Franz Schubert - Works for Piano four hands (Daniel Barenboim; Radu Lupu)

Information

Composer: Franz Schubert

• (01) Trois marches militaires, Op. 51, D 733
• (04) Eight variations on an original theme in A flat major, Op. 35, D 813
• (05) 'Grand Duo' Sonata in C major, Op. posth. 140, D 812

Daniel Barenboim & Radu Lupu, piano
Date: 1997
Label: Teldec

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Review

One might expect this combination of artists playing Schubert to produce winning results, and so it does. Rarely will you hear duet playing of such refined elegance and multicoloured animation. Here, the playing is more vivid and glamorous than one finds from Isabel Beyer and Harvey Dagul, on their excellent eight-disc survey of Schubert’s piano duets; whereas the Beyer/Dagul duo (on Four Hands Music) invoke the intimacy of the nineteenth-century salon, the dynamic and coloristic range of Barenboim’s and Lupu’s performances suggests a more public environment.

After the spirited brio of the familiar Marches militaires, the remainder of the disc contains music of greater seriousness and architectural breadth. The Variations in A flat are beautifully played: try the section from 10'27'' (track 4) to hear the most subtle and discerning pianism, skilfully integrated with perfect balance and articulation. The largest work on this disc is the C major Sonata: here it runs to 43 minutes, longer than any of Schubert’s solo sonatas. It can reasonably be classed alongside Schubert’s two other late masterpieces in C, the Great Symphony and the String Quintet. The Grand Duo is symphonic in scope and expression (indeed, Schumann believed it to be an arrangement of a proposed symphony), although the writing is innately pianistic. The fine detail of Barenboim’s and Lupu’s account, their diversity of colour and attack and their voicing of melodic and inner lines, suggests an image of suitably orchestral depth and variety. Furthermore, the surface gloss of these performances is underpinned by the most crystalline lucidity and poetry. Excellently recorded, this disc can be warmly recommended.

-- Tim Parry, Gramophone

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Franz Schubert (31 January 1797 – 19 November 1828) was an Austrian composer who was extremely prolific during his short lifetime. His output consists of over six hundred secular vocal works (mainly Lieder), seven complete symphonies, sacred music, operas, incidental music and a large body of chamber and piano music. Today, Schubert is ranked among the greatest composers of the late Classical era and early Romantic era and is one of the most frequently performed composers of the early nineteenth century. His music is characterized by pleasing tunes while still has "a great wealth of technical finesse".

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franz_Schubert

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Daniel Barenboim (born 15 November 1942) is an Argentine-born pianist and conductor who is a citizen of Argentina, Israel, Palestine and Spain. He is general music director of the Berlin State Opera, and the Staatskapelle Berlin; he previously served as Music Director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre de Paris and La Scala in Milan. Barenboim is known for his work with the West–Eastern Divan Orchestra, and his rejection of musical fashions based on current musicological research, such as the authentic performance movement. He has received many awards and prizes, including seven Grammys.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Barenboim

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Radu Lupu (born November 30, 1945) is a Romanian concert pianist. He is the winner of three of the most prestigious awards in the field of classical piano, the George Enescu International Piano Competition, Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and Leeds International Pianoforte Competition. Lupu's concert appearances and recordings for Decca, though not frequent, consisting of a limited repertoire, have been consistently acclaimed. Although trained in the Russian pianistic tradition, he is particularly noted for his interpretations of the great 19th century German and Austrian composers.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radu_Lupu

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