne Steeb/Bernd Müller

Other albums featuring this work

Beethoven: The Complete Music for Piano Trio
CDS44471/44CDs Boxed set (at a special price) — Download only
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