Search - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Matyas Antal, Ildiko Hegyi :: Mozart: Piano Concertos (Complete), Vol. 2 (Box Set)

Great Mozart Performances

MK | BUFFALO GROVE, IL USA | 06/18/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'd heard about 10 of the Mozart concertos before I bought the complete set (i.e. the 2 Naxos volumes making up the complete set). Only when I bought the complete set, did I realize what I'd been missing in not hearing the other concertos! Having the complete set lets one fully appreciate Mozart's growth and ever increasing confidence in his handling of this medium.Alfred Einsteid notes that of Mozart's symphonies, perhaps 4 belong to the greatest realms of musice (although that seems kind of harsh!), of the quartets, perhaps 10 of 30, but he concludes that of the piano concertos, only 5 are not of the highest standards. That alone should be recommendation enough to buy the complete Mozart concertos.I had not realized how late many of these compositions were - from number 11 onwards, they were all written in his "later" Vienna years. Prior to this, he had already composed almost all of his wind concertos, and the violin concertos. Regarding the performances on this set - they are wonderful. I've heard numerous performances of some of these concertos, and the Jando performances can stand up to any others I have heard. The only slightly disappointing performance is the double concerto (No. 10), which does not seem to sparkle as much as some other performances I have heard. These performances are very "straight" - none of the attempts to make the music more "emotional" by tempo variations or sudden dynamic changes. Jando lets the music talk for itself - and how wonderfully it does just that. Also, original cadenzas - where extant - are played throughout, and the Mozart cadenzas are much more satisfying than others I have heard.One day in the car I happened to turn on the radio in the middle of Number 15. I knew the Jando performance, and listened almost in disbelief - how could this concerto be the same I had back at home? The performance was dead - almost as though the melody had been taken from the music. It turned out the performer was Rudolph Serkin. I put on the Jando performance as soon as I got home. What a difference! Suddenly the music was alive and vibrant, and one could almost sense the joy that the performers were getting from the music.Another wonderful aspect of these performances is the balance between the piano and the orchestra. In many places in these concertos the melody line weaves from the piano to the orchestra, and these performances never drown out the melody line as it moves between the two.When you have the complete set, only then can you really appreciate the miracle that took place when Mozart wrote number 20, since you can better compare this concerto with the ones that came before; one can truly appreciate how, with concerto number 9, Mozart's music reached even greater heights than in the compositions that came before. And one can hear some of those gems that are not as well known as the others - such as number 17 and 18.My only complaint with this set is that occasionally one can hear Jando humming, and I find that quite distracting when listening to a few of the performances. Aside from this complaint, this CD set gets a definite 5 star rating. And that is not to mention that it is a bargain price to boot!"