Title: Make this your starting point
Review: I think this compilation serves as an excellent sampler of the entire Pearl series of Schnabel's Beethoven recordings. The first item, the "Pathetique" Sonata, sets the stage for Schnabel's unique music-making: a fierce, driving First Movement (with liberal accelerandi applied to the Coda); a meditative, rapt Slow Movement; and again, a charged Finale. Schnabel makes no attempt to smooth over or prettify the music; all the raw emotion is here. For those who have heard the "Moonlight" Sonata too often, Schnabel's deeply felt and yet totally unsentimental approach will be a revelation. The "Hammerklavier" Sonata will come as a shock at first, with a First Movement tempo so furious that the pianist's fingers occasionally derail. And yet, repeated hearings have convinced me that this is the way the music must go, hectic, frantic, manic. After hearing this sampler, begin saving up for all 5 of the Pearl volumes.
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