Beethoven: 'Hammerklavier'; 'Hunt' (2006)

Earl Wild, born in 1915, has continued giving concerts and making recordings into his tenth decade. These Beethoven sonata recordings, made in 1994 (the Piano Sonata in B flat major, Op. 106, or "Hammerklavier") and 1984 (the Piano Sonata No. 18 in E flat, Op. 31/3) aren't products of quite such an advanced age, but they're impressive enough, especially in the case of the fearsome "Hammerklavier." This sonata, like the finale of the Symphony No. 9, has the component of near-unperformability as part of its aesthetic makeup. ... Read More

Earl Wild, born in 1915, has continued giving concerts and making recordings into his tenth decade. These Beethoven sonata recordings, made in 1994 (the Piano Sonata in B flat major, Op. 106, or "Hammerklavier") and 1984 (the Piano Sonata No. 18 in E flat, Op. 31/3) aren't products of quite such an advanced age, but they're impressive enough, especially in the case of the fearsome "Hammerklavier." This sonata, like the finale of the Symphony No. 9, has the component of near-unperformability as part of its aesthetic makeup. But it's hard to hear any compromises being made by the big-boned, powerful Wild. Wild's teachers were students of students of Liszt's, and his Beethoven is Lisztian Beethoven, with a brilliant upper register set off against booming chords in the left hand and dramatic contrasts drawn throughout. Wild's interpretations of both sonatas are distinctive. In the opening movement of the "Hammerklavier" he makes much of the silences that punctuate the über-heroic thematic material. His... Read Less

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2006, Ivory Records UPC: 644057600129 CD See All