Some hits, some misses, no errors, and little enlivenment characterize Robert Taub"s first Beethoven cycle installment. How prosaic and matter-of-fact his slow movements of Op. 2, Nos.1 and 2, seem next to the eloquence of pianists Murray Perahia and Artur Schnabel, for example. And Taub"s leisurely amble through No. 13"s Scherzo is hardly the allegro molto vivace that Beethoven specifies. The pianist fares better with supple and flowing readings of the little Op. 14 sonatas, and his tempo fluctuations in the Moonlight opening evoke the composer"s sobriquet--Sonata quasi una fantasia--without losing grip of the bigger picture. His Waldstein comes alive in the first movement"s development and the bravura finale, while the rest is excellent note playing. Beautifully recorded sound. --Jed Distler