Naxos 25th Anniversary. Great Piano Concertos (10 CD box set FLAC)

Audio CD
Number of Discs: 10 CD box set
Format: FLAC (image+cue)
Label: Naxos
Size: 2.71 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes

CD 01 Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 20 & 21
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Piano Concerto No 20 in D minor, K 466
Piano Concerto No 21 in C major, K 467 ‘Elvira Madigan’

Jeno Jando – piano
Concentus Hungaricus
Conductor Andras Ligeti

01. I. Allegro
02. II. Romance
03. III. Rondo: Allegro assai
04. I. Allegro maestoso
05. II. Andante
06. III. Allegro vivace assai

CD 02 Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 23 & 25
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Piano Concertos No 23 in A major, K 488
Piano Concerto No 25 in C major, K 503

Jeno Jando – piano
Concentus Hungaricus
Conductor Matyas Antal

01. I. Allegro
02. II. Adagio
03. III. Allegro assai
04. I. Allegro maestoso
05. II. Andante
06. III. Allegretto

CD 03 Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos. 3 & 4
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Piano Concerto No 3 in C minor, Op 37
Piano Concerto No 4 in G major, Op 58

Stefan Vladar – piano
Capella Istropolitana
Conductor Barry Wordsworth

01. I. Allegro con brio
02. II. Largo
03. III. Rondo: Allegro
04. I. Allegro moderato
05. II. Andante con moto
06. III. Rondo: Vivace

CD 04 Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5 / Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 27
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Piano Concerto No 5 in E flat major, Op 73 ‘Emperor’

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Piano Concerto No. 27

Stefan Vladar – piano
Capella Istropolitana
Conductor Barry Wordsworth

01. I. Allegro
02. II. Adagio un poco mosso
03. III. Rondo: allegro
04. I. Allegro
05. II. Larghetto
06. III. Allegro

CD 05 Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1 / Liszt: Piano Concerto No. 1
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Piano Concerto No 1 in D minor, Op 15
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Piano Concerto No 1 in E flat Major, S 124

Idil Biret – piano
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Antoni Wit

Eldar Nebolsin – piano
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor Vasily Petrenko

01. I. Maestoso
02. II. Adagio
03. III. Rondo: Allegro non troppo
04. Allegro maestoso – Tempo giusto –
05. Quasi adagio –
06. Allegretto vivace –
07. Allegro marziale animato

CD 06 Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2 / Liszt: Piano Concerto No. 2
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Piano Concerto No 2 in B flat major, Op 83
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Piano Concerto No 2 in A major, S 125

Idil Biret – piano
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Antoni Wit

Eldar Nebolsin – piano
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor Vasily Petrenko

01. I. Allegro non troppo
02. II. Allegro appassionato
03. III. Andante
04. IV. Allegretto grazioso
05. Adagio sostenuto assai –
06. Allegro moderato –
07. Allegro deciso –
08. Allegro animato

CD 07 Grieg: Piano Concerto / Schumann: Piano Concerto
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
Piano Concerto in A minor, Op 16

Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Piano Concerto in A minor, Op 54

Sequeira Costa – piano
Gulbenkian Orchestra
Conductor Stephen Gunzenhauser

01. I. Allegro affettuoso
02. II. Intermezzo: Andantino grazioso
03. III. Allegro vivace
04. Introduction and Allegro appassionato, Op. 92
05. Introduction and Concert – Allegro, Op. 134

CD 08 Chopin Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Piano Concerto No 1 in E minor, Op 11
Piano Concerto No 2 in F minor, Op 21

Idil Biret – piano
Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra, Kosice
Conductor Robert Stankovsky

01. I. Allegro maestoso
02. II. Romance: Larghetto
03. III. Rondo: Vivace
04. I. Maestoso
05. II. Larghetto
06. III. Allegretto vivace

CD 09 Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 / Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 2
Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
Piano Concerto No 1 in B flat minor, Op 23

Sergey Rachmaninov (1873-1943)
Piano Concerto No 2 in C minor, Op 18

Bernd Glemser – piano
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Antoni Wit

Jeno Jando – piano
Budapest Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Gyorgy Lehel

01. I. Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso – Allegro con spirito
02. II. Andantino semplice – Prestissimo – Tempo I
03. III. Allegro con fuoco
04. I. Moderato
05. II. Adagio sostenuto
06. III. Allegro scherzando

CD 10 Ravel: Piano Concerto in G Major / Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 3 / Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Piano Concerto in G major

Sergey Prokofiev (1891-1953)
Piano Concerto No 3 in C major, Op 26

George Gershwin (1898-1937)
Rhapsody in Blue

Francois-Joel Thiollier – piano
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Antoni Wit

Kun Woo Paik – piano
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Antoni Wit

Kathryn Selby – piano
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Richard Hayman
Place of Recording: Studio 1 of Slovak Radio, Bratislava
Date of Recording: 21-24 June 1989

01. I. Allegramente
02. II. Adagio assai
03. III. Presto
04. I. Andante – Allegro
05. II. Tema con variazioni
06. III. Allegro ma non troppo
07. Rhapsody in Blue

At the very heart of a concerto is the interplay and contrast of a solo instrument within a larger instrumental ensemble. The natural progression from the Baroque concerto grosso, the concerto as we know it was fully established as a concert staple in the eighteenth century, and many works dating from this period are still a key part of the repertoire today. The opportunity for dazzling virtuosic display from the soloist has resulted in the concerto becoming a vital musical force both on the concert platform and in the audience arena.
The most important composer in the development of the early piano concerto was Mozart, whose masterly compositions for the instrument paved the way for expansion of the form by composers such as Beethoven, Schumann, Brahms and Grieg. In the Romantic era, composers such as Rachmaninov and Tchaikovsky lent a distinctly Russian fluency and passion to the idiom, whilst no pianistic survey would be complete without the transcendent concertos of those great piano masters, Chopin and Liszt. The twentieth century transformed the piano concerto yet further with splendid offerings from a delicate Ravel, fiery Prokofiev and jazzy Gershwin to name but a few.
The box set Great Piano Concertos has been produced to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Naxos and draws on their extensive catalogue of concerto recordings. The recording quality varies from the older 1980’s recordings but there are some good things to enjoy in the 10 CD set particularly Idil Biret playing the two Chopin piano concerts with the Slovak State Philharmonic under Rubert Stankovsky. The two Liszt concertos with Eldar Nebolsin and the RLPO under Petrenko are also very enjoyable as is Jenő Jando playing the Grieg and Schumann concertos with the Budapest Symphony under András Ligeti.
There are finer performances available in the catalogue of these works but this box set give an excellent introduction at a bargain price to the main body of concertos written for the Piano from Mozart to Prokofiev via Beethoven and Brahms and you can’t offer a much better way to introduce yourself to any works you don’t know. © 2012 Audiophilia

The Great Classics series from Naxos is the perfect introduction to myriad genres of classical music. Comprising both complete and compiled selections from the greatest works in the repertoire, the boxes are bursting with wonderful pieces of music, both recognizable and unfamiliar. The boxes take the listener on a thrilling tour of some of the worlds most dramatic musical media, encompassing music from six centuries and featuring sensational performers. All boxes come with a fascinating booklet with detailed information on the genre itself, chronological placement of each work, and a comprehensive study of the music. A fitting celebration of 25 years of superb music from Naxos, the worlds favourite classical label.