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Ashkenazy handles the dramatic aspects of 20 without becoming too stormy. II is especially beautiful. There's a fluent, melting lyricism in his playing and the orchestra sounds just heavenly. In 21, the Philharmonia strings are gorgeous and Ashkenazy (who conducts this entire cycle from the keyboard) plays with a freshness of discovery few others have matched. I am inclined to say that Ashkenazy's 20 and 21 are as good as any despite very strong competition from the classic Serkin/Szell (CBS) in 20 and from Casadesus/Szell (CBS) and Serkin with the LSO under Abbado (DG) in 21.

Ashkenazy's 23 is serene with gorgeous orchestral support; he brings out the beauty of the music without any unwanted preciosity. 24 can sound heavy, but again, it's the music's delicacy and serenity that are emphasized here. Ashkenazy's tone is attractive and the sheer beauty of the Philharmonia seduces me. These are enchanting performances. 25 benefits from Ashkenazy's nuance and sensitivity--he makes it really sing. My favorite 23 is Curzon/Kertesz (London), and don't overlook Brendel/Marriner (Philips). When it comes to 24, Curzon/Kertesz wins again, but Ashkenazy is not far behind--nor is the fabulous Moravec/Marriner on the Hanssler label. And for 25, Barenboim (EMI) just nudges out the recording at hand as my absolute favorite.

So, everything here is either as good as it gets or the next best thing (which is very good indeed). This release gets my unqualified recommendation. Please note that 25 is split between the two discs. And don't forget that the complete set can be had for a very reasonable price.
Cheers,
Murray

69 of 78 found the following review helpful:

Mozart is God. (Ashkenazy comes pretty close)Dec 26, 1999
By CMS "mr_keiichi"
What's more amazing: The fact that one can get almost all the "good" Mozart piano concertos for such a low price, or the fact that Vladimir Ashkenazy is playing them? Either way you look at it, this CD is a must-buy for any true Mozart fan, and casual listeners will appreciate the bargain value. Ashkenazy's individuality shines most when playing his own cadenzas: by combining his knowledge of Mozart's style with his own contemporary tastes, Ashkenazy delivers some delightful virtuoso work.

Of course, when it comes to the written note, Ashkenazy is just as meticulous. For example, his deliberate style in the piano exposition of the 20th Piano Concerto brings even more emotional tension to an already amazing work. Even in complicated 16th-note runs, Ashkenazy never loses sight of a movement's mood; his interpretation brings a certain personality to all the works. Mozart would have loved it.

The Philharmonia does an excellent job in backing up the piano. Never competing, always complementing the piano, the orchestra gets it "just right," although most of this is probably due to Mozart's perfectly balanced orchestrations.

All in all, a perfect collection of Mozart's most popular (if not also the best) piano concertos. If you don't buy it, you'll be missing out big-time!

38 of 42 found the following review helpful:

Fantastic Recordings, Ashkenazy is an awesome pianistNov 01, 2000

The Penguin guide to classical music described these recordings as "golden". I agree, they're fantastic. Ashkenazy is awesome, and the Philharmonia Orchestra sounds gorgeous. The recorded sound is wonderful, and the soloist/conductor and orchestra are in total harmony. Musical bliss...However, I recommend buying ALL of Mozart's piano concertos. There are so many wonderful concertos that are not included in this set. Although not all of them are on the level of 23 or 20, most of them are really good and you won't want to miss them. Starting with 9, they're all good, though some of them are stronger in one movement than the the other two movements. As far as Ashkenazy's complete set of Mozart's piano concertos, all the recordings are excellent on that set except for the concerto for two pianos (NO. 10), the other pianist in that recording didn't have chemistry with Ashkenazy. I recommend buying the complete set with Ashkenazy and the Philharmonia Orchestra along with a better performance of No. 10. If you already own a complete Mozart piano concertos set and just want to check this set out, then these two CD's are the perfect place to look.

8 of 8 found the following review helpful:

Satisfying, "old-school" MozartMay 07, 2005
By klavierspiel "klavierspiel"
Vladimir Ashkenazy's complete cycle of Mozart piano concertos was originally issued in the late 70s-early 80s, and holds up well, on the evidence of this bargain-priced 2-CD set of five of the most famous of these works. The pianist's approach tends toward the large-scale and deliberate. This works particularly well in the majestic C major Concerto K. 503 (one is made aware of how this work influenced Beethoven's own G major Concerto) and the tragic C minor work, K. 491. He is supported by beautiful playing from the Philharmonia Orchestra, whose strings lend a magical sheen to the Romantic melodies of the famous "Elvira Madigan" slow movement of K. 467. Ashkenasy's playing is fittingly sparkling in passagework and as transparent as a modern Steinway concert grand can be. By today's standards of historical performance the orchestra is large, some of the slow movements could have used a bit more ornamentation, and the pianist's own cadenzas to K. 467, 491 and 503 wander a bit too far afield harmonically; but these are small quibbles in otherwise enjoyable performances.

19 of 24 found the following review helpful:

TOO Bad I can't give FIFTY STARS- Is there a better value??.Dec 15, 2001
By S. Henkels
Unbeatable! Maybe there's another set which includes Ashkenazy doing the 22nd,26th,and 27th, plus #12 to #19. But this collection is more than enough,and includes every one of my personal favorites (though the others mentioned are in the sky too). Each of these performances is nothing less than phenomenal,and you'll be listening for years (hopefully decades) to come. The only question is ,"Why don't more people know about this kind of music, artistry, and recording?"...If you have no MOZART PIANO CONCERTOES,this is perhaps the best way to start!!

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