Todd
New member
I can still be surprised. Generally speaking, Im not a big fan of Angela Hewitt. Ive heard some of her Bach, and some of her Ravel (the latter only whilst browsing at a CD store), and what I have heard has never really intrigued me very much; Ive never felt prompted to rush out and gobble up all of her discs. But then she recorded some Beethoven. At some point I knew I would have to get the disc. When the opportunity arose to pick it for around $8 or so, I acted upon my knowledge. I was surprised.
I like this disc. Its not a great disc, and none of the recordings on the disc really match up to the best Ive heard in the three works on the disc, but theres something there. The set opens with the great seventh sonata, and in most ways this recording offers all the virtues and drawbacks of the set. On the plus side is Hewitts lean, clear sonority married to superb rhythmic drive and groove. She reminds me of Friedrich Gulda and Bruce Hungerford in this regard, though I must say right away that she is ultimately no match for either of those pianists. On the down side, she never really plumbs any emotional depths. What that means in more practical terms is a Presto that while conventional in overall tempo still contains a rhythmic pulse to keep one groovin. Hewitts dynamic range and variation within that range sounds nice, too. Again, she reminds me of Gulda in applying a limited interpretive range, though she never does what he does with it. The Largo e mesto stays on the swift side of a Largo and maintains a sort of musical tension, though it never really creates the sense of tragedy or intensity that the best readings do, except for a few times in the second section where the playing sounds like a vigorous lamentation at times. The Menuetto is taken at a nice, safe tempo, but with a rhythmic sureness that works well, while the concluding Rondo sounds generally well executed if not special, at least most of the time. Hewitt pushes the penultimate fast section, especially the intro, to nice effect, though. A good, solid, energizing reading, then, but not a world-beater.
The Op 7 is not a world-beater, either, but it comes close to being a world-matcher. Generally, I prefer a more relaxed approach to this work, but some players make me reconsider that preference. Hewitt does just that. The Allegro molto e con brio is brisk, pointed, lean, with fetching sforzandi and pleasing staccato, creating a youthful, masculine sound. Some of Hewitts playing detours briefly into some slower, more (surface) contemplative playing that offers nice contrast to the surrounding material. For the Largo con gran espressione, Hewitts definitely got the gran, and the Largo mostly, but Im not sold on the espressione. It moves forward comparatively quickly, utilizes short (refreshingly so!) pauses, nice dynamics, and a number of nice touches, like the powerful chords followed by quickly tapered, repeated three-note figurations. Its incisive, its cutting, its good. How expressive, and of what, is up to each listener. The Allegro, it should come as no surprise, is fast and incisive and clear. It could be a touch lighter, I suppose, but I like it. Hewitt caps off a very strong reading with a Rondo possessed of charm and puckish rubato. Its all very youthful, and then she delivers the middle section in fast and biting fashion just because. In some ways, the parts are more than the sum, but overall, this is the highlight of the disc.
The disc closes with the Appassionata, and given what came before I had moderately high hopes. Hewitt largely delivers, but not as much as I had hoped for. The Allegro assai opens in suitably brooding fashion, and Hewitt tears into the faster, more explosive music with élan and aggressiveness a good thing to do here. The punchy middle and lower registers and biting upper registers really add to the allure of the playing, and while Hewitt manages excellent clarity most of the time, the most pressed passages sound smudged every so often. But thats quite alright, shes pressing the matter; the forward moving, fresh playing sounds largely scoured of color and emphasizes the frenetic and kinetic aspects of the music. Hewitt approaches the Andante in much the same fashion. As a result, it sounds a bit cool, and the rhythmic and dynamic elements become almost the sole focus, creating an itchy feel. So far, so good, actually. Hewitt runs out of gas a bit in the concluding Allegro ma non troppo. Given the first two movements, I expected a High Octane, blistering take. Theres some of that alright, just not enough. Drive, energy, and rhythm remain to the fore, and that bright, lean, cutting Fazioli upper register pays off here, but more is needed. Theres just not quite enough, thats all I can say. Those wanting a beefy, rich, Grand experience definitely need to listen elsewhere; those wanting something smaller and leaner and meaner, here you go.
So Im surprised. I like this disc. No, it wont assume a place next to Annie or Gulda or any of the other usual suspects, but theres more than enough there for me to consider another LvB disc by Hewitt if she records one. Im thinking she would do well in 2/1, 10/1, 22, 31/3, and, perhaps somewhat against possible expectations, Op 90. Itll be interesting to see if that is true. Sound is superb, if more distant than I generally prefer, and one must be willing to listen to Hewitts Fazioli, with its clear, color-drained, dry tone. My ear adjusted readily enough, but not everyones will.
I like this disc. Its not a great disc, and none of the recordings on the disc really match up to the best Ive heard in the three works on the disc, but theres something there. The set opens with the great seventh sonata, and in most ways this recording offers all the virtues and drawbacks of the set. On the plus side is Hewitts lean, clear sonority married to superb rhythmic drive and groove. She reminds me of Friedrich Gulda and Bruce Hungerford in this regard, though I must say right away that she is ultimately no match for either of those pianists. On the down side, she never really plumbs any emotional depths. What that means in more practical terms is a Presto that while conventional in overall tempo still contains a rhythmic pulse to keep one groovin. Hewitts dynamic range and variation within that range sounds nice, too. Again, she reminds me of Gulda in applying a limited interpretive range, though she never does what he does with it. The Largo e mesto stays on the swift side of a Largo and maintains a sort of musical tension, though it never really creates the sense of tragedy or intensity that the best readings do, except for a few times in the second section where the playing sounds like a vigorous lamentation at times. The Menuetto is taken at a nice, safe tempo, but with a rhythmic sureness that works well, while the concluding Rondo sounds generally well executed if not special, at least most of the time. Hewitt pushes the penultimate fast section, especially the intro, to nice effect, though. A good, solid, energizing reading, then, but not a world-beater.
The Op 7 is not a world-beater, either, but it comes close to being a world-matcher. Generally, I prefer a more relaxed approach to this work, but some players make me reconsider that preference. Hewitt does just that. The Allegro molto e con brio is brisk, pointed, lean, with fetching sforzandi and pleasing staccato, creating a youthful, masculine sound. Some of Hewitts playing detours briefly into some slower, more (surface) contemplative playing that offers nice contrast to the surrounding material. For the Largo con gran espressione, Hewitts definitely got the gran, and the Largo mostly, but Im not sold on the espressione. It moves forward comparatively quickly, utilizes short (refreshingly so!) pauses, nice dynamics, and a number of nice touches, like the powerful chords followed by quickly tapered, repeated three-note figurations. Its incisive, its cutting, its good. How expressive, and of what, is up to each listener. The Allegro, it should come as no surprise, is fast and incisive and clear. It could be a touch lighter, I suppose, but I like it. Hewitt caps off a very strong reading with a Rondo possessed of charm and puckish rubato. Its all very youthful, and then she delivers the middle section in fast and biting fashion just because. In some ways, the parts are more than the sum, but overall, this is the highlight of the disc.
The disc closes with the Appassionata, and given what came before I had moderately high hopes. Hewitt largely delivers, but not as much as I had hoped for. The Allegro assai opens in suitably brooding fashion, and Hewitt tears into the faster, more explosive music with élan and aggressiveness a good thing to do here. The punchy middle and lower registers and biting upper registers really add to the allure of the playing, and while Hewitt manages excellent clarity most of the time, the most pressed passages sound smudged every so often. But thats quite alright, shes pressing the matter; the forward moving, fresh playing sounds largely scoured of color and emphasizes the frenetic and kinetic aspects of the music. Hewitt approaches the Andante in much the same fashion. As a result, it sounds a bit cool, and the rhythmic and dynamic elements become almost the sole focus, creating an itchy feel. So far, so good, actually. Hewitt runs out of gas a bit in the concluding Allegro ma non troppo. Given the first two movements, I expected a High Octane, blistering take. Theres some of that alright, just not enough. Drive, energy, and rhythm remain to the fore, and that bright, lean, cutting Fazioli upper register pays off here, but more is needed. Theres just not quite enough, thats all I can say. Those wanting a beefy, rich, Grand experience definitely need to listen elsewhere; those wanting something smaller and leaner and meaner, here you go.
So Im surprised. I like this disc. No, it wont assume a place next to Annie or Gulda or any of the other usual suspects, but theres more than enough there for me to consider another LvB disc by Hewitt if she records one. Im thinking she would do well in 2/1, 10/1, 22, 31/3, and, perhaps somewhat against possible expectations, Op 90. Itll be interesting to see if that is true. Sound is superb, if more distant than I generally prefer, and one must be willing to listen to Hewitts Fazioli, with its clear, color-drained, dry tone. My ear adjusted readily enough, but not everyones will.