Track Listing

1. 1. Allegro con brio
2. 2. Andante con moto
3. 3. Allegro
4. 4. Allegro
5. 1. Erwachen heiterer Empfindungen bei der Ankunft auf dem Lande: Allegro ma non troppo

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #132554 in Music
• Released on: 1992-10-13
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.com
None of Liszt's ingenuous Beethoven symphony transcriptions had been recorded when Glenn Gould charted virgin territory in 1967 with the Fifth. Not only does Gould take Liszt's prodigious technical demands in stride, he also turns in what may be his best Beethoven playing on record. The pianist brings a kind of rhythmic acuity to the outer movements that makes many orchestral versions seem tame in comparison, even those with faster tempos. Gould's genius for sustaining tension at slow tempos is fully revealed in the second movement, in which each phrase is timed to a T. The first movement of the Pastorale flows more assuredly and accurately than in Gould's CBC Radio performance of the entire transcription. It's a pity Gould abandoned his plans to record the entire cycle. --Jed Distler

Customer Reviews

Breathtaking: Beethoven's Fifth Played by Gould
I bought this back in vinyl days as rather a novelty, but continue, some 20 years later, to listen to it (on CD) regularly for the never-ending inspiration and kinesthetic response it ellicits from me. I am not a music expert nor critic. I am a former dancer (modern) who can no longer move much. This is the kind of recording you can set up, lie down, close your eyes, and be transported by. It makes my internal organs dance! (Before I listen to it, I always turn off the phone.) Also, to hear Beethoven's Fifth the way Beethoven would have composed it, first played it (albeit on quite a different-sounding piano), and would have heard what he could -- certainly he would have felt its vibrations, that comes across clearly in Gould's heart-busting performance -- is far more than a "novelty" or "treat". I felt as if I were hearing a critical part in the evolution of Beethoven's Fifth. Ah, the tragedy that Gould did not record the other symphonies as he had planned! Listening to Gould on a modern piano, I sometimes wonder if Beethoven would have ever orchestrated the Fifth if he could have heard it this way. With the piano interpretation (and who greater than Liszt to transcribe it!), one hears the architecture of the Fifth in its purest form. To compare Gould's piano version to an orchestral version would be like comparing a great wine to a great meal. To this day, this recording can move me to tears.

BRILLIANT
Although I am a serious Gould fan, even non Gouldians can find something to love in this CD. The brilliant precision and accuracy of the Alegro con Brio movement is energizing, the introspective peace of the Andante con Moto movement is a beautiful segue to the Heroic Allegro movement is amazing, and the fourth movemnt is BREATHTAKING. I am a 13 year-old pianist/composer and this is a truly inspiring version of a truly brilliant piece that has a clarity and fire that makes all symphony versions seem diluted and mild in compare. If I could have only one CD for the rest of my life it would haev to be this one. Any arguments that Gould is cold, unemotional or dull will be truly put to rest with this recording. An absolute must have for ANY fan of music, Gould, or just people who are looking for an introduction to the Romantic period at its pinnacle. A MUST HAVE

Beethoven's Fifth for Piano Solo
This CD is top-rate. The recording quality is excellent. Some piano recordings can sound distant--not this one. You feel like you're standing next to the piano. Glenn Gould plays Beethoven's Fifth Symphony with flawless virtuosity, and he stays true to the symphony. The piano arrangement by Liszt captures the symphony's message, and you will want to turn up the volume and listen to every note. If you like Beethoven's Fifth and you like solo piano, this CD is a winner. Note that only the first movement of the Sixth Symphony is on this CD.