10/23 Kovacevich's Beethoven Piano Concerto 4

One pianist I find fascinating is Stephen Kovacevich.  His Beethoven piano sonata cycle is loud and dynamic, almost too much so.  But somehow I always come back to it.  His fortissimos are a bit more savage than most other Beethoven interpreters, and frankly it gets on my nerves after awhile, but perhaps in shorter doses it has a greater impact.  I may have made the mistake of listening to Kovacevich's Beethoven almost exclusively for a week - hence the auditory burn-out.

Here's Mr. Kovacevich coaching Claire Huangcy in an excerpt from a masterclass:


And here's Kovacevich in Japan with the NHK Orchestra performing Beethoven's Piano Concerto no.4 in G, Op.58 (1807):  It's not exactly "seamless" in the first 2 parts, but it's still a great performance.