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I would say A, second B, third D and fourth C

Gold medal: D

Silver medal: A

Bronze medal: B

Certificate of participation: C

I want to explain why I put D first and not A. A is certainly cleaner, but you can feel it is the result of a serious studio recording; even the others are recorded more or less well, but they are direct recordings with all the pros and cons of the situation. Sometimes hearing something that sounds better can confuse things. In terms of interpretation, D seems superior to all of them to me. The sudden dynamic variations are beautiful and correct in the Beethovenian style. These chiaroscuros that alternate without passing through nuances. A is certainly flatter and more progressive... Honestly, I don't hear Beethoven in it; in some points especially, it seems like a Romantic Beethoven to me. It is certainly cleaner and more technically polished, but music is not technique; it is technique that is at the service of music, and personally, I prefer listening to a few mistakes for the sake of a convincing interpretation rather than an interpretation that leaves me uncertain but is performed with enormous cleanliness. It brings to mind the Chopin studies performed by Alfred Cortot, in which one appreciates great control and musicality at the expense of many wrong notes (we are talking about Cortot!), but when there is Music, you can overlook a few wrong notes.

B did not excite me in any way. I find C to be completely wrong. A distorted Beethoven. Stratospheric speed... I only listened to a 10-second portion and that was enough for me.

Then tell us who the performers are.

I agree with TheSimon, D deserves more among these 4, A and B do not satisfy me, C... let's not even go there.

Among the 4 I prefer this one

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I thank Bianca for letting me take a dive into this sonata that I haven't listened to in a very long time

Anyway, if I really have to choose Gianni22....

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Thanks to those who participated in the little game.
If you agree, I propose another piece this weekend or next.

I started with this one because I don't think it has any issues with notoriety and someone, as I imagined, might even know the related interpretations. In general, I believe that interpretation is undoubtedly a fundamental aspect of all music theory in a broad sense, but above all, in many cases, truly fascinating.
What is the musical idea that the composer wants to express? This is the question the performer must answer. And it is never a trivial question. Pieces like this are then played to death because they have a long history of interpretations behind them and probably often many performances are nothing more than interpretations of interpretations. Some scores leave much freedom, others less. Some composers, perhaps, even show a sort of obsession with not wanting to leave anything indeterminate, as if there should be no margin for—precisely—interpretation.

There are many studies on the subject, although everyone is obviously free to think what they want. I only believe that there are cases in which the range of indeterminacy, the "vagueness," as some philosophers would say, is sometimes an added value of a musical work. As far as I am concerned, the composer has already done almost all their duty when they provided matter for debate, to use a vague expression, but the work itself is not truly complete unless an interpretation is realized, and this comes into being only through those who "listen" to it: and the performer is the "first" listener.

But these are trifles and nitpickings, as Totò would say...

The third movement of Beethoven's Sonata 17 says: "Allegretto".
Allegretto!? For a sonata called the Tempest!?

I remember that quite some time ago I was struck by two of the interpretations that I have re-proposed here, diametrically opposed: that of Wilhelm Kempff, who played an "Allegretto," and that of Glenn Gould, who... did not play an "Allegretto."

So, here are the performers:
A: Valentina Lisitsa
B: Wilhelm Kempff
C: Glenn Gould
D: Isabella Tang (the performer of the performer... )

The mp3 compression of Gould that you posted makes the track unrecognizable - and unlistenable. In short, one must also evaluate the audio quality. Here you can listen a bit better (parenthetically... it's my favorite, perhaps because it was the record I used to listen to as a boy... the heart wants what it wants!)

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So on my part, I am happy to have brought Valentina Lisitsa first, whom I actually adore.

I am equally happy to have brought Kempff second - but it could have been a tie with Valentina - who was, for me, the quintessential Beethovenian pianist during my adolescence and youth.

Glenn Gould, as Red suggested, is indeed ... Glenn Gould and, from my point of view now, could be the first, albeit in his own way, tied with Valentina and Kempff.

The Tang, I do not know her as an interpreter and anyway she does not convince me, and I would undoubtedly put her in last place at this point.

Bianca, go ahead and continue the little game, but I would like to know what your ranking is!

Bianca!

bellissima idea. Anche le considerazioni che hai portato su "interpretazioni di interpretazioni" e sul valore aggiunto della vaghezza....

Preso da altre cose mi spiace di non aver partecipato. Alle prossime

My ranking: Gould (it will be a matter of the heart), Lisitsa, Tang, Kempff
Kissin's interpretation is also very beautiful, which I wasn't aware of.

Gould's recording is quite old, as is Kempff's; regardless, I used the same procedure for the mp3...

And speaking of dated recordings, Ravel came to mind. His interpretations, both of piano and orchestral works, do not seem to have been up to the standard of the works themselves. Yet, shouldn't the author himself be the one who knows his own music best?
Let's take the Pavane, for example. Which performance would you choose? The composer's or more recent ones?

Ravel's:
https://play.spotify.com/track/5TLMT69Fpk6rXAY1xu48uY?play=true&utm_source=open.spotify.com&utm_medium=open

for me a composer knows their own music better in the same way a parent knows (would know) their own children

At the beginning, yes.

But then children grow up, and they go around.

Compositions too (the big ones) go around.... and you never know who they will meet

What do you think of Grigory Sokolov?

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