Murray Perahia, English Chamber Orchestra - Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 6 & 13 (1984)

This is all-around a great recording. I want to principally address the C major concerto (#13 K. 415), as it is light years beyond the early 6th, and warrants a bit more consideration. Before purchasing this record, I had previously only heard the C major once, and I can't even remember the soloist or orchestra (maybe Barenboim); consequently, I was a bit hesitant to go ahead and buy it. However, it has surely become one of my favorite Mozart piano concertos. This is in no small part due to the extraordinary first movement, which, barring the last of the 19th and the 1st of the 20th, would certainly be my favorite in any of the Mozart piano concerti. This movement continually reminds me of the sunny 1st movement of the sonata for two pianos in D (K. 448), which no less a man than Alfred Einstein (the eminent musicologist and cousin of the physicist) called "one of the most profound and most mature of all Mozart's compositions". The resemblance between the two movements is more than striking.

As for the 6th in B-flat major (K. 238), it's a much earlier work - and it shows. However, it's still filled with some great melodies, and though it may cower in the face of such giants as the 20th or the 25th, it's still great Mozart, and definitely an enjoyable listen.

Of course, Perahia and the ECO are in top form (just as they are in all their other recordings of the Mozart piano concerti), and the sound is just fine (that is, you wont think a thing about it while your listening). So, all in all this is a wonderful disc of somewhat seldom played Mozart concertos, and after hearing them (well, at least the C major) you can join the club of asking why.