MUTTER, ANNE SOPHIE/RECITAL 2000 GH

First, let me say the performance is outstanding. Anne-Sophie is at her best here and delivers once again another dynamic and thrilling performance. Lambert Orkis is also especially fine here and it sounds to me like the two have done it again. I think this is another award winning performance.

The selections here are very good choices and within the first moments I was immediately drawn into the energy and attention grabber of the Prokofiev. Each peice is a compelling modern work and I'm really gald to see the Respighi Sonata for Violin and Piano in B minor here. This is a great work that isn't performed often enough. Just over 25 minutes, it's a great piece everyone should have in their collection. This is the one to get. I'm especially fond of the second movement.

Now back to the audio. As I said, I've listened to it just once and on cheap headphones and when I get this recording home and listen with my good headphones, I know I'm in for 60+ minutes of stunning audio. This recording is destined to be one of the very greatest audio recordings of a violin/piano of all time! You heard me right. Of ALL time! What I heard sounded so amazing on cheap headphones that I can't imagine what to expect on a good pair (by good I mean $30-60 range!).

Here's why I claim this just might be the greatest violin/piano recording of all time. The recording is ultra-clear and in a natural '3d'. The type of 3d that adds clarity, not tricks. This might even be a binaural recording. Why I am so very pleased with the audio is that the two instruments are not in dead center, but instead, they are slightly to each side- the violin slightly to the left, the piano slightly to the right. This was done so well, and it's the first time I've heard a duo recorded like this, all I can say is finally, they 'got it right'! If you listen to just about any other violin/piano duo you will notice that the violin is dead center and so is the piano in the 'background'. That's the standard. And it's not bad. But having both instruments in exact dead center creates a focusing problem for the ear when trying to concentrate on just one instrument. That 'problem' is totally eliminated here! You can concentrate, if you want, easily on either instrument. Right before I listened to this recordig, I listened to another brand new recording of a different violin/piano duo and yep- the two instruments were both in the center. The slightly apart method is far better and truly stunning. Much clearer and dynamic.

While the slight seperation of the two instruments helps create clarity and focus, it also creates another major benefit. What is truly wonderful is that because of the slight seperation of the two instruments, it actually helps to create a LARGER tonal and dynmic impression and a more life-like feeling of 'being there'. Musical and tonal nuances are clearer and stronger. Often, the result is astonishing. There are moments that sound like a full orchestra, yet it's just the two. Another nice thing is that the echo sounds natural as if they performed in a small recital hall and allowed the microphones to capture the natural echo. I have discovered that recordings that capture the live echo of a good recital hall, especially with wooded walls, are much more enjoyable than studio recordings. There is a world of difference.

I give a big thankyou to the label, Deutsche Grammophon, and the audio technicians for this new method and I'm calling it a possible new standard of audio quality! (I'm hoping it will become the standard with all others but they will probably stick with the old way of recording instruments in the center).

I could go on, but you'll have to hear it for yourself. I admit, to claim it's one of the greatest violin/piano duo recordings of all time is hard to prove, very subjective, and just my opinion. But this one is up there folks. Way up there at the top.

Anne- if you happen to read this, I still occassionly watch the New Year's Eve 1984 Berlin concert with Karajan and your performance of Bach's Violin Concerto No 2 is still my very favorite.

Mike

Although I'm a Mutter fan, I've never really gotten the hang of 20th century music (hence only 4 stars) -- it's too fragmented, with ugly sounds and no conventional harmonies. Yet, after listening to this CD, I may well revisit some of those 20th century pieces which I've chucked aside to date. Such is the power of Mutter and Orkis's music-making in this recording.

Mutter is, as usual, her immaculate self and the pieces here allow her to display her astonishing dynamic range and her instrument's versatility. After the thrilling opening piece come the very serene Four Nocturnes by Crumb. Webern's Four Pieces which follow largely preserve this calm, interrupting it periodically with bursts of what I call "20th century virtuosity". The closing piece is Resphigi's B minor sonata for violin and piano. It has shades of drama and grandeur that seem to remind one more of the romantic age than the 20th century, but is overall unmistakably a piece from our times and is a fitting end to this album.

This recording is a must for all 20th century music lovers, and is highly recommended for those who need to be eased into 20th century music -- let Mutter change your mind about the music.