I am writing this review listening to Ashkenazy's account of the Waldstein sonata. Earlier, I was listening to Radu Lupu's wonderful version and iTunes took me blind to Ashkenazy. Without knowing who the pianist is (my itunes library contains 48 Beethoven sonata recordings, I was struck by the depth and directness of the interpretation. It is not the first time that this is happening. I know feel that as a set of all 32, Ashkenazy's is the one that gives me most consistent pleasure, but also offers a myriad of illuminating details in every sonata, without ever offering an interpretation that is eccentric or wilful. Over the years, I have loved many other versions of particular sonatas - Richter's Tempest, Arrrau's Op 111, Pollini's Hammerklavier and many others. But as a set of all 32, I would say that Ashkenazy provides the most consistent and inspiring reading.
There is another reason for writing this review. i am surprised by the two other reviews of this set as well as by the way that this great pianist is now sometimes taken for granted by reviewers. In the 60s and 70s when he was (rightly) celebrated as a great genius nobody seemed to raise a critical word about his performances (whether of Rachmaninov, Chopin or Beethoven). Maybe his prolific output and Decca's determination to have him record so much made reviewers take him for granted. But I am sure, music lovers who heard him live (as I did repeatedly in Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Rachmaninov etc.) or in his recordings will always remember his superb sound, the strength of his playing, the imagination and feeling that he brought to his music making. Far fewer wrong notes too than many other famous pianists.