A case of deja entendu here, since I reviewed these performances when they originally came out. I enjoyed them then and still do, for both artists offer wit, affection and agility. One can at times think the sheer force and passion of Martha Argerich's personality a bit too obvious, not least in the C major Sonata, where Maisky characteristically sounds smoother and more persuasive. Her contribution to the playful finale of the G minor, which she opens, is kittenishly mannered, claws and all, in a way that one may question despite the deftness of her playing; throughout this movement, as sometimes elsewhere, it is Mischa Maisky who sounds the more natural Beethovenian, and one wishes that his pianist did not feel the need to make us register every sforzando or staccato marking. However, these performances are always stimulating and both instruments are very well recorded, the piano placed (of necessity, I suspect) somewhat backwardly in relation to the cello but never overshadowed. Indeed, Maisky is embarrassingly swamped by Argerich's thunderous left-hand octaves in the passage at 7'08'' in the first movement of the A major Sonata.
The three sets of variations are early pieces (the last, WoO46, dates from 1801) and more conventional than the Op. 18 string quartets and the contemporary piano sonatas, but Maisky and Argerich make the most of their faded rococo charms and these performances bring many a smile to the face.
Collectors wishing for a more inward-looking approach to the sonatas, especially the late pair of Op. 102, may well consider the mid-price alternative account of all this music by Jacqueline du Pre and Daniel Barenboim, recorded by the BBC at the 1970 Edinburgh Festival. This earned JOC's praise in these pages for its thoughtfulness as well as its ''spontaneity and sparkle''. One has to endure coughing from the audience, but applause has been omitted.
... I find these two fine musicians to have a good rapport, and for all her strength of musical personality, Argerich does not overshadow or overpower the cello; the recording helps here, too, by being fairly thoughtfully balanced, although in saying that I must add that Maisky is embarrassingly submerged (partly Beethoven's fault) in such a passage as the one at 7'08'' in the first movement of the A major Sonata. Even if we don't get the full flavour of the pianist's tone as is heard on her solo recordings, we instantly recognize her first utterances in this work, which begin quietly enough but end with much force. Ditto the tigerish way she begins its scherzo and plays the finale of the C major. Is it a fault that Maisky always sounds gentler and sweeter? Or is it inherent in the nature of their two instruments and thus Beethoven's intention? In any case, Argerich reminds us, perhaps rightly, that this is music by a pianist of dynamic personality as well as a composer at the height of his powers.
These sonatas obviously represent a more mature Beethoven than Nos. 1 and 2 (both 1796) and are correspondingly terser and more compelling. Yet Maisky and Argerich do not let the energy of quicker movements obscure the warmth of more lyrical passages, relaxing the time and tone here without quite letting go of the overall momentum—although at times it's a close thing. One also feels their involvement in their ultra-sensitive handling of slow movements, albeit sometimes too strongly inflected for my taste. While voicing reservations, I'll add that the finale of Op. 69 reminded me of Argerich's ability as a marchande de vitesse and I wonder whether she, rather than Maisky, is dictating pace although he manages to stay with her and remain stylish. The Judas Maccabaeus Variations (music of 1796) are pretty empty stuff, but that's not the artists' fault. Enough of adverse criticism: this is a valuable and generously filled issue.
The two sets of variations flank the two sonatas, with Ein Madchen oder Weibchen coming first and the Bei Mannern, welche Liebe fuhlen set at the end. All four works are early, the sonatas and first variation set were written in 1796, the other piece in 1801. In these circumstances, we rightly expect to hear Beethoven in youthful vein. Personally, I find the courtly and conventional gestures of the genial Madchen Variations a bit too predictable despite a degree of Beethovenian humour that is evident in some bouncy rhythms and dynamics (the slow F minor music towards the end goes deeper, too). But the music is attractive in its own right and is played with ample wit, agility and impeccable ensemble. The same may be said of the other variation set (a more imaginative piece as perhaps befitting its more tender and lilting theme), which is presented with considerable grace.
Both the Madchen Variations and the First Cello Sonata are in F major, but so vivid is the playing that I did not feel any sameness. It is alert and crisp, while still offering a proper degree of cello warmth. As always, Argerich's attack is most sharply focused but I don't find her tone hard, as has sometimes happened before, especially in more recent music. If she is placed backwardly relative to the cello, that at least allows her to play forcefully (e.g. in the finale of Sonata No. 1) without swamping the string instrument; on the debit side, however, her tone lacks the 'body' of Maisky's cello and he could do with richer support here and there, as in the slow opening music of No. 2. Otherwise the recording is satisfying, with a good dynamic range.
The two artists manage the varying moods and tempo changes skilfully in these unusually shaped sonatas, in which slow and fast speeds both find their place in big first movements (complete with exposition repeats) which are then followed by rondo finales. The alternative account of the sonatas by Yo-Yo Ma and Emanuel Ax for CBS is an eloquent one, offering more breadth (each movement takes significantly longer), if not the special electricity that Maisky and Argerich give us. The piano sound is fuller and so more satisfying. Both discs are recommendable, in fact, but the extra works (and 14 minutes) on DG may sway your choice.