Howard Shelley - Beethoven: Complete Works for Piano and Orchestra (2011) [Hi-Res]

Tracklist

CD1
01. Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 15: I. Allegro con brio
02. Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 15: II. Largo
03. Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 15: III. Rondo. Allegro
04. Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58: I. Allegro moderato
05. Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58: II. Andante con moto
06. Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58: III. Rondo. Vivace
07. Rondo in B-Flat Major, WoO 6

CD2
01. Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-Flat Major, Op. 19: I. Allegro con brio
02. Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-Flat Major, Op. 19: II. Adagio
03. Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-Flat Major, Op. 19: III. Rondo. Molto allegro
04. Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-Flat Major, Op. 73 "Emperor": I. Allegro
05. Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-Flat Major, Op. 73 "Emperor": II. Adagio un poco mosso
06. Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-Flat Major, Op. 73 "Emperor": III. Rondo. Allegro
07. Beethoven and Mozart: An Obsession?-A talk by Howard Shelly

CD3
01. Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37: I. Allegro con brio
02. Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37: II. Largo
03. Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37: III. Rondo. Allegro
04. Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61: I. Allegro, ma non troppo (Version for piano and orchestra)
05. Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61: II. Larghetto-(Version for piano and orchestra)
06. Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61: III. Rondo (Version for piano and orchestra)

CD4
01. Fantasia in C Minor, Op. 80 "Choral Fantasy": Fantasia in C Minor, Op. 80, "Choral Fantasy"
02. Piano Concerto in E-Flat Major, WoO 4: I. Allegro moderato (Orchestrated and Reconstructed by H. Shelly)
03. Piano Concerto in E-Flat Major, WoO 4: II. Larghetto (Orchestrated and Reconstructed by H. Shelly)
04. Piano Concerto in E-Flat Major, WoO 4: III. Rondo. Allegro ma non troppo (Orchestrated and Reconstructed by H. Shelly)
05. Triple Concerto for Violin, Cello & Piano in C Major, Op. 56: I. Allegro
06. Triple Concerto for Violin, Cello & Piano in C Major, Op. 56: II. Largo
07. Triple Concerto for Violin, Cello & Piano in C Major, Op. 56: III. Rondo alla polacca

The piano remained the main instrument of Beethoven throughout his life, and this specially priced 4-CD box set represents his entire and sizeable output for piano and orchestra, starting with the early Piano Concerto in E flat,

WoO 4 – a work of tremendous energy and great technical demands, which Beethoven wrote when he was just twelve years old – and ending with Piano Concerto No. 5, the only one that Beethoven never performed himself in concert, due to his developing deafness.

Howard Shelley was awarded an OBE for services to classical music at the 2009 New Year Honours. He here conducts the Orchestra and Chorus of Opera North from the piano. Shelley has recorded extensively for Chandos over the years, and he has combined the role of solo pianist and conductor on numerous occasions, most recently with the Orchestra of Opera North in Piano Concertos by Schumann, Saint-Saëns, and Grieg (CHAN 10509), but also with the London Mozart Players, recording works by Cramer, Hummel, Mendelssohn, and Mozart. All his recordings have received superb reviews.

Beethoven wrote the Triple Concerto on this disc in 1803 during a lull in the composition of his opera Fidelio. Works for violin, cello and piano were fairly common at the time – but combining them with orchestra was, as Beethoven himself observed, something entirely new, and no other concerto of this kind from this period is known today.

In this work, Howard Shelley is joined by the violinist and exclusive Chandos artist Tasmin Little, who won the Critics’ Choice Award at this year’s Classic BRITS, and by the cellist Tim Hugh, of whom The Times said: ‘Mr Hugh is much more than just a Cellist, he is a musician with a compelling insight into the creative urge behind the notes.’

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