Peter Herwitz <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>I saw at Tower in the village the set of Beethoven violin sonatas with
>Casadesus/Francescatti.  Can anyone reccomend this recording?- it sure
>seems attractive and I don't think you can have too many recordings of
>these marvelous pieces.  I have Grumiaux/Haskil, both Schneiderhan's,
>and Oistrakh/Oborin.  Are than any others that seem essential?

I was going to suggest the Heifetz cycle, but then it occurred to me
that Emmanuel Bay may not accompany Heifetz on all of the sonatas. IIRC
Brooks Smith accompanied Heifetz on the later recordings, and although
he's a good pianist I don't consider him quite as good as Bay.

Concerning the Casadeus/ Francescatti set, I listened to the one CD I
have, which features the 5th ("Spring") and 9th ("Kreutzer") sonatas.
The 9th is very nicely done. There's an excellent rhythmic drive to the
piece, Francescatti is in top form, Casadeus supports him very very well,
the ensemble is very well matched, and in general the first movement
(that which I carefully listened to) bristles with energy. I liked it
better than Grumiaux/Haskil,and for me that's saying a lot. But one
mustn't necessarily expect such great playing from the whole set, because
the 5th sonata is probably the least likeable that I have, and I have
at least four versions. The problem with the Fran./Casa. "Spring" sonata
weighs entirely on Casadeus, though.  Compared to other pianists I have
on record, he simply sounds perfunctory.  Even while one hears Francescatti
shaping the phrase, putting in nuance, Casadeus just plays along and
really brings nothing to the ensemble. For this piece even Emmanuel Bay
contributes more musically while playing for the domineering Heifetz.
So in conclusion, it's hard to know how the whole set would turn out.

>From what I have heard the Grumiaux/Haskil and Oistrakh/Oborin sets
are considered the top sets to purchase, but I think that one can find
individual performances of other artists that might be better, so perhaps
you could consider this if you are intersted in making more purchases
of the Beethoven sonatas. For instance, one of the comparisons I made
with Francescatti's "Spring" was a Szigeti/Horszowski performance I had.
This recording was made during Szigeti's later years, and one can hear
a clear decline in his playing; and yet for me it is still the most
enchanting performance I have on record. His vibrato is slow, but you
can hear it undulating to the motion of Horszowski's fingers. The violin's
tone is dark, and sometimes Szigeti sounds heavy, but he matches the
piano beautifully.  Horszowski plays magnificently, not too fast, but
easily, and one hears every note. Most impressive of all, however, is
the ensemble between them that is unmatched by any of the other duos I
heard, including Heifetz/Bay and the ones mentioned above. So I would
defintely recommend this CD, but because of Szigeti's infirmity at this
point I wouldn't necessarily buy the others sonatas.

Likewise, I bought the my Heifetz CD specifically for the c-minor sonata
(the 7th or 8th) after hearing it on the radio. His tight rhythm and
intense vibrato make him ideally suited for this piece, and I haven't
heard anyone bring as much tension to this piece. He sounds a bit dry
in the begining, but together with Bay they provide clear direction in
the first movement, and through the development their sound becomes
richer and thicker right up to the recapitulation.  It's a truly great
performance.

Finally, my personal favorite for the "Kreutzer" sonata has been
Bronislaw Huberman, playing in the Brunswick Recordings. Years ago as a
student we did a "Kreutzer" sonata comparison in class, comparing Huberman
(playing with Paul Frenkel? I'm not sure) and Oistrakh and Heifetz and
perhaps some others. The Huberman and Oistrakh recordings were the most
popular, but they were quite different. Oistrakh's playing was more
deliberate, but he was smooth and missed nothing.  Huberman's playing
was more spontaneous and whimsical, and with more personality, something
I appreciated more back then.  Although I haven't listened to my recording
in a while, I would dare to say I would like it as much now as I did
then.

hector aguilar