nice appreciation of pianist Anton Kuerti's Beethoven Box--we saw him in Nanaimo in 1999, confirmed by ticket folded & tucked behind the Diabellis--

"Anton Kuerti’s set of Beethoven’s piano sonatas on the Analekta label is far and away the most interesting and thought provoking I’ve heard. My respect for his playing, my awe and delight, continue to grow each time I listen. Kuerti has obviously thought long and hard about these sonatas. The performances are never rote, never tired, often strikingly original. In a previous review (of a Brahms sonata), I likened Mr Kuerti to an explorer or adventurer, with an eye for discovery. Although some of the sonatas are played in a “traditional” manner, many (perhaps most) are not, employing an unusually slow tempo, or an unexpected delicacy and finesse, or the slightest hint of rubato, quite unprecedented in my experience. Not that Mr Kuerti is shy of the traditional sturm und drang approach to Beethoven. (The Diabelli Variations, included with the set, is an absolute hair-raiser.) The pianism throughout is marvelous, strong and sure. I love the originality, the intelligence, and I especially love the voicing. Kuerti gives the left-hand articulateness, nuance and clarity that put it on an equal footing with the right hand. This not just unusual, it is revelatory. At times one partakes of a sort of marvelous dialogue between the hands. There is never a moment of doubt, either about the pianist’s certainty or his musicianship. This is the big league, brilliant technique combined with intelligence and original insight..."