Ludwig van Beethoven - Triple Concerto; Septet (David Zinman)

Information

Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven

• (01-03) Triple Concerto in C major, Op. 56
• (04-09) Septet in E flat major, Op. 20

Yefim Bronfman, piano
Gil Shaham, violin
Truls Mørk, cello
Michel Rouilly, viola
Ronald Dangel, double bass
Michael Reid, clarinet
Florenz Jenny, bassoon
Jakob Hefti, horn

Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich
David Zinman, conductor

Date: 2005
Label: Arte Nova

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Review

ARTISTIC QUALITY: 10 / SOUND QUALITY: 10

Beethoven's Triple Concerto works best when played like a svelte, bubbly concerto grosso rather than middle-period Beethoven pretending to be Elgar. For that to happen, you need a firm, decisive podium master who keeps everything clear and moving ahead. And you need three virtuoso soloists with rhythmic élan, beautiful tone, and radar-like ensemble sensitivity. Enter Zinman, Bronfman, Shaham, Mørk, and Zurich. No, that's not a law office, but rather the musician participants, who embody all the aforementioned criteria and come up with the best-integrated, least-platitudinous, most consistently characterized and caringly detailed Beethoven Triple Concerto ever committed to disc.

The opening ritornello's eloquent section work, lively rhythmic inflections, and snarling brass sonorities probably sound better than anything Beethoven expected, while violinist Gil Shaham and cellist Truls Mørk seamlessly yet passionately merge to the point where it's hard to tell who's playing what in common registers. And pianist Yefim Bronfman builds upon the stylish flair and sensitivity he brilliantly displayed in his previous Beethoven collaborations with Zinman (the Third and Fourth concertos). By virtue of the superb engineering, the balance between soloists and orchestra emerges in perfect perspective.

The Septet, one of Beethoven's least favorite yet most tuneful and unpretentious creations, often is played without a conductor, and in truth it really doesn't need one--yet Zinman's presence makes itself felt. Notice, for example, the increased tension as a result of the first-movement slow introduction's minute tempo adjustments and pungent accents, or hear the Minuetto's excitingly contoured inner lines, or the textural interplay in the Finale that makes the excellent (albeit conductorless) Academy of St. Martin in the Fields sound generalized by comparison. Even if this budget-priced disc were listed at five times the cost, it would be a bargain. [4/21/2006]

-- Jed Distler, ClassicsToday

More reviews:
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2006/May06/Beethoven_triple_septet_8287664015.htm
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2006/Aug06/beethoven_triple_82876640152.htm
http://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Triple-Concerto-Ludwig-van/dp/B000EQ46XM

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Ludwig van Beethoven (baptized 17 December 1770 – 26 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential of all composers. Beethoven is acknowledged as a giant of classical music, and his influence on subsequent generations was profound. His best-known compositions include 9 symphonies, 5 piano concertos, 1 violin concerto, 32 piano sonatas and 16 string quartets. Many of his most admired works come from the last decade of his life, when he was almost completely deaf.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludwig_van_Beethoven

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David Zinman (born 9 July 1936 in New York City, United States) is an American conductor and violinist. Zinman studied at the Oberlin Conservatory, the University of Minnesota and at Tanglewood, before working Pierre Monteux from 1958 to 1964. He has been Music Director of the Rotterdam Philharmonic (1979-82), Rochester Philharmonic (1974-85), Baltimore Symphony (1985-98) and Tonhalle Orchester Zürich (1995-2014). Zinman also was music director of the Aspen Music Festival and School (1998-2010), where he founded and directed its American Academy of Conducting.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Zinman

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