To celebrate the recent release of his own Complete Beethoven Sonatas boxset, we asked Jonathan Biss to select a list of Beethoven recordings he finds especially inspiring.
Have a look below and listen to the playlist over on Spotify.
1. Rudolf Serkin plays the “Appassionata” sonata Op. 57, 1st movement
2. Carlos Kleiber conducts the Bavarian State Orchestra in the Fourth Symphony, 1st movement
3. The Elias String Quartet play Op. 59 No. 2, 2nd movement
4. Joseph Szigeti and Bela Bartok play the Kreutzer Sonata, 1st movement
5. Mitsuko Uchida plays the sonata No.31 in A flat Op. 110, final movement
6. The Busch Quartet play the String Quartet No.13 in B flat, Op. 130, V (cavatina)
7-9 Leon Fleisher and the Cleveland Orchestra with George Szell, in the 2nd piano concerto
10. Quartetto Italiano play the String Quartet Op. 127, 2nd movement
11. Maria Callas sings Ah! Perfido Op.65
12. Yehudi Menuhin / Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI di Roma / Wilhelm Furtwängler
Violin concerto, 1st movement
13. Richard Goode plays Sonata No.16 in G major Op. 31, No. 1, 3rd movement
14. Nikolaus Harnoncourt / Chamber Orchestra of Europe, in the Pastoral Symphony, 1st movement
15. The Budapest Quartet play Grosse Fuge, Op. 133
16. Artur Schnabel plays the sonata No. 27 in E minor Op. 90, 2nd movement
17. Beaux Arts trio plays the piano trio No.2 in G, Op. 1 No. 2, 2nd movement
18. Solomon plays the Sonata No.29 in B flat major, Op. 106, ‘Hammerklavier’, 2nd movement
19. Rudolph Serkin plays the piano concerto No.4 Op 58, with Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra
