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Ludwig van BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)
Sonatas for Pianoforte and Cello
Pieter Wispelwey cello (Baran Norman, 1710)
CHANNEL CLASSICS CCS 3592
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by Derek Lim
Beethoven's Cello Sonatas, though only five in number, have a larger variety than that of the Violin Sonatas, stretching from op.5 to op.102, and thus are more representative as a whole, than the violin counterparts. They need great artistry and outstanding commitment.
Let me say then, from the outset that I find a lot of the above two
qualities in the artists in some of the performances on these discs.
One more thing may be of at least passing interest: the piano
which Paul Komen plays on is a Broadwood grand piano dating from 1823 that
is exactly the same model as that sent by John Broadwood to Beethoven in
1818 as a gift. The great composer took this as a great honour.
It has a beautiful tone quite different from the Steinways so popular nowadays, and is indeed quite unique in timbre. In the high notes the instrument is
crystalline (it doesn't quite project so much here, though). It does have
warmth and colour in great quantities, but at the same time a certain
attractive brittleness to the sound. In his notes, Paul Komen writes that
it was a treat to perform on this piano. Listening to it, I believe so.
It was quite a pleasure listening to this piano, for a change from all
those Steinways.
What is there to say about the interpretations? I have not heard Komen in
any repertoire at all, but in this disc he seems a sensitive artist, with
an attention to dynamics (take for example the beginning of the Scherzo of
the A-major Sonata where Komen actually plays the ff right after the p, as written.
He has a touch which I may categorise as medium-light, not lumbering (try Barenboim with du Pré (EMI CMS7 63015-2, mid-price) for example, though he's much better now, with Vengerov in the Brahms Violin Sonata No.3 reviewed here), and is mostly a satisfying accompanist, though he tends sometimes to follow his partner's phrasing too closely. Also, sometimes, I wished for a greater amount of that grandness of performance that Kovacevich, for example, had in great quantity (I'm thinking of the great theme introduced by the
piano in the first movement of the A major.) A little too self-effacing,
I thought, sometimes. Also as a note, it's my impression that he seems to
sometimes rush his left-hand accompanying semiquavers.
Neither is there that occasional note-pointing from both the cello and
piano that, for example Jacqueline du Pré's account with Stephen
Kovacevich (EMI CDM7 69179-2, mid-price; Nos. 3 & 5 only) had, and sometimes there is a seeming lack of total sight of
the movement; that unfailing flow of logic that makes Beethoven so
satisfying. And then there are interpretative decisions made, for
example, in the Allegro ma non tanto (which by the way, Wispelwey describes as a horn in the great wide open, but where I feel that again, Du Pré's account with Kovacevich actually captures much better). Here Wispelwey
and Komen both indulge in a bit of Romantic tempo rubato, which on first
hearing seems like an interesting idea but on repeated listening, one
wishes for just the notes as they were written.
The duo fare best in the first two sonatas, where the most interesting
ideas are to be found. The Third Sonata sounds distinctly wrong-footed to
me from the outset, and I can't say I can find much enthusiasm here,
despite some pleasing ideas here and there. The late-period Fourth and
Fifth fare much better, however, as a whole I can't say that these
collective performances would be anyone's first choice. One would have to
contend with the obvious first choice of Fournier and Kempff (Deutsche Grammophon 423 297-2), among others, even at this price.
These performances were recorded in 1991, and I'm sure Wispelwey's playing and
Komen's playing have improved significantly since then. Is there a
possibility that they might record these together again, in a few years time,
and this time couple the Sonatas with the variations?
Joy, Bright spark of Divinity
Derek Lim can play C major scales on the cello, and very soon it's going to be
last he's going to see of his MAJ.
Left: portrait of Beethoven,
by
Prof. Carl Jäger (date unknown)
Wispelwey himself is a stylist here, opting for limited vibrato most of
the time. I would have liked a certain degree more, personally. His
performance is generally clean, choosing fingerings which would require as
little shifting one finger from note-to-note as possible. Intonation is
spot-on, and Wispelwey has moments of inventive phrasing. However I find a
little frission of excitement missing from these performances. Tempi in
the fast movements, though sometimes faster than elsewhere, don't have
that edge of tumult that other performances afford, namely risk-taking.
Playing Beethoven sometimes means having fun, and I sometimes found these
performances somewhat humourless, somewhat strait-laced and un-un-buttoned.
Daughter of Elysium.
Fiery inspired we tread
Your Celestial Sanctuary.
Your magic reunites
All that custom has divided.
All Men become as Brothers
Under the sway of your gentle wings.
The Beethoven Mystique
9 Symphonies (Karajan 1963)
9 Symphonies (Wand)
9 Symphonies (Hanover Band)
9 Symphonies (Zinman)
Piano Variations (Frith)
Piano Variations (Scherbakov)
Piano Concerti (Lill)
Piano Concerti Nos.1 & 2 (Uchida)
Violin Concerto (Menuhin)
Violin Concerto (Milstein)
Cello Sonatas (Wispelwey)
Back to the Classical Index!... or read more Baroque features from the Inkvault archives!
524: 22.6.1999 ©Derek Lim
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