Beethoven: Diabelli Variations (CD review)

Beth Levin, piano. Centaur CRC 3046.

Beethoven wrote his popular Diabelli Variations late in his career, around 1819-1823. The collection, more precisely labeled the Variations on a Waltz by Diabelli, Op. 120, is one that critics and musicians today hail as among the greatest piano works of all time. Beethoven undertook it as a project begun by composer and publisher Anton Diabelli, who sent a little waltz out to a number of composers asking them to write a variation on it, which he planned to collect and publish. Beethoven decided to write thirty-three variations rather than one, the results of which have entertained countless fans ever since.

There have been over the years any number of topflight recordings of the Diabelli Variations, including excellent stereo versions by Kovacevich (Philips), Brendel (Philips), Barenboim (DG), Kinderman (Hyperion), Frith (ASV), Donohoe (EMI), Anderszewski (Virgin), and others. Now, following her Centaur release of Beethoven's Goldberg Variations in 2008, we get pianist Beth Levin's fine new 2011 version of the Diabelli Variations to vie for our attention.

The thing is, there are so many possibilities for interpretation in the Diabelli Variations, it's hard to pick any one performance of them as the best of the lot. I mean, there are, after all, thirty-three separate pieces here, each of them going its own way after Beethoven introduces the initial theme. In other words, a pianist has a lot of room to maneuver. My own favorite remains Kovacevich, but I'm biased toward his work.

Ms. Levin takes the opening theme, marked Vivace, at a sprightly pace, though not too fast, providing a cheerful beginning to the proceedings. From there, Ms. Levin plays each succeeding variation in as much a contrasting style as possible from the heavy first variation to the lighter, more witty, more complex following ones, the dramatic ones, the exciting ones, and the quiet final ones. Beethoven appears to have been having a field day with these numbers as he playfully intersperses bits and pieces of various styles in the mix. While Ms. Levin's rendering may not always unlock the full power and utmost potential of the work as a whole, it does express a pleasingly relaxed and genial spirit.

Ms. Levin also conveys a successful sense of forward momentum as the work progresses, even though I personally tended to enjoy the quieter moments from her a tad better than the more-extroverted passages. The Variations are among the most adventurous pieces of music Beethoven wrote, some of them sounding positively modern, and Ms. Levin takes her time allowing them to unfold smoothly and naturally for maximum effect. As they should be, these are highly individual readings, imbued with an often gentle and always sincere attitude.

Recorded live on November 8, 2009, at Settlement Music School, Philadelphia, PA, the sound is miked close enough to capture detail without picking up too much audience noise (the occasional cough and wheeze aside). In fact, about the only time the audience makes us aware of their presence is when they inevitably burst into applause at the end. Otherwise, they are commendably quiet. The piano tone displays a high degree of clarity yet with a pleasant acoustic bloom around the notes, making for a warmly realistic effect.

JJP