Beethoven's nine symphonies were recorded by Herbert von Karajan in 1961-1962 with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra — of which he became permanent conductor in 1955 to replace Wilhelm Furtwängler — and released on the DG label in 1963. 1963 October 15, Herbert von Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic played Beethoven's Ninth Symphony at the inaugural concert of the Berlin Philharmonie. The first complete recording by the Austrian conductor — next will be the versions recorded between 1975-1977 (released in 1977, also a high-flying interpretation) and between 1982 and 1984 (released in 1985) — this version of 1963 remains the most inhabited on the whole. Technically remarkable, she is one of the great peaks of her discography. © Qobuz

When talking about Carlos Kleiber's conducting style and recording catalogue, it is easy to over-use superlatives. Perhaps the secrets of his art are best expressed in the cover picture, with the mad elegance of his gestures, which seem to summon up the music through sheer energy, subtlety and a radiant smile: he seems absolutely possessed by inspiration. But listening to this album should do the trick too. Living as a recluse, cancelling three quarters of his concerts, hardly ever recording, it was like a miracle when Carlos Kleiber agreed to set down these two symphonies for Deutsche Grammphon. In 1975, he recorded the 5th Symphony in the generous surroundings of the Vienna Musikverein, with a Philharmonic that hung off his every word and followed his slightest gesture. Under his philosopher's baton, the "5th" became pure, distilled energy, an explosive Pandora's box that gave off sparks and followed the demands of the score precisely. The fateful four notes around which the entire symphony was built were at once the foundation and the capstone of this landmark work, magnificently structured here by Kleiber. Has there ever been such a tempestuous and light-footed Seventh Symphony? One thinks immediately of Nietzsche: "I would believe only in a God that knows how to dance". Recorded the following year, in the same place, this Seventh soars, pirouettes and exults in a pantheist, saving joy, with a lightness that seems to lift the musicians off the floor. "Now am I light, now do I fly; now do I see myself under myself. Now there danceth a God in me.". Thus directed Carlos Kleiber. © François Hudry/Qobuz

The precocious Japanese-German pianist Alice Sara Ott entered the famous Mozarteum in Salzburg at the age of 12, while continuing her humanities studies in her native Munich. Her exceptional musicality would later propel her to a career whose horizons seemed clouded by an unavoidable illness.In 2009, her recording of Liszt's Transcendental Études caused a sensation. It was soon followed by a dozen other albums, including this one devoted to Beethoven, whom she loves dearly. It includes a selection of solo and orchestral works, such as this fluid, luminous, classical version of Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 15, accompanied by the Dutch Radio Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of New York conductor and violinist Karina Canellakis, who pays great attention to nuance and her rhythmic support.The rest of the programme is devoted to a highly meditative vision of the Moonlight Sonata (No. 14, in C# minor, Op. 27 No. 2). Alice Sara Ott's deft, velvety touch and modesty in interpretation are unreservedly admired. Four short pieces conclude this fine monographic album: a fresh, ingenuous vision of Für Elise, two Bagatelles and an Allegretto in B minor without opus number, a delightful Klavierstück composed in 1821 for Ferdinand Piringer, one of his new friends and second conductor in Vienna. © François Hudry/Qobuz

Jordi Savall’s Concert des Nations concludes its Beethoven journey with the legend’s final four symphonies. They were recorded in Paris in the autumn of 2021 (the 6th and 7th Symphonies were recorded on October 5th, and the 8th and 9th Symphonies on October 15th), during the same period of time in which the orchestra played two concerts at the Philharmonie de Paris, consequently bringing to a close their complete concert series, which they’d been performing across two years.The finesse that graced their first volume, published in the summer of 2020, has been maintained in their second. These Beethoven pieces are alert and incisive - in accent, in rhythm and in articulation. Strangely enough, these symphonies, which were composed by Beethoven once he’d reached his musical maturity, have almost been arranged in a style that seems to allude to Haydn and Mozart at times. However, it’s clear that textures are becoming denser, and the orchestra is starting to make masterful use of their musical freedom - fans of the timpani will love this!What Beethoven invented in the early 19th century, in terms of timbre and new colours (particularly within Symphonies No.3 and No.4), was consolidated in his later work, transforming symphonic composition for a long time to come. The 7th is often considered the metaphorical Everest of his symphonic repertoire, not only for its choreographic essence (which has never since been found in this genre), but also for its joyous celebration of the true Beethoven spirit: compositional blocks joined together by polyphonic melodies, creating a weighty, triumphant sound. Jordi Savall has clearly focussed on Beethoven’s major impact on the history of music throughout the creation of this project. © Pierre-Yves Lascar/Qobuz

One could easily lose oneself in the meanderings of the many recordings by Wilhelm Kempff, which stretch out across the 55 years from 1920 to 1975, even though he never liked playing for the microphone. But nonetheless he has always been happy to record, and would constantly polish up his technique so as to render the most faithful possible service to his art, across both his own evolution and the technological innovations that he has seen through his many years of recording, from acoustics to stereophony. The great German pianist left behind him three complete recordings of Beethoven's sonatas. The first was in the 1930s, but it wasn't quite complete; the second in the 1950s; and a final collection, brought together in this recording, from the early 1960s, with stereo sound. Recorded quite quickly, considering the volume of material involved, between January 1964 and January 1965, in the studios of Hanover's Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft, it represents Wilhelm Kempff's final statement on Beethoven's work, having drawn closer to it over the course of several years. While the piano isn't without the odd harsh moment, this complete recording is of very even quality, and it brings out Kempff's free playing style which had brought Beethoven into the light, avoiding the heavy-handedness which German pianists had often inflicted on the composer. This search for clarity and simplicity came close to the improvisatory style that was Beethoven's hallmark, as he quickly "noted" whatever his imagination brought forth. © François Hudry/Qobuz

With this recording of the Missa Solemnis, Jordi Savall and Le Concert des Nations bring to an end their “Beethoven Revolution” project, already consisting of the Symphonies in their entirety. Under the direction of this valiant 82 year-old, Beethoven’s masterpiece resounds more than ever as a hymn to peace and brotherhood.The Catalonian conductor sets fire to this score of gigantic proportions with a grip that could move mountains and a fervour capable of making even the most insensitive listener shed a tear. Under the direction of his exemplary and exalted expressivity, the Missa Solemnis is written into the timelessness of Mozart’s Requiem, all while demonstrating the power of Bruckner’s Te Deum in a stunning historical perspective.Recorded in May 2023 in Catalonia during a series of concerts also held in Paris, Barcelona, and Dresden, this version of the Missa Solemnis was poised from the outset to be one of the great recordings of this work, but in a distinctly personal way due to its expression of the pinnacle of pain, fear, and hope. Singing at the top of their lungs, the sensual voices of La Capella Nacional de Catalunya seem to be making a desperate plea to humanity in peril, rounded out by a quartet of excellent soloists: Lina Johnson, soprano, Olivia Vermeulen, mezzo-soprano, Martin Platz, tenor, and Manuel Walser, baritone. By drawing Beethoven’s piece alongside the world of great Spanish painting, Jordi Savall turns it into a drama whose chiaroscuro unveils an exceptional power that will leave no one indifferent. © François Hudry/Qobuz

Jordi Savall’s Beethoven is bursting with life. The accents, rhythms and articulations are sprightly of course. But also in spirited, intelligent phrases, the accomplished orchestral balance cheerfully testifies to this (Adagio from the 4th). The tempos too are relatively measured but alluring. The secret of these Beethoven compositions is their dancing spirit, inherited from the dances of the 18th century, which brings a constant energy. Another way in which these works stand out is the revolution of timbres which inspired the Master of Bonn’s formal constructions, in the new registers (the development of brass instruments and notably horns, but also increased presence of timpani, etc.) and in the development of dense textures. All this is paired with a poetic, theatrical sound: these symphonies are hidden dramas. This is how Ernest Ansermet also saw it in the past and his complete Decca recordings bear the trace of this, despite a naturally different general aesthetic (Decca, 1958-1963, well worth rediscovering). Here, the 4th is bursting with audacity - it is perhaps the greatest of the first works of the genre in the Beethoven catalogue. Jordi Savall achieves a very beautiful ensemble, which very clearly sticks out above the rest in this year of Beethoven (2020), a year overflowing with rather unconvincing artistic proposals. © Pierre-Yves Lascar/Qobuz

Musical careers last longer than they used to, and here, it is difficult to detect any weakening of the long-impressive technique of pianist Garrick Ohlsson, 74 years old, when this album was recorded in the summer of 2022. The feat is especially impressive in that all five of the Beethoven concertos (plus the Overture to The Creatures of Prometheus, Op. 43, with no piano) were performed live within a single week. Ohlsson is backed by the Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra under the direction of veteran conductor Donald Runnicles, who points out that he and Ohlsson had very little discussion about interpretation prior to the performances. It is here that Ohlsson's expertise is evident. He doesn't blaze any new paths in these works, but one has the feeling that he holds the performances, to borrow a phrase from John Le Carré, like a thrush's egg in his hand. His readings are simple in the best way. Sample the arresting opening of the first movement of the Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58; it is direct, yet there are micro shapings that bespeak long familiarity. In fact, it is in the first two concertos, where the lengthy expositions make it less possible for Ohlsson to control the flow of events, that are less effective. The partnership between Ohlsson and the orchestra, though, is lively throughout, and Runnicles gets excellent results from what is likely essentially a pickup group; the orchestra is moderately sized and agile. Superb live recording from Reference Recordings, discussed in detail in the booklet, is another draw. © James Manheim /TiVo

The "Beethoven for Three" series, featuring piano trio arrangements of Beethoven's symphonies, offers one or more symphonies together with one of the composer's actual piano trios. The three performers, violinist Leonidas Kavakos, pianist Emanuel Ax, and cellist Yo-Yo Ma, could probably have sold albums on name recognition alone, but they deliver performances worthy of their names. Certainly, arrangements of Beethoven's symphonies for smaller forces were common enough in the 19th century, but the ones here, by composer Shai Wosner, are new and frequently quite artful; hear the delicate slow introduction to the first movement of the Symphony No. 4, Op. 60, where Wosner interprets the original rather than straining to duplicate it. The highlight on this volume may come with the masterful reading of the Piano Trio in B flat major, Op. 97 ("Archduke"), where the players' familiarity with each other really shows. Sample the Scherzo, where there is not a note that isn't distinctively articulated in some way, and the fascinatingly deliberate opening to the finale. Sony Classical contributes impressive engineering from a new studio venue at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in upstate New York. This album breathes new life into the all-star format, and it made classical best-seller lists in the spring of 2024.© James Manheim /TiVo

The late Beethoven recordings of pianist Mitsuko Uchida have been career makers, and it is cause for celebration that she has capped them with the 33 Variations on a Waltz by Diabelli, Op. 120, a work that perhaps poses deeper interpretive challenges than any of the late sonatas. The Variations often show a kind of rough humor, and a performer may pick up on that, or the player may deemphasize the humor and seek out the epic qualities of the Piano Sonata No. 30 in E major, Op. 109, and Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111. Uchida does neither. The outlines of her usual style, high-contrast and a bit dry, are apparent, but she does not let them dominate her reading. What Uchida realizes is that the abrupt transition from humor to the deepest existential ruminations is part and parcel of Beethoven's late style, and she works to hone the particular character of each Beethoven variation. Her left hand, as usual, is strikingly powerful, and this brings out many striking details (consider the stirring variation 16). The trio of slow minor variations toward the end are given great seriousness but are not in the least overwrought; Uchida achieves an elusive Olympian tone through the final variations. There is much more to experience here, for each variation is fully thought out, but suffice it to say that this is one of the great performances of the Diabelli Variations.© TiVo

With no slight intended to the other great recordings of the Missa Solemnis in the world, there's this one and then there are all the rest. Truly. Even with the 1940 Toscanini and the 1974 Böhm, this 1965 recording of Otto Klemperer and the Philharmonia Orchestra and Chorus embodies everything that's great about the Missa Solemnis. And everything that's great about late Beethoven is in the Missa Solemnis: the energy, the nobility, the strength, the vision, and -- above all -- the overwhelming sense that the numinous is imminent. Beethoven thought it was his best work and who could not agree? That's what's in Klemperer's performance. His command of the score and control of the orchestra are complete, but it is Klemperer's ability to take the musicians beyond themselves, to go beyond making music to be made music, and to incarnate Beethoven's transcendent revelation in sound that puts this recording in a class of its own. Or rather, that puts it in the same exalted class as Klemperer's German Requiem and St. Matthew Passion, the class of the sublime. EMI's stereo sound was magnificent in its day and its remastering is ideal.© TiVo

The scarcity of the Polish pianist Krystian Zimerman's studio recordings is a result of his high standards and, at the same time, makes for an excellent sales pitch. The pianist leaves nothing to chance, scrutinising scores in search of answers to his musical and organological questions concerning the style, the mechanics and possibilities of his instrument. He travels the world with his own Steinway pianos exclusively, dismantling them and reassembling them himself for each concert.A first complete set of Beethoven's Concertos was started for the same publisher in Vienna with Leonard Bernstein in 1989, but this was unfortunately interrupted by Bernstein's death, which obliged Zimerman to conduct the first two concertos from his keyboard. The closeness of his Beethovenian vision to that of Sir Simon Rattle has led him to undertake a second complete collection with the latter, this time recorded in London with the London Symphony Orchestra. Krystian Zimerman's hyper-articulate playing, which gives exceptional legibility to Beethoven's lines, shines in this varied corpus, which starts at the end of the eighteenth century and goes straight into Romanticism. Around him, the fabulous English musicians sing and carry on their dialogues under Rattle's very lyrical direction. This conductor is particularly attentive to the pianist's slightest intentions, and there are many cues to watch out for.While the global pandemic did not change musical approaches, it did profoundly alter the physical layout of the orchestras. In their splendid home of St. Luke's, an eighteenth-century church in the heart of London that was abandoned in the early 1960s after a terrible landslide and rehabilitated for the London Symphony Orchestra in the early twenty-first century, the musicians were forced to spread out according to strict health regulations. The protective screens between the music stands, the social distance of 1.5 metres between the strings and 2 metres between the woodwinds and the brass did not, however, detract from the coherence and sonic splendour of this recording. “Sometimes it feels like blowing smoke signals over a mountain, but there’s something about the effort that almost suits Beethoven. The struggle is part of his style,” Rattle said. “After all the anxiety and uncertainty that the pandemic gave us, it was such a release and such a joy for us to play Beethoven again. We were able to do this at a time when so many musicians had been prevented from working. It’s something I think we will never forget.” The musical message is communicated with an ineffable, expressive intensity. © François Hudry/Qobuz

The "Lost Tapes" marketing device is doubtless effective, but actually, there are several recordings of Beethoven piano sonatas from the end of Rudolf Serkin's life. This one was the very last one, and Serkin never approved its release. However, as the pianist's daughter Judith points out in the notes, he was a perfectionist who rarely was satisfied with his recorded work. She also notes that his career spanned eras from the piano roll to the CD, and there is no question that this is a historic release. It is equally clear that Serkin had lost a step by the time he recorded the Piano Sonata No. 21 in C major, Op. 53 ("Waldstein"), in 1986, and Piano Sonata No. 23 in F sharp minor, Op. 57 ("Appassionata"), in 1989. Whether because his skills had declined further or simply because the intense "Appassionata" was a taller order, the "Waldstein" is the stronger performance here; the finale of the "Appassionata" is labored. What is near miraculous, however, is that even with diminished technical powers, these recordings are full of Serkin's distinctive personality and style. He was among the most reserved of the great German-Austrian pianists of the 20th century, keeping to a strict tempo and unfolding details subtly in the upper layers. The finale of the "Waldstein" has a fascinating interior quality; lacking glittering double-octave runs, Serkin brings the quintessential Beethovenian narrative of adversity overcome to the work. This release is recommended for Serkin fans and lovers of historical recordings generally.© James Manheim /TiVo

Isabelle Faust's recording career is exemplary. After her recordings devoted to Brahms, Beethoven and... André Jolivet, she offers us an exciting coupling, and the companionship of an already legendary conductor, Claudio Abbado, here at the head of his Mozart Orchestra! Everything in this album that Qobuz is proud to present in 24 bit Studio Master quality, is exceptional. The beauty of Isabelle Faust's sound, the sumptuous orchestral carpet that Abbado weaves for her - and of course this rather rare confrontation of two works that are touchstones for all the great violinists is thrilling. A worthy Qobuzissime!

Download not available