Maria Joao Pires - Complete Concerto Recordings on Deutsche Grammophon (2015)

Deutsche Grammophon's five-CD trimline box set of the complete concerto recordings by Maria João Pires, packaged in separate sleeves with their original cover art, focuses quite appropriately on her area of specialization, the piano concertos of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The first CD offers her eloquent performances of Frédéric Chopin's Piano Concertos No. 1 and No. 2, in performances conducted by Emmanuel Krivine and André Previn, respectively, and Disc 5 closes with her refined reading of Robert Schumann's Piano Concerto in A minor. Between them are seven piano concertos by Mozart, with six of those performances conducted by Pires' longtime collaborator, Claudio Abbado, who also led the Schumann, while one of the Mozart performances was directed by Frans Brüggen. Understandably, collectors of Pires' much larger box set of her solo recordings on DG will want these concertos to round out that section of their libraries, but others may be more selective. These recordings were made between 1990 and 2011, and many listeners will already own some, if not all of these discs, which still are listed in the catalog. This set is a great introduction of Pires, one of the finest interpreters of the age, and newcomers will appreciate the convenience and affordability of this reissue.


Tracks:



CD 1 : Chopin
01 - Piano Concerto No. 1 In E Mineur Op 11 - I. Allegro Maestoso. Risoluto (Emmanuel Krivine)
02 - Piano Concerto No. 1 In E Mineur Op 11 - II. Romance. Larghetto (Emmanuel Krivine)
03 - Piano Concerto No. 1 In E Mineur Op 11 - III. Rondo. Vivace (Emmanuel Krivine)
04 - Piano Concerto No. 2 In F Mineur Op 21 - I. Maestoso (André Previn)
05 - Piano Concerto No. 2 In F Mineur Op 21 - II. Larghetto (André Previn)
06 - Piano Concerto No. 2 In F Mineur Op 21 - III. Allegro Vivace (André Previn)



CD 2 : Mozart
01 - Piano Concerto No. 14 In E Flat Major, K.449 - I. Allegro Vivace
02 - Piano Concerto No. 14 In E Flat Major, K.449 - II. Andantino
03 - Piano Concerto No. 14 In E Flat Major, K.449 - III. Allegro Ma Non Troppo
04 - Piano Concerto No. 26 In D Major, K.537 'Coronation' - I. Allegro
05 - Piano Concerto No. 26 In D Major, K.537 'Coronation' - II. (Larghetto)
06 - Piano Concerto No. 26 In D Major, K.537 'Coronation' - III. (Allegretto)
07 - Ch'io Mi Scordi Di Te… Non Temer, Amato Bene, K.505 (Christine Schäfer, Berliner Philharmoniker, Claudio Abbado)



CD 3 : Mozart
01 - Piano Concerto No.17 In G Major, K.453 - I. Allegro
02 - Piano Concerto No.17 In G Major, K.453 - II. Andante
03 - Piano Concerto No.17 In G Major, K.453 - III. Allegretto
04 - Piano Concerto No.21 In C Major, K.467 - I. Allegro
05 - Piano Concerto No.21 In C Major, K.467 - II. Andante
06 - Piano Concerto No.21 In C Major, K.467 - III. Allegro Vivace Assai (Chamber Orchestra Of Europe, Claudio Abbado)



CD 4 : Mozart
01 - Piano Concerto No.27 in B Flat Major, K.595 - I. Allegro
02 - Piano Concerto No.27 in B Flat Major, K.595 - II. Larghetto
03 - Piano Concerto No.27 in B Flat Major, K.595 - III. Allegro
04 - Piano Concerto No. 20 in D Minor, K.466 - I. Allegro
05 - Piano Concerto No. 20 in D Minor, K.466 - II. Romance
06 - Piano Concerto No. 20 in D Minor, K.466 - III. Rondo (Allegro assai) (Orchestra Mozart, Claudio Abbado



CD 5 : Mozart ; Schumann
01 - Piano Concerto No. 23 In A Major, K.488 - I. Allegro (Mozarteum-Orchester Salzburg, Frans Brüggen)
02 - Piano Concerto No. 23 In A Major, K.488 - II. Adagio (Mozarteum-Orchester Salzburg, Frans Brüggen)
03 - Piano Concerto No. 23 In A Major, K.488 - III. Allegro Assai (Mozarteum-Orchester Salzburg, Frans Brüggen)
04 - Piano Concerto In A Minor, Op.54 - I. Allegro Affettuoso (Chamber Orchestra Of Europe, Claudio Abbado)
05 - Piano Concerto In A Minor, Op.54 - II. Intermezzo (Andantino Grazioso) (Chamber Orchestra Of Europe, Claudio Abbado)
06 - Piano Concerto In A Minor, Op.54 - III. Allegro Vivace (Chamber Orchestra Of Europe, Claudio Abbado)