Lars Vogt: 12 unmissable recordings
Tuesday, September 6, 2022
Lars Vogt was an inspirational soloist, conductor and chamber musician who produced benchmark recordings of music by Mozart, Schumann, Brahms, Beethoven and more
JS Bach Goldberg Variations
Lars Vogt (Ondine)
‘Lars Vogt is an artist with much to communicate, and this is a distinguished addition to the discography of the Goldberg Variations in all their glorious elegance.’
Beethoven Piano Concertos Nos 2 & 4
Lars Vogt (Ondine)
‘Though Vogt has all the resources of a modern Steinway at his command, and isn’t afraid to use them, there is a filigree quality to the playing that is subtly different from the ‘classic’ pianism of such revered interpreters of the concerto as Solomon or Emil Gilels, where every note is finely centred, even as the gradations of tone rise and fall.’
Brahms Piano Concerto No 1 & Four Ballades
Royal Northern Sinfonia / Lars Vogt pf (Ondine)
‘Lars Vogt has always been a pianist of remarkable gifts but over the years his artistry has risen in stature in ways one scarcely could have imagined. I suspect that this is Brahms you will treasure in the long term and I urge you not to miss it.’
Brahms Piano Concerto No 2 & Handel Variations
Royal Northern Sinfonia / Lars Vogt pf (Ondine)
‘What a pleasure to encounter Brahms, so often interpreted as relentlessly earnest, here captured with his eyes brimming with joy.’
Brahms Piano Trios Nos 1-3
Christian Tetzlaff vn Tanja Tetzlaff vc Lars Vogt pf (Ondine)
‘The Tetzlaffs and Vogt bring a Teutonic terseness to it, screwing up the tension that is so much part of Brahms’s music and making each span into a wonderfully cathartic experience.’
Brahms Violin Sonatas
Christian Tetzlaff vn Lars Vogt pf (Ondine)
‘The finale is explosive, rhythms bristling, dynamic contrasts starkly illuminated, and with an unrelenting dramatic thrust.’
Dvořák Piano Trios Nos 3 & 4
Christian Tetzlaff vn Tanja Tetzlaff vc Lars Vogt pf (Ondine)
‘Staccato piano chimes its way over fading cello drones; melting violin lines float over translucent keyboard textures; the transitions are delicious; and of course, when the dances really start to fly, these players commit absolutely, without any loss of finesse.’
Liszt Sonata in B minor Schumann Fantasie in C major
Lars Vogt (Berlin Classics)
‘The Liszt Sonata receives a satisfyingly magnificent reading. Vogt is no mere right-hand Lisztian, giving due prominence to the left’s deft counterpoint in the first “movement”, ending with the chorale theme uttered in truly crunching pesante chords.’
Mendelssohn Piano Concertos & Capriccio Brillant
Orchestre Chambre de Paris / Lars Vogt pf (Ondine)
‘There’s plenty of fantasy too – in the piano passages Mendelssohn writes to link the first and second movements of each concerto, for instance, which unfurl with a naturalness reminiscent of Murray Perahia.’
Mozart Sonatas for Piano and Violin
Lars Vogt pf Christian Tetzlaff vn (Ondine)
‘It’s the hyper-reactivity between the two players that is a constant delight, as witness their subtle way of varying repeats. And the variation-form finale on a simple rococo-ish theme is entrancing, each one piquantly characterised without exaggeration. A delight from beginning to end.’
Mozart Piano Sonatas K280, K281, K310 & K333
Lars Vogt pf (Ondine)
‘This is richly communicative Mozart-playing, capturing a youthfulness touched with wisdom and undergirded by one of the most sensitive left hands around today. Experiencing it is akin to having made a new friend.’
Schumann Sonatas for Violin and Piano
Christian Tetzlaff vn Lars Vogt pf (Ondine)
‘This, quite simply, wipes the floor with the competition. If you have the slightest interest in Schumann’s chamber music, add it to your shelves.’
