Octo_Russ

Beethoven - Piano Concerto 5 [Schiff/ Haitink-Staatskapelle Dresden]

'The fifth of the fifth', this is the fifth time that this Concerto has appeared in my Blog this year, very popular, sometimes i worry that an over familiarity will lead to a de-appreciation of this work, still, it remains my most favourite Piano Concerto.

This is a recently acquired set of the 5 Beethoven Piano Concertos, even though this box set has been kicking around since 1997 [it was recorded in 1996], the front cover photo is good [by Clive Barda], nice murky blues as a background, and i like the way this set is housed in one of those 1 inch thick plastic triple boxes.

Andras Schiff is now 56, he was born in Hungary, but now is a British citizen, he has recorded extensively for Decca in his earlier years, and for Teldec in the recent past, but now is on the ECM Label.

I must admit, that this is only my first listen, so i hate to make some 'final' judgement on these recordings, but so far i'm not convinced by Schiff's interpretation, there seems to be niggly things i don't agree with, i believe Schiff uses a Bosendorfer piano, and really swears by them, they are slightly more to a FortePiano than say a Steinway, i believe it ends up emphasising the staccato in the performance, and for me this is a very legato Piano Concerto, Schiff seems to emphasise the chunky corners of things, rather than smooth them out in wonderful transitions, but i certainly need to listen a lot more before these feelings are set in stone.

The movement which moved me today was the sublime Adagio, just when i think that i've got Beethoven sussed, i replay this and i realize that his mesmerising qualities are beyond me, the opening orchestral intro is so incredibly beautiful [0:00-1:45], it's the perfect foil for when the piano comes in, it gets you in the mood / right frame of mind, Schiff seems to enter a fraction too early [1:43-2:42], but the piano is beautiful, really heavenly serene playing, you appreciate the sheer beauty of the music, and there's this very gentle string pulse behind the piano, but i do notice that Schiff can ever so slightly hesitate now and again, and the flow is slightly lost, about half way through, the piano plays it's gorgeous tune [4:32-5:13], while the strings gently pizzicato heartbeats in the background, almost just afterwards it's the turn of the woodwind to carry the main tune, with the flute and bassoon creating a lovely duet [6:15+], and the piano freely in the treble providing accompaniment, and i believe the clarinet joins them [6:15+], as the whole thing winds down to it's inevitable close, or rather preparation for the third movement to burst in, this is music you can so easily get lost in.

Here's Valentina Lisitsa playing the second movement on YouTube.