Album

In early 2007, both Decca and Brilliant released three disc sets of Beethoven's complete violin sonatas played by Belgian violinist Arthur Grumiaux and Romanian pianist Clara Haskil. Recorded in 1956 and 1957 and originally released on LP by Philips, these performances have stood the test of time. Grumiaux's effortless virtuosity, elegant phrasing, and impeccable intonation coupled with Haskil's soul and sympathetic if not always note-perfect accompaniment made for one of the most instantly appealing collections of these central repertoire works, and despite its age, anyone looking for a complete set should certainly consider this one.

Oddly enough, though, the sound seems to be quite different in both issues. Decca's is big and boomy with a healthy dollop of reverb, while Brilliant's sound is dry and distant with minimal, or at least minimized, reverb. This is particularly odd since Philip's original LP sound was slightly dry but deep with a reasonable amount of reverb. Thus, those interested in Grumiaux and Haskil's Beethoven sonatas are presented with two very different sonic alternatives in these reissues.

© James Leonard, All Music Guide

CD 1 of 3
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer Violin Sonata No.1 in D, Op.12, No.1 Work Recorded 1957 18:06 Clara Haskil Piano, Arthur Grumiaux Violin
1	1.Allegro con brio	6:33			$0.99
2	2.Tema con variazioni: Andante con moto	6:46			$0.99
3	3.Rondo: Allegro	4:47			$0.99
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer Violin Sonata No.2 in A, Op.12, No.2 Work Recorded 1957 14:35 Clara Haskil Piano, Arthur Grumiaux Violin
4	1.Allegro vivace	4:30			$0.99
5	2.Andante più tosto. Allegretto	5:39			$0.99
6	3.Allegro piacévole	4:26			$0.99
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer Violin Sonata No.3 in Eb, Op.12, No.3 Work Recorded 1957 18:32 Clara Haskil Piano, Arthur Grumiaux Violin
7	1.Allegro con spirito	8:04			$1.49
8	2.Adagio con molto espressione	6:16			$0.99
9	3.Rondo: Allegro molto	4:12			$0.99
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer Violin Sonata No.4 in A-, Op.23 Work Recorded 1957 16:25 Clara Haskil Piano, Arthur Grumiaux Violin
10	1.Presto	5:18			$0.99
11	2.Andante scherzoso, più allegretto	5:42			$0.99
12	3.Allegro molto	5:25			$0.99
CD 2 of 3
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer Violin Sonata No.5 in F, Op.24 ('Spring') Work Recorded 1957 22:48 Clara Haskil Piano, Arthur Grumiaux Violin
1	1.Allegro	10:14			$1.99
2	2.Adagio molto espressivo	5:25			$0.99
3	3.Scherzo: Allegro molto	1:06			$0.49
4	4.Rondo: Allegro ma non troppo	6:03			$0.99
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer Violin Sonata No.6 in A, Op.30, No.1 Work Recorded 1957 19:55 Clara Haskil Piano, Arthur Grumiaux Violin
5	1.Allegro	5:26			$0.99
6	2.Adagio molto espressivo	6:57			$0.99
7	3.Allegretto con variazioni	7:32			$1.49
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer Violin Sonata No.7 in C-, Op.30, No.2 ('Eroica') Work Recorded 1957 25:02 Clara Haskil Piano, Arthur Grumiaux Violin
8	1.Allegro con brio	7:32			$1.49
9	2.Adagio cantabile	9:21			$1.49
10	3.Scherzo: Allegro	3:10			$0.99
11	4.Finale: Allegro. Presto	4:59			$0.99
CD 3 of 3
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer Violin Sonata No.8 in G, Op.30, No.3 Work Recorded 1957 17:14 Clara Haskil Piano, Arthur Grumiaux Violin
1	1.Allegro assai	6:04			$0.99
2	2.Tempo di menuetto, ma molto moderato e grazioso	7:49			$1.49
3	3.Allegro vivace	3:21			$0.99
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer Violin Sonata No.9 in A, Op.47 ('Kreutzer') Work Recorded 1957 Clara Haskil Piano, Arthur Grumiaux Violin
4	1.Adagio sostenuto. Presto	10:53			$1.99
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer Violin Sonata No.9 in A, Op.47 ('Kreutzer')...2.Andante con variazioni Work Recorded 1957 16:06 Clara Haskil Piano, Arthur Grumiaux Violin
5	2a.Theme	2:54			$0.99
6	2b.Variation 1	2:09			$0.99
7	2c.Variation 2	1:52			$0.49
8	2d.Variation 3	3:11			$0.99
9	2e.Variation 4	3:19			$0.99
10	2f.Coda: Molto adagio	2:41			$0.99
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer Violin Sonata No.9 in A, Op.47 ('Kreutzer') Work Recorded 1957 Clara Haskil Piano, Arthur Grumiaux Violin
11	3.Finale: Presto	6:38			$0.99
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer Violin Sonata No.10 in G, Op.96 ('The Cockcrow') Work Recorded 1956 25:07 Clara Haskil Piano, Arthur Grumiaux Violin
12	1.Allegro moderato	9:26			$1.49
13	2.Adagio espressivo (attaca)	5:41			$0.99
14	3.Scherzo: Allegro	1:36			$0.49
15	4.Poco allegretto	8:24			$1.49