Recordings that you enjoy: Beethoven Symphony #9

Started by Gurn Blanston, April 26, 2009, 08:39:39 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Gurn Blanston

I bought this the other day, having read some interesting things about it. Not the whole box, just the 9th.



Nothing in the scanty liner notes tells me at all when it was recorded. Kegel began his career in Dresden in 1977 and the Beethoven cycle was an early project. So I'm guessing <>1980. Does anyone have more precise information than that?

8)
Visit my Haydn blog: HaydnSeek

Haydn: that genius of vulgar music who induces an inordinate thirst for beer - Mily Balakirev (1860)

premont

Quote from: Gurn Blanston on November 18, 2010, 05:51:22 AM

Nothing in the scanty liner notes tells me at all when it was recorded. Kegel began his career in Dresden in 1977 and the Beethoven cycle was an early project. So I'm guessing <>1980. Does anyone have more precise information than that?

I own the complete set. The booklet says "recorded 1982/83".
γνῶθι σεαυτόν

Gurn Blanston

Quote from: premont on November 19, 2010, 05:01:02 AM
I own the complete set. The booklet says "recorded 1982/83".

Well, my picture disappeared, but the info was enough! Thanks for that, Premont. I would also be interested in your opinion of the disk. I haven't listened to it yet, it is still 3 Sundays away from its turn. I read only that it is "idiosyncratic", but what isn't?  :)

8)
Visit my Haydn blog: HaydnSeek

Haydn: that genius of vulgar music who induces an inordinate thirst for beer - Mily Balakirev (1860)

premont

Quote from: Gurn Blanston on November 19, 2010, 05:08:39 AM
Well, my picture disappeared, but the info was enough! Thanks for that, Premont. I would also be interested in your opinion of the disk. I haven't listened to it yet, it is still 3 Sundays away from its turn. I read only that it is "idiosyncratic", but what isn't?  :)

8)



I have not yet listened to the Choral Symphony. As you know, my main musical interests rest elsewhere, and my listening-to pile is getting larger and larger.
γνῶθι σεαυτόν

RJR

To Gurn, our moderator

Here is a short blurb about Konwitschny that I found at a Chinese website called VeryCd:



Konwitschny (1902-62), himself the son of a conductor, was born in northern Moravia, studying at Brno and then at Leipzig. As a violist he played under Furtwangler with the Gewandhaus. His conducting history began with the Stuttgart Opera from which début he moved successively as director to Freiburg, Frankfurt, Hannover, Hamburg and then to the Leipzig Gewandhausorchester from 1949 where he remained as chief conductor until his death. He held director positions with the Dresden and Berlin State Operas. His Ring at Covent Garden (1959) was reputedly outstanding. Indeed, his strengths were said to lie primarily in the opera house. He died in Belgrade while conducting in a TV broadcast.

A devout Catholic he was an adroit pragmatist operating with expedient aplomb in the service of music in both the Third Reich and in the DDR. His funeral, which attracted full state honours, was extraordinary, in the orthodoxy of East Germany, for including a Requiem Mass.

His taste was for opera but he rapidly secured a firmly founded reputation in the concert hall as documented by this set each disc of which can be had separately. Details from the reviewer if wished.

'Konwhiskey' was his nickname amongst orchestral musicians: before performances of Tristan und Isolde he was reputed to down six bottles of champagne. He would take out his handkerchief during a performance, mopping his brow and then using it to wave to friends in the audience. These eccentricities (at least the last one!) are reminiscent of pianist, Vladimir de Pachmann with his notorious but quite unselfconscious spoken asides to audiences.

Konwitschny's split-second drilled vigour and sheer heat are impressive. While he may have hated rehearsals and was noted for a relaxed hands-off approach he could instantaneously grasp control if the orchestra showed signs of 'slipping'.

If you are familiar with the Berlin Classics roster you will have known or known of these discs as individual entries since the mid-1990s. This is their first excursion together as a major boxed set.

More Info here:
Franz Konwitschny的一些介绍见:
http://www.wunderhorn.com/node/11547

Gurn Blanston

RJR,
Hey, thanks for that. Not only a lot of information, but a nice consolidation of the things that I was able to discover since I first asked that question. :)

As you probably noted, earlier eras in performance style are not my favorites, however I can say confidently that the performance of the Liepzeig Gewandhaus / Konwitschny was at the top of the heap there, and most recommendable.

Do you have any other favorites that you would recommend we look into? Always pleased to discover. :)

8)

----------------
Now playing:
Annie Fischer - Op 028 Sonata #15 in D for Piano 2nd mvmt - Andante
Visit my Haydn blog: HaydnSeek

Haydn: that genius of vulgar music who induces an inordinate thirst for beer - Mily Balakirev (1860)

DavidW

Quote from: RJR on December 11, 2010, 01:01:26 PM
To Gurn, our moderator

Just wanted to say that there several moderators including Bruce, Que, Maciek, Knight... Gurn doesn't stand alone... except in perhaps obsessing over the 9th symphony. ;D

Gurn Blanston

Quote from: DavidW on December 11, 2010, 04:55:10 PM
Just wanted to say that there several moderators including Bruce, Que, Maciek, Knight... Gurn doesn't stand alone... except in perhaps obsessing over the 9th symphony. ;D

Yeah, but I'm the incredibly handsome one.... :)

8)

----------------
Now playing:
Kelemen (Violin) \ Kadduri (Cello) - Romberg A & B Duo #2 for Violin & Cello - Grave - Andante - Allegretto
Visit my Haydn blog: HaydnSeek

Haydn: that genius of vulgar music who induces an inordinate thirst for beer - Mily Balakirev (1860)

DavidRoss

Quote from: Gurn Blanston on December 11, 2010, 05:15:33 PM
Yeah, but I'm the incredibly handsome one.... :)
And you seldom miss a chance to remind everyone how much you resemble me.  ;)

Think I'll go on a D minor binge, following Sibelius 6 with one of my favorite Beethoven 9th recordings ... wait for it ... no, not Brüggen this time, rather Abbado/BP!
"Maybe the problem most of you have ... is that you're not listening to Barbirolli." ~Sarge

"The problem with socialism is that sooner or later you run out of other people's money." ~Margaret Thatcher

Gurn Blanston

Quote from: DavidRoss on December 14, 2010, 02:41:42 PM
And you seldom miss a chance to remind everyone how much you resemble me.  ;)

Think I'll go on a D minor binge, following Sibelius 6 with one of my favorite Beethoven 9th recordings ... wait for it ... no, not Brüggen this time, rather Abbado/BP!

Oh, I've tried to keep a lid on that, but I guess the cat's out of the bag... :)

Abbado/BP is a very nice choice. I have the one at the right end of my signature here, and also the DVD version in Rome. Like them both. Well, hell, hard to go wrong with this music, it's just bigger than whoever performs it. :)

8)
Visit my Haydn blog: HaydnSeek

Haydn: that genius of vulgar music who induces an inordinate thirst for beer - Mily Balakirev (1860)

RJR

To Gurn,

I love the piano music of Déodat de Séverac. Let's call it Country Classical Music. Ciccolini, among others.

Gurn Blanston

Quote from: RJR on December 15, 2010, 07:21:04 AM
To Gurn,

I love the piano music of Déodat de Séverac. Let's call it Country Classical Music. Ciccolini, among others.

I'm guessing that you wanted to put this in the Classical Corner as oppposed to the 9th Symphony topic. :)  As for Séverac, I don't know his music, I will have to do some looking around for that. I thought Country Classical was like Hank Williams Senior! :D

8)
Visit my Haydn blog: HaydnSeek

Haydn: that genius of vulgar music who induces an inordinate thirst for beer - Mily Balakirev (1860)

RJR

To Gurn,
Following up on the info on Konwitschy that I found at website VeryCD, if you or anyone else is a connoisseur of classcial music album covers then you would have a field day clicking and saving hundreds, nay thousands, of classical album jpegs there. As well, copying and pasting many of the liner notes that accompany their downloads. Knock yourself out. As well, if you don't know Peter Gutmann, I suggest that you go to his website. He writes well and is a goldmine of information on recordings and music history. Todd McComb is another. His forte is medieval music and Indian music. He also loves to philosophize on many subjects.

Listening to Seiji Ozawa playing French classics: at this very moment: Bolero. I would love to create a Busby Berkeley style Bolero dance number.

Gurn Blanston

AT the urging of several people, I broke down today and bought this. It is the same performance, different label (mine is on MCA). So we'll see in a few days if this old guy had what it took. :D



Yesterday I got in the mail 2 versions that I had ordered a couple weeks ago. One of them is this period instrument performance:



and the other is quite the opposite:



So some new listening possibilities open up. :)

8)
Visit my Haydn blog: HaydnSeek

Haydn: that genius of vulgar music who induces an inordinate thirst for beer - Mily Balakirev (1860)

Coopmv

Quote from: Gurn Blanston on December 29, 2010, 10:57:19 AM
AT the urging of several people, I broke down today and bought this. It is the same performance, different label (mine is on MCA). So we'll see in a few days if this old guy had what it took. :D



Yesterday I got in the mail 2 versions that I had ordered a couple weeks ago. One of them is this period instrument performance:



and the other is quite the opposite:



So some new listening possibilities open up. :)

8)

One can never have too many versions of B9 ...

Gurn Blanston

Quote from: Coopmv on December 29, 2010, 10:59:19 AM
One can never have too many versions of B9 ...

True. I have <>80 now. Oddly, I like them all. :)

8)
Visit my Haydn blog: HaydnSeek

Haydn: that genius of vulgar music who induces an inordinate thirst for beer - Mily Balakirev (1860)

karlhenning

Quote from: Gurn Blanston on December 29, 2010, 11:15:44 AM
True. I have <>80 now. Oddly, I like them all. :)

Is Ottmar Suitner among the <>80? . . .

Gurn Blanston

Quote from: k a rl h e nn i ng on December 29, 2010, 11:30:27 AM
Is Ottmar Suitner among the <>80? . . .

No, but I've been looking at one of his. Is that a recommendation?  :)

8)
Visit my Haydn blog: HaydnSeek

Haydn: that genius of vulgar music who induces an inordinate thirst for beer - Mily Balakirev (1860)

karlhenning

Quote from: Gurn Blanston on December 29, 2010, 12:25:21 PM
No, but I've been looking at one of his. Is that a recommendation?  :)

8)

A recommendation for whether you will continue to like all the ones you've got ; )

I heard a performance of the Opus 125 he conducted in Tokyo.  Nothing special.

Gurn Blanston

Quote from: k a rl h e nn i ng on December 29, 2010, 12:35:00 PM
A recommendation for whether you will continue to like all the ones you've got ; )

I heard a performance of the Opus 125 he conducted in Tokyo.  Nothing special.

Ah, I've seen that for sale. Special would have been nice... 0:)

8)
Visit my Haydn blog: HaydnSeek

Haydn: that genius of vulgar music who induces an inordinate thirst for beer - Mily Balakirev (1860)