Ilona Eibenschütz plays Beethoven: excerpt from Beethoven's Sonata No.30 Op.109
To coincide with the publication of my Historical Perspectives column about Ilona Eibenschütz in the Autumn 2024 issue of International Piano magazine, I am sharing this incredible private recording made ca.1950 of the long-retired pianist playing an excerpt of the third movement of Beethoven's Piano Sonata No.30 Op.109.
Eibenschütz made no commercial recordings after her 1903 sessions for the Gramophone & Typewriter (G&T) company but she lived until 1967. While most of her later private recordings were thought to have been made at her home, a number were in fact apparently made with HMV - therefore at EMI's Abbey Road Studios - yet never intended for release. None of these performances can therefore be considered her final 'say' of these works, nor examples of her playing at her prime - she had long been retired and was in her 70s, 80s, and 90s when producing these private discs in the 1950s and 60s; however, they do reveal some rather striking music-making and perspectives that differ from present-day norms, all the more remarkable given her tutelage with Clara Schumann and her playing having been greatly admired by Brahms.
This Beethoven performance was in fact published once, in a long-ago-deleted set on the Pearl label, and to my knowledge it has not been available since. It recently made its way to me and I was struck by the uncanny simplicity and disarming directness of her approach. Great music can be played in so many ways, and Eibenschütz was known for her brisk tempi and unfussy readings; while Beethoven's late Sonatas are often played with a reverence that can absolutely bring out the magic in this sublime music, Eibenschütz's direct, down-to-earth playing allows the music's exquisite beauty to reveal itself. Her soaring tone is remarkable, as is the combination of a full-bodied sonority and transparent textures.
Here is the International Piano feature:
https://www.gramophone.co.uk/internat...
A more detailed exploration of Eibenschütz can be found on my website:
https://www.thepianofiles.com/an-appr...
Also on my YouTube channel is this interview with her grandson:
• Remembering Ilona Eibenschütz: A conversa...
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