CD Review

Ludwig van Beethoven, Sonata No. 14 in C-Sharp Minor Op. 27, No. 2

I.  Adagio Sostenuto  ("Moonlight Sonata")

ARTIST: ALBUM: DURATION:

Alicia Keys Songs in A Minor 5:00

Maxim Shostakovich Sensual Classics 4:50

Seymour Lipkin Beethoven: Complete Piano Sonatas 5:55

I wanted to contrast three very different ways to package and market this very famous sonata by Beethoven.  For the a classical, professional recording, I chose one by Seymour Lipkin, who seemed to have quite a few albums dedicated to Beethoven piano works.  For another angle, I chose a recording by Maxim Shostakovich on an album marketed to people who would like intimate music for whatever occasion, but maybe not necessarily with any classical music knowledge.  Finally, I chose a recording from a hip hop album by Alicia Keys in which the sonata is included as a bonus track.

Tempos:  Maxim- 64 bpm, Seymour- 50 bpm, Alicia- 55 bpm

The most noticeably different of the 3 is Alicia's.  She plays it on electric piano with what sounds like a harpsichord sustain with a vibraphone tremolo/vibrato.  It adds an interesting dissonance to the minor sonata, creating a myriad of clashes among notes due to artificially sustaining longer than a natural piano decay.  The artificial vibrato adds little to the expressiveness and survives as a studio effect only.  Shostakovich's interpretation of this work, while beautiful and expressive in dynamics and the stretching and diminution of tempo, seems more rushed than either of the others, as evidenced by the faster tempo choice.  Perhaps there was only so much time allowed on a compilation cd of these "sensual classics" and he was forced to record it in a shorter time.   Lipkin takes his sweet time with the piece, almost a minute longer than the runner up and is by far the most expressive of all 3.  He is patient and caring with a piece that he is clearly very familiar with and transports Beethoven's composition into the realm of expression and art, rather than recitation.

In conclusion, Key's recording is the least expressive, impressive, or artistic.  the effects are the only unique feature to her performance.  Shostakovich seems like a studio musician on a mission.  Lipkin is the clear master of the sonata in this group and records an artistic and expressive interpretation that is a pleasure to experience.