This latest re-release from Wilhelm Kempff’s stereo Beethoven cycle offers three name sonatas, if not the three name sonatas. Instead of the usual “Moonlight”, “Appassionata”, “Pathetique” triumvirate, the so-called “Tempest” sonata replaces the latter. Compared to DG’s 20-bit remasterings for the label’s 1997 Complete Beethoven Edition, Eloquence’s transfers, though boasting less tape hiss, are more muffled and less differentiated in the piano’s registers. I mention this because Kempff was a sensitive and subtle colorist, and the sonic differences may affect your perception of the performances in hand. On Eloquence, for instance, Kempff’s sturdy deliberation throughout the Moonlight’s finale sounds a shade plodding and square. Turn to the 20-bit incarnation and you’ll hear more gradations of touch, plus acidic bite to the composer’s petulant sforzandos. As for the remaining movements, I’ve always loved Kempff’s intimate unfolding of the famous opening, and his whimsical, tellingly voiced Allegretto.
The Tempest and Appassionata receive similarly small-scaled, mellow, and seasoned readings. Kempff’s unswerving rhythmic focus and linear clarity, notably in the continuous 16th-note left hand patterns, compensate for what his F minor Sonata’s finale lacks in visceral impact. Recommended to those who specifically want these three sonatas on a single disc at an affordable price.
