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Inside the Hearing Machine

Inside the Hearing Machine

Tom Beghin

Cat No:

EPRC 0025

Release date:

5/10/17

Barcode:

0608917721324

Can we get into Beethoven’s creative mind, especially in the last phase of his life when he was coping with severe hearing loss? Tom Beghin’s new recording of Beethoven’s Piano Sonatas Opus 109, 110, and 111 is an artistic exploration of how Beethoven’s musicking was shaped by the work environment he created with the help of colleagues and friends. Not only does Beghin perform Beethoven’s trilogy of pianistic masterpieces on a magnificent new replica of Beethoven’s Broadwood piano, he uses a reconstruction of the Gehörmaschine that was mounted on the composer’s piano so he could continue to create music as his hearing declined. “You do hear better when you bring your head under this machine, don’t you?,” André Stein asked Beethoven. Two centuries later, we too can bring our heads under the machine and wonder: Do we hear Beethoven differently? Beghin draws us inside the hearing machine, where we feel as well as hear the essence of Beethoven’s rambunctious and irresistibly poetic musical vibrations. Inside the Hearing Machine invites us into the multisensory playground of a deaf composer for whom the machine was more than a hearing aid and who interacted with his instrument through much more than sound.

Tracklist

1. Sonata in E Major, Op. 109 Vivace ma non troppo—Adagio espressivo (03:35) - L. van Beethoven
2. Sonata in E Major, Op. 109 Prestissimo (02:41) - L. van Beethoven
3. Sonata in E Major, Op. 109 Andante molto cantabile ed espressivo (12:20) - L. van Beethoven
4. Sonata in A- at Major, Op. 110 Moderato cantabile molto espressivo (05:53) - L. van Beethoven
5. Sonata in A- at Major, Op. 110 Allegro molto (02:39) - L. van Beethoven
6. Sonata in A- at Major, Op. 110 Adagio, ma non troppo—Fuga: Allegro ma non troppo (09:39) - L. van Beethoven
7. Sonata in C Minor, Opus 111 Maestoso—Allegro con brio ed appassionato (09:31) - L. van Beethoven
8. Sonata in C Minor, Opus 111 Arietta: Adagio molto semplice e cantabile (17:11) - L. van Beethoven

L. van Beethoven
Reviews

The Piano Magazine

"Every recording by Belgian fortepianist Tom Beghin is guaranteed to provide a provocative listening experience informed by probing thought. Playing an excellent Chris Maene replica of the famous Broadwood piano on which Beethoven composed his Sonatas, Op. 109, 110, and 111, Beghin places rhetorical delivery and spontaneous discovery at the center of his rendition of these works. The handsomely produced booklet details Beghin's research into the "hearing machine" reportedly attached to Beethoven's piano, supporting the conclusion that the composer may have perceived the instrument's sound more fully than we suppose."

Diapason

"Ce qu'on entend est splendide : il faut imaginer un clavicorde qui aurait de la puissance, tout en gardant un son de bois et de peau, sans une once de métal, sans réverbération. Un son qui meurt aussi vite qu'il nait, mais d‘une subtilité, d'une ductilité dans la conduite de nuances magnifiques... et enfin perceptibles autrement qu'en tendant l‘oreille."

Fanfare

"These are bracing, imaginative performances on CD. Beghin pushes the reconstructed instrument hard and (perhaps due to the hearing machine) it is a boxy, boomy instrument, but the turbulence and conflict in Beethoven’s late sonatas come across well. His tempos are relatively sane, and I admire his flexibility and clarity. The opus 110 Sonata (No. 31) is especially successful, with its percussive changes of mood and extremes brought into a coherent whole. He coaxes an impressive dynamic range out of this instrument, but what lingers is the twanging reverb, the only thing this amplification machine seems to bring to the table."

Pizziccato

"This release offers unique illuminations for the three sonatas and guarantees an enriching experience even for those who normally prefer a modern grand piano."

Opus Klassiek

"Tom Beghin, een absolute autoriteit op het gebied van de historiserende uitvoeringspraktijk. Hij speelt deze drie sonates in grootse stijl en met volstrekt vrije ornamentatie."

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