The Complete Beethoven Sonatas – All 11 Volumes [DSD Bundle]

MusicWeb International

One of the attractions of Beethoven’s Piano Sonatas is that they are so extraordinarily diverse. They demand consistent insight, imaginative flair and great musicianship to bring them off successfully. Peter Takács has these qualities and rises to the challenge admirably. His cycle compares favorably with my personal favorites, which include those by Richard Goode, Claude Frank and Friedrich Gulda (1950’s Orfeo version).

Takács performs the first movement of the Sonata in C major Op 2 No. 3 with technical crispness. The Adagio, which follows, is wonderfully atmospheric and lyrically sculpted. A spirited Scherzo precedes a fourth movement which is exuberant and exhilarating. The Piano Sonata Op. 10 No. 3 receives an energized opening movement of big-scaled playing. Yet it’s the sublime slow movement where this pianist excels, allowing the melancholy, tragedy and anguish of Beethoven’s expression of personal grief to emerge. The Menuetto offers some soothing balm, before a capricious Rondo, based on a teasing three-note question, calls time.

The final disc of the set constitutes a sort of addendum. Apart from the Andante favori, all of the other sonatas (WoO – works without opus numbers) I’d never previously encountered. They are all relatively early works each of a shorter span than the 32. Nevertheless, they provide an interesting window into the mind of the composer. In the Op. 6 Sonata for four hands, Takács is partnered by Janice Weber in the secondo role.

The concert hall at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee provided the venue for the six year long project and there’s a remarkable consistency of sound throughout the set. The piano is ideally placed in the sound picture and the acoustic offers a warm, intimate and sympathetic ambience. The pianist performs on a fine sounding Bösendorfer Imperial Grand, which has been expertly voiced and has a warm, radiant tone. As for Takács’ interpretations, they are top-drawer in every respect.

Stephen Greenbank - Source

Positive Feedback

I’ve found them to be most engaging, well performed and nicely recorded. The performances are consistently well within the top ranks of performances one might find, and the sound quality exceeds that of most recordings available. Takács takes a middle road in his interpretations—consistently very solid, no excesses, and eminently satisfying. His playing style is very clean, supple and nuanced. And he can deliver power as called for. These performances were recorded in 2001-2007 by John Newton of Soundmirror, who knows what he’s about, and were originally released in 2010 as an eleven disc Stereo/Multichannel Hybrid SACD set on the Cambria label. By arrangement with NativeDSD, they are now available for download in both 5-channel and stereo in DSD64, 128, and 512.

Rushton Paul - Source

NativeDSD Blog 5 out of 5

An Extraordinary Set!

NativeDSD has many Beethoven Piano Sonata recordings available. Excellent Waldsteins, wonderful Moonlights, exciting Tempests, and heartfelt Pathetiques. It’s hard to go wrong with the most popular Sonatas. But what about all the others? What if I told you that there are superb performances, superbly recorded, of all the Piano Sonatas (along with a few extras) available now!

All 11 of Peter Takacs’ Beethoven albums are available individually, and in a money saving DSD bundle. I’ll let you read about the details of Peter Takacs life and performance history in the descriptions. What I’m anxious to tell you about is my reaction to this incredible group as a complete set.

Takacs is not an overly flamboyant pianist. He lets Beethoven speak for himself, yet I found absolutely nothing missing in these performances. The “greatest hits” sonatas are as fine as one could wish for, but what really impressed me is how much I thoroughly enjoyed all of the lesser known ones.  I kept thinking that each was like a totally new discovery, and each was something I would never want to be without.

Am I over-selling? I’m trying not to do that, but as someone who has enjoyed fine piano music all my life, I must tell you I am impressed.  And finally, the recordings are top-quality. Not too far, not too close, the perspective and clarity are absolutely perfect to my ears.  Make up your own mind, but the complete DSD set would be my first recommendation!

Bill Dodd, NativeDSD Senior Reviewer

The Whole Note

Peter Takács is a professor of piano at Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio. He was born in Bucharest, Romania and by four was taking music lessons and made his debut there at seven. When the family emigrated to France he was admitted to the Conservatoire National de Paris. In the United States he was awarded full scholarships to both Northwestern and the University of Illinois. It was with Leon Fleisher, with whom he maintains a close personal friendship, that he completed his artistic training at Peabody Conservatory. In addition to the usual one-on-one instruction, he gives master classes, adjudicates on music competitions, and concertizes in the United States and abroad, performing in solo recitals, chamber music and works with orchestra.

It is evident that Takács has become very close to Beethoven’s spirit, for these interpretations seem to come from within and not imposed on the score. These are not simply scholarly performances but fresh, compelling renditions by a scholar who has resolutely looked beyond the printed page. In addition to the 32 published sonatas, six extras are included: WoO 50 & 51 (1797/8); The Elector Sonatas WoO 47 nos. 1,2,3; and the sonata for piano four hands op.6 (1896/7) with Janice Weber, secondo. Plus, for good measure, the Andante Favori WoO 57. Thus, the collection is uniquely complete.

For me, Takács reveals qualities in these works that elevate them from piano pieces into musical narratives that engage the listener’s undivided attention and hold it beyond the very last note. I hated to stop any one of them or have my attention diverted in case I missed something. Even the shortest note or phrase has meaning. A poor simile but it may be like habitually viewing a sculpture from the same perspective and then seeing it from a new aspect… same piece but differently illuminated… an added dimension and a fresh appreciation of a familiar piece. Listening to these recordings aroused nostalgic remembrances of the wonderment and excitement of hearing these works for the first time. I do hope that Professor Takács will flavor us with some Schumann, played with equal dedication.

Audiophiles will be very excited with these albums  which are recorded in 5 Channel Surround Sound DSD 64 but are spot-on heard in Stereo DSD. The instrument is a Model 290, 9’6” Bösendorfer Imperial Grand and the recordings were engineered by Soundmirror, Inc. of Boston.

Bruce Surtees - Source

Audiophile Audition 5 out of 5

If you are a true audiophile – and chances are you think you might be if you visit these pages – then this set will be self-recommending. A magnificent recording in Multichannel DSD done on a wonderfully-mannered Bosendorfer and recorded at the Concert Hall of the Music and Mass Communication building at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee.

It is flat-out the most vividly captured set of the Beethoven sonatas on the market today, and might remain that way for some time. These are late bloomers, recorded 2001-2004, and DSD has changed somewhat since then, but you aren’t missing anything here. Peter Takacs is a noted performer and professor at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, and this realization represents the fulfillment of a lifelong dream of his.

Period folks will shrink from this, and that is too bad. Of course the mere mention of a Bosendorfer is probably enough to put them off their food for a week, and that is a shame, for Takacs’s approach to these works, according to his own requirements set down in the notes, is one of the most rational and musical apologias I have heard. Following the dictates of one of his teachers, Leon Fleisher, Takacs says that one must go beyond mere historical and “timely” aspects of the music to get to the “wisdom of the material”, the “unspoken essence that lies beyond the notes.”

So are their revelations here? Actually, no, and that is not unexpected; after so many sets over so many years it is almost impossible to expect an artist to shed new light on these warhorses. What we look for now are performances that are heartfelt, clean, passionate, and in this case, with state-of-the-art sound. This recording has all of those.  I can see myself returning to this set very often because the sound is marvelous. If you love this music, and how can you not, you need more than one—make that more than two or three—complete sets.

And the best is yet to come. Whether it’s the “Waldstein” or the “Appassionata”, each reading receives a performance of temperamental balance and excellent judgment. Unlike so many artists who feel up to tackling all of these works, Takacs is extraordinarily adept at giving consistently fine readings across the broad spectrum of these pieces. Like I said, you won’t find interpretative unearthing jewels here, but you will find solid pianism, a point of view, and moving performances.

No matter how many sets I own, and there are quite a few, I don’t think I could resist this one.

Steven Ritter - Source

New York Classical Review

Beethoven could hardly have a better or more welcoming advocate.

Sean Piccoli

clevelandclassical.com

Takác’s touch and voicing are unerring throughout the cycle. He brings an appropriate sense of wit, humour, tragedy, poignancy, relief, or delight to individual movements while steering well clear of any distortions of expression or musical form, and he makes sense and lucidity out of Beethoven’s strangest moments.

Daniel Hathaway

AllMusic 5 out of 5

An ambition to record the piano sonatas of Ludwig van Beethoven is common among great pianists. But Peter Takács’ imposing box set is complete beyond ordinary expectations.

Not only did he record all 32 piano sonatas with opus numbers, but he also included the less familiar Sonatina in F major, WoO 50, the Sonata in C major, WoO 51, the Three “Elector” Sonatas, the Sonata in D major for piano four hands (with Janice Weber on the secondo part), and the charming Andante in F major, known as the Andante favori.

When one considers the excellence of Takács’ performances, which are among the finest ever released, then all of the extras seem more like a tribute to the pianist’s monumental achievement. There is little to quibble about, except perhaps the minor points of interpretation or technique, which aficionados can always find between performances, but Takács is such an esteemed artist and his readings are so elevated and polished, the discussion should focus instead on degrees of excellence.

Takács’ playing is clean, his expression subtle, his rhythms supple, his power unrivaled; furthermore, his understanding of Beethoven’s methods and expressions is so profound that this set warrants the highest honors. Add to this the extraordinarily realistic DSD reproduction that captures every nuance of Takács’ touch and the full range of the piano’s timbres, and this lavish set can be understood to suit its musical subject matter most handsomely. Recommended as one of the finest Beethoven sonata cycles of any year.

Blair Sanderson - Source