I need to buy the Beethoven violin/piano sonatas, and was wondering if anyone could reccommend any particular edition over another.

I have been using the Henle Urtext edition for the cello sonatas and like it fine, but was wondering if anyone had any comment on this or other editions of the violin sonatas.

B

Henle seems to be what most people are using these days...

barolo,
HENLE!!...definetely!!!

henle is not bad, but too expensive, lots of other versions are good too.

don't get sucked up with the hype of buying henle books

I do have Henle edtions for a variety of music, and use them and like them, so I have no qualms about using them again (hype notwithstanding).

But I do have experience with other editions of, for example, the piano sonatas (the one I'm fond of has commentary by Tovey, and edited I think by Craxton, might be Samuels, though I might be mixing up the Beethoven and the Bach). I don't think it's Urtext though.

So I was curious if anybody had anything good to say about other editions of the Violin sonatas that they might have actually used.

B

bimbo_bob:
I understand that Henle is expensive, VERY! but i find i get my money's worth when buying it! i mean, come on! check out the quality?! its unbelievably accurate!
(please take no offence)

My teacher once remarked that URTEXT editions are the most accurate. The words urtext and henle have become so connected that we come to think of them as the same. It is kinda like Kleenex and facial paper...99% of people will say they need a kleenex and not facial paper, when in actuality they want facial paper.

My teacher also said that henle himself had the tendency to "assume" what the composer was saying-that is, add his own intrepretation into the own piece. He is known to have added dynamic symbols where there is supposed to be none, becuase "the composer forgot to put it in". I certainly don't see the validity of this point. Anyways, im off topic, if u notice in some of many of henle edition books, he has quite a few brackets around dynamic signs... in many cases its henle's own opinion. A bracket would be ok, but when next edition came out, he would remove the brackets, making it as though the composer wrote it.


Don't be deceived by the book's nice binding and clean, crisp notes!!!
I admit, I own many henle edition books, in many cases, it was because there were no other editions.

If you want something more affordable the Konnemann editions are a good bang for your buck. They are well printed , well laid out, and open nicely onto your music desk.