Ponthus plays Beethoven and Stockhausen
BRIDGE 9584
The wildly gifted French pianist Marc Ponthus offers a new reading of Beethoven's great "Hammerklavier" sonata, op. 106, pairing it with Karlheinz Stockhausen's explosive Klavierstück X. Serious listening recommended!
Abstract thought and music
An essay by Marc Ponthus
traduction française par l’auteur
Reviews:
"The playing -- and the recording -- is first-rate. Marc Ponthus' skill and musicality deliver performances full of vitality." — Charlottesville Classical
"Ponthus’ performance of Klavierstück X is thrilling, his control of this physically and intellectually demanding score immediately apparent...every component of this music is highly prescribed and structured, and Ponthus wrestles Stockhausen’s complex ideas into a profoundly convincing performance.
If the “Hammerklavier” receives a shorter mention here, it is only because of its status as one of Beethoven’s most renowned and striking piano works. Ponthus approaches this music like a chameleon, and it is difficult to believe that this is the same person who was tackling Klavierstück X only a few moments prior. The rhythmic vitality of Beethoven’s writing is brought to the forefront here, and this performance is full of vigour and bravado, while never becoming a caricature of itself." — The WholeNote
"On a purely physical level, Ponthus' performance impresses, the piece posing an immense challenge to even the most advanced pianist. His reputation as a champion of leading avant-garde composers of the ‘50s and ‘60s is upheld by the treatment, but, as a recent recording of three Schumann masterpieces shows, he's as capable of delivering exemplary renditions of earlier composers' works, including the one by Beethoven featured here." — Textura
BRIDGE 9584