Dutch musicians are different. They are absolutely objective, but deeply passionate; completely faithful to the letter of the score, but totally in touch with the spirit behind the score; wholly dedicated to their ensemble, but profoundly individualistic in their expression. In these ways, the Storioni Trio is the epitome of Dutch music-making. On this disc, the Storioni Trio fully inhabits not only the late eighteenth century world of Beethoven's early E flat major Trio Op. 1/2, but also the early nineteenth century world of Beethoven's later D major Trio, Op. 70/1, nicknamed the "Ghost."

This is the latest and, they tell us, the last of EMI’s Simon Rattle Edition, gathering together the conductor’s complete forays into certain composers and repertoire. As with any such project the sets hitherto released have contained both treasures and duds. Even though not everything here is perfect, this set sends the series out on a high with his complete Vienna recording of the Beethoven symphonies.

Underpinned by perfect virtuosity, Zukerman's rich and beautiful violin tone perfectly reveals the charm that Beethoven puts into these sonatas. A well-balanced and excellent performance with the exquisite support of Neikrug has value that should be listened to for a long time as a standard of Beethoven's performance.

“The Beethoven concerto is a piece of overwhelming power,” says violinist Vilde Frang. “It is somehow more than music – the dimension of it feels almost cosmic. The force of this concerto takes me by surprise, over and over again.” Frang juxtaposes Beethoven’s epic, lyrical work with Stravinsky’s compact violin concerto, which pays spiky tribute to 18th century models. The conductor is Pekka Kuusisto, himself an adventurous violinist, in his role as Artistic Best Friend of the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen. “It was the chamber musical qualities of the Beethoven concerto that provided the key for me,” says Frang.

Nathan Mironovich Milstein (January 13, 1904 [O.S. December 31, 1903] – December 21, 1992) was a Russian Empire-born American virtuoso violinist.Widely considered one of the finest violinists of the 20th century, Milstein was known for his interpretations of Bach's solo violin works and for works from the Romantic period. He was also known for his long career: he performed at a high level into his mid 80s, retiring only after suffering a broken hand.

Solti's interpretations held more than surface excitement. In conducting Beethoven, for example, he long held that the symphonies should be played with all their repeats to maintain their structural integrity, and he carefully rethought his approach to tempo, rhythm, and balance in those works toward the end of his life. Solti began as a pianist, commencing his studies at age six and making his first public appearance at 12. When he was 13 he enrolled at Budapest's Franz Liszt Academy of Music, studying piano mainly with Dohnányi and, for a very short time, Bartók. He also took composition courses with Kodály.

There's a tendency on the part of some performers to play Beethoven's First and Second Piano Concertos as if they were really by Mozart–all elegance, poise, and refinement. Happily, Boris Berezovsky finds the Beethovenian fire burning beneath the Mozartian surface. Right from his vibrant entrance in Concerto No. 1, Berezovsky plays with fierce energy (despite his generally light touch) and a clearly discernible enjoyment. This is matched Thomas Dausgaard's equally electric reading of the orchestral part, which in many ways reminds me of the classic Szell/Fleisher recording. Of course the small-scale sound of the 38-member Swedish Chamber Orchestra cannot possibly equal the full sonority of the Cleveland Orchestra in its heyday, but it's remarkable how Szell's clear textures and crisp articulation match Dausgaard's, who, by the way, is using the new Barenreiter editions. Berezovsky seems to be of like mind with Fleisher, at least terms of his singing tone and mercurial style.

Authentic and authoritative, these 1985 recordings of Mozart and Beethoven's quintets for piano and winds have almost everything going for them. Performing on a pianoforte modeled on a 1790 Viennese instrument, Jos van Immerseel is an adroit player, while the quartet drawn from the period instrument wind band Octophoros Paul Dombrecht on oboe, Elmar Schmid on clarinet, Piet Dombrecht on horn, and Danny Bond on bassoon are likewise all skillful instrumentalists.

Together, Corey Cerovsek and Paavali Jumppanen have turned in one of the freshest, sweetest, and altogether most charming sets of Beethoven's violin sonatas in years. Though not imbued with the blazing virtuosity that Gidon Kremer and Martha Argerich or the heightened expressivity that Itzhak Perlman and Vladimir Ashkenazy brought to the works, Cerovsek and Jumppanen create performances of poise, depth, and refinement.

Philippe Herreweghe’s Beethoven symphonies cycle with the Royal Flemish Orchestra, recorded between 2004 and 2009, belongs to PENTATONE’s most renowned and successful releases. Herreweghe and his orchestra have been widely praised for their lively interpretation, full of clarity. Together, they achieve a historically informed performance while using modern instruments, expanded with natural horns and historical timpani. The excellent sound quality of this recording adds to the extraordinary acoustic sensation. This boxset is now presented in a new, convenient clamshell design.

For this set of Beethoven's first five symphonies, Jordi Savall began with the fundamental idea of recovering the original sound of the orchestra and tempo as the composer imagined them. All the orchestral work was performed with instruments corresponding to those used at the time, and by 55-60 musicians, a number similar to that arranged by the composer. 35 players were selected from Le Concert des Nations alongside 20 young musicians from different countries across world. The main goal was to reflect, in our 21st century, all the richness and beauty of these symphonies, through a true balance between colors and the quality of the orchestra's natural sound.

After their acclaimed recording of Weber’s Freischütz, the Dresdner Philharmonie and conductor Marek Janowski present yet another German opera classic with Beethoven’s Fidelio. They work together with a stellar cast, including Lise Davidsen (Fidelio/Leonore), Christian Elsner (Florestan), Georg Zeppenfeld (Rocco), Christina Landshamer (Marzelline), and more. This should have been a live concert recording, but recent shutdowns frustrated those plans. Luckily, it turned out possible to record Beethoven’s masterpiece in two studio sessions, with two different, established choirs: the Sächsischer Staatsopernchor Dresden, as well as the MDR Leipzig Radio Choir.

These interpretations are enormously pleasurable and at times revelatory. Always clean and never showy, Giltburg’s pianism is ideally suited to late Beethoven, and his touch throughout is light and flexible…There are no histrionics in his treatment of Op. 109, and none in the variations of Op. 111 – no fashionable excursions into jazz – while Op. 110 comes over with a plainness and sincerity which warms the heart.

Boris Giltburg’s personal exploration of Beethoven’s 32 piano sonatas reaches its penultimate volume. The Sonata No. 27, Op. 90 dates from 1814 and foreshadows Beethoven’s late period in its nuanced, expressive musical language. Sonata No. 28, Op. 101 is the first of Beethoven’s late period piano works, combining haunting poetic beauty with complex contrapuntal passages. Sonata No. 29, Op. 106, nicknamed ‘Hammerklavier’, is a monumental, symphonic work, pushing all boundaries of what had been achieved in the sonata form so far.