Friedrich Gulda

Beethoven: Sämtliche Klaviersonaten Vol. 1 Friedrich Gulda Limited edition

Not much needs to be said about the pianist Friedrich Gulda, born in Vienna in 1930: his incredible talent was recognized at an early age; at 16 he won the International Music Competition in Geneva and then quickly achieved world fame. He was also a highly regarded composer and jazz pianist, and together with Jörk Demus and Paul Badura-Skoda, he formed the well-known “Three Ravens of Vienna”. His extremely precise interpretations of Mozart and Beethoven, which were characterized by a particular faithfulness to the original, are still considered milestones in music history today. Gulda's playing is characterized by extremely precise and rhythmically accentuated playing.

To mark the 25th anniversary of the death of this great pianist, who became popular for his unconventional and free musicality, Universal Music Japan is releasing Gulda's interpretations of Beethoven's complete piano sonatas for the first time – spread over two triple SHM-SACD sets (non-hybrid). The first set, “Beethoven Complete Piano Sonatas Vol. 1”, contains the sonatas 1-15. “Beethoven Complete Piano Sonatas Vol. 2” with the sonatas 16-32 is available here. The limited Japan import was remastered from the original tapes, which were originally recorded in July and August 1967 in Vienna at the Klagenfurt studio (Austrian Broadcast), using the DSD master from Classic Sound UK (2024).

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 – 1827): -    Complete Piano Sonatas Vol. 1 (No. 1 to No. 15)

Piano: Friedrich Gulda

Recording: July & August 1967, Österreichischer Rundfunk, Studio Klagenfurt Vienna (Austria) 

This title is an SHM SACD. This format is the further development of the single-layer SACD and uses a particularly light-transparent plastic (Super High Material). It allows a much better readability of the pit-land structures on the surface than is possible with hybrid SACDs. Universal's SHM SACDs are generally re-digitized to DSD from the albums' master tapes without any changes. SHM SACDs can be played on any SACD player. Please do not use L'Art du Son or alcohol-based cleaning agents. - Please note: All titles are designed by Universal Music as limited edition collector's items for the Japanese market.