Brautigam's Beethoven Sonatas Op.31

Dear Oldnslow,

No doubt you have seen the two threads running at the moment on using correct instruments and style for older music. Though Beethoven is more modern than Beethoven I think that there are lessons to learn from performances using the style of instrument he would have anticipated. I think any artist who brings the music to life on an appropriate instrument is likely to be getting quite close to what the composer had in mind, and this will eventually train out ear to enjoy and expect what the composer had in mind, which can only be a good thing if our chief motivation is enjoying the music, rather than doting on this or that performance!

Sounds like you enjoyed these!

ATB from Fredrik

Fredrik. It is too bad that most of our (my) live listening is done in large or relatively large halls on modern instruments for baroque and classical music. It means that modern instruments are so engrained in our psyche that the sound of older (albeit recreated) instruments of the period is lost. Ideally, a fortepiano or a harpsichord should be listened to in a very small venue, which is not commercially viable these days.

I agree that it is a severe problem producing practicle performances on old instruments in our usually oversized modern concert halls. I would guess this is why so many people are wedded to the piano for Bach and the modern grand for Beethoven, but records should allow us nearer to the composers' intentions, and is one area where the gramophone can be better than a live performances in an unsuitable hall.

In the UK there are many smaller halls, which are still suitable for the old style instruments, but I understand that in the US many halls are much larger, and designed for the large twentieth century symphony orchestra.

Are most of your halls built since 1900?

One of the nicest performances on old instruments I attanded was of the Kegelstadt Trio of Mozart where Alan Hacker played a period Basset Clarinet, a lovely viola player whose name has gone from me played a nice old Englsih instrument set in thre olden style, and Alan's wife played the Fortepiano. A real old [and valuable] Viennese instrument of the period. I turned the pages for her! More stressful than playing! Especially turning back for the long repeats!!! There were eighty chairs in the great hall of the Bishop's Palace in Hereford. Perfect scale of hall.

Kindest regards from Fredrik

I recently picked up his Op 2 recordings and find that disc to be the best of the first three volumes. I wasn't as bothered by the fortepiano in these works as I am in the other early works; it seems a good fit. (I still prefer a modern grand.) I'm interested in getting volumes 4 & 5 as soon as possible, though Brautigam isn't half done yet. He's going to do all the works, so a Diabelli is on the way, too. That might be quite interesting.

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Beethoven - while he could still hear - always received enthusiastically new instruments from Streicher and others, and was always looking for greater sonority, weight and depth of tone; I think if he heard a modern Steinway he'd have orgasms!

Yes, one can only imagine if Beethoven had heard and played a modern piano, and of course the greatness of his music, like Bach, can be transferred to instruments made generations later, but it is very interesting to me to see an excellent pianist like Brautigam traverse the sonatas in instruments of the day. I expect Brautigam will ultimately record the concerti, and perhaps even the piano trios and violin sonatas.

right, but that's speculation; fun, but still not real. ludwig really did write for fortepiano and i'm gald to see someone is finally doing the sonatas on this instrument. after all, i am fidelio! i have a lot of haydn and mozart on fortepiano as well - same thing - this was the only "piano" they knew. whether or not one prefers this instrument or whatever, it's very instructive in the adademic sense to hear these pieces "done as they were intended" (not that these fellows intended anything really; i am sure as some have mentioned they may have been thrilled to one degree or another to have had a bosendorfer or steinway (or fender rhodes??) to work with, but they didn't). anyway, fun thread. glad someobody is finally giving the f.p. its due. also very good point on the room acoustics, although there are similar chamber music vs. symphony issues today as then - in other words, when a mozart piano concerto was performed in a large vienna hall, the fortepiano had to "keep up" somehow.