Raptly revelatory and communicative
(Fanfare): the earlier volumes of this
Beethoven sonata cycle by Giovanni
Bellucci have received an enthusiastic
welcome in the international press, for
the Italian pianist’s depth of insight and
his individual, dynamic response to this
‘New Testament’ of the keyboard.
Now the newly recorded late
sonatas are added to the previous two
volumes to present a modern cycle,
at a super-budget price, to set alongside
distinguished pianists of former
generations. The recordings have been
made in the superb acoustics of the
Salle de Musique at La Chaux de Fonds in
Switzerland – the source of several
previous and notable Beethoven
recordings such as Claudio
Arrau’s late and magisterial address
to most of the sonatas, on Philips.
For this recording, Bellucci himself
has acted as recording producer,
assisted by sound engineering from
Fabio Ferri, and the result is a sonata
cycle of remarkable interpretative
integrity, tracing in the most vivid
terms Beethoven’s evolution as a
composer, from 18th-century
rebel to 19th-century visionary.
In this way the new set joins Bellucci’s
recordings of the nine symphonies
as transcribed by Liszt, and the piano
concertos, as a complete and artistically
satisfying portrait of the composer.
This box of sonatas is enhanced by an
extensive introduction to the oeuvre
by Bellucci, who discusses Beethoven
in biographical and spiritual as well as
musical terms. ‘What exactly is the
momentous decision that must be
addressed by anyone wishing to
perform Beethoven in the 21ist
century?’ asks Bellucci.
‘In my view there can be no
neglecting the life-giving flexibility of
rhythm, a pliancy that eludes codification.
Such flexibility calls for a deep
understanding of musical syntax as well
as perfect psychophysical coordination’
– and in this regard he places
himself in a distinguished interpretative
tradition leading back to Artur Schnabel.
The critics have agreed:
‘Bellucci has a way through his
approach to rhythm that makes the
music inhale and exhale, rise and
fall, in a totally natural way… [that]
transcended considerations of technical
execution, the exquisite tone Bellucci
draws from his Model D Steinway, and
the exceptionally beautiful recording.,’
(Fanfare)