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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
FOR THE RECORD, 12 Jul 2007
These recordings date from the immediate postwar period, the latest having been made in 1952. Serkin was born in 1903, and so these readings of the composer he was most closely associated with come from the prime period of his career. When Serkin later grew out of sympathy with his own earlier style he was older than Beethoven lived to be. So am I come to that, but I have never tired of Serkin's earlier manner, and I doubt I ever shall. The man himself summarised his recantation by saying `I took everything too fast'.
Not for me he didn't. Neither my own advancing decades nor subsequent fashions in piano-playing have yet convinced me that when Beethoven (of all composers) marks the finale of op 27/2 `presto agitato', when he directs `allegro di molto e con brio' in the first movement of the Pathetique, or when he heads the first movement of the Waldstein `allegro con brio' or writes `prestissimo' over the middle movement of op 109, he actually meant `moderato'. You will find all these directions followed literally here, I am pleased to say. Some perversity in the nature of things has led some adherents to the modern maestoso philosophy in general to swing towards the opposite pole in the last movement of the Appassionata. Here Beethoven adds the highly unusual (and therefore doubly significant for him) caution `ma non troppo' to his allegro marking, which Serkin of course respects, as distinct from certain others whom I shall not name.
The reverse of the medal is of course the tone-quality. Mr Graham Newton is a wizard at the job, but there is only a certain amount that he or David Lennick or any of them can do with what they are given. In fact a surprising amount of Serkin's unique tone-production comes through, but probably it comes through best to people who know what to listen for in the first place. For newcomers to this artist the tone is likely to sound harsh and metallic, especially at first, and this may contribute to a general impression of haste and hypertension, which would be a very unjust view indeed of this prince of all Beethoven-players. For me, Serkin surpasses all other interpreters of this composer by a long way. The dynamism, fury when required, urgency, highlighted contrasts of volume-levels but above all the sheer epic quality are not just Serkin's and Serkin's alone in my experience: they evoke for me the true and turbulent spirit of Beethoven in a way that nobody else has ever evoked it except Toscanini, and he more intermittently. You can still hear it all in this set, but sadly I think previous experience is needed first in order to hear between the staves, if the expression may be permitted. Try the last movement of op 27/2 if you will. I can still hear the wonderful way Serkin `orchestrates' the great chomping chords near the end of the exposition and recapitulation, but I'm hearing it partly with my mind's ear because I know it from a later and more faithful recording. A subtler instance is the last movement of the Waldstein. No haste here, but a drifting `allegretto moderato' as marked (and the main theme swimming in sustaining pedal, also as marked but less often as played). A faster speed would not only ruin that languid midsummer sense at the start, it would also cramp the gigantic heroic outbursts later in the piece; and we can still appreciate those to some extent here.
I suppose it all comes down to `trust Beethoven: he knew what he meant'. When I listen to alternative schools of interpretation I often find myself wondering what or whom they are really interpreting. In the first movement of the Waldstein, as an example, Beethoven religiously puts a sforzando marking on the top note of the second theme at every occurrence of it. Does it matter? Apparently not to most players in my experience, because I can think of nobody except Serkin who takes it at its face value. Without proliferating instances, I must have got the general message across by now - this is this maestro's greatest playing just about captured through a brave and professional piece of sound-restoration. On the back of the box this wizardry is deservedly dignified as `technical reconstruction', but on the frontispiece it is nothing less than `technically refurbished', recalling the famous `certain elements of refurbishment' carried out by a celebrated American ambassador. In passing I might say that the production is almost ostentatiously American in many ways, except for the arresting diktat `Not for sale in the U.S.A.'
Somebody ought to say what the set actually contains, so I shall shoulder the task. You will find here the `Moonlight' (bah, moonshine!) op27/2, the Pathetique, Appassionata and Les Adieux on disc 1; and the Waldstein, op 109, the G minor fantasia op 77 and the F# sonata on the later. Op 77 is a piece that hardly anyone seems to play, and Serkin rather `cornered' it. It is Beethoven at his most unique and ultra-characteristic, and it has its interpreter here as destined from the dawn of time. In view of my general characterisation of aspects of the playing, I ought to point out that even in the early days Serkin never understood the `Vivace, ma non troppo' of op 109 as signifying a particularly fast tempo; and that if your idea of op 78 is relaxed Serkin is your man, whereas if you want something more `in your face' Arrau might suit you. Value for money in terms of quantity is therefore high. Value for insight into Beethoven and the power to convey it is literally beyond price. The sound is the real issue. It has been very well done, and not even an experienced record-collector should rely too much on a first impression, because it yields up more secrets with repeated listening. I'm only slightly worried that music lovers too young to have known this phenomenal musician from direct experience may be slightly too late to get the best out of this collection.
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