Mendelssohn recordings

[Henk]

Which Mendelssohn cd's do you recommend? I already have some, but want more. I am eager to hear your recommendation of his symphonies especially, because I can't find the right recordings of it.

[MichaelRabin]

This may slightly off topic but I feel that you should have a fantastic version of his VC - played by Campoli & Boult on the Beulah label.

[Mandryka]

i am going to completely ignore your request for symphony recommendations, as I don't have one.

But there is one Mendelssohn recording I will take the desert island which doesn't exist.

Gieseking's Songs Without Words.

[DavidW]

Which Mendelssohn cd's do you recommend? I already have some, but want more. I am eager to hear your recommendation of his symphonies especially, because I can't find the right recordings of it.

For a complete set, Abbado I suppose.  But then again, I like his transparent, lean classical approach to music making.

[Sorin Eushayson]

I am eager to hear your recommendation of his symphonies especially, because I can't find the right recordings of it.

For the first symphony I enjoy this immensely:



A fiery rendition with the benefit of a Time-Appropriate Ensemble. 

[nimrod79]

Abbado's complete set is probably the best survey of the five symphonies out there.  Even better, I think, are his recordings of Mendelssohn's overtures.  Bernstein's performances of symphonies 3-5 with the Israel Philharmonic are also worth listening to (he also recorded a fine Hebrides overture).

[Dana]

      I like Christoph von Dohnanyi's take on the symphonies, and for chamber music, you simply can't beat this disc by Hausmusik London. As for the violin concerto, every library needs at least three permanent residents - look around! My longtime favorite has been Yehudi Menuhin with Efram Kurtz. It comes packed out with Previn conducting a few overtures and some of the Midsummer Night's Dream incidental music.

[hornteacher]

My personal favorites.  Abbado for the Symphonies.  Hahn for the VC.

[yyy.]

Bertrand Chamayou plays Mendelssohn, absolutely superb and sublime, the most beautiful Mendelssohn piano works playing i've ever heard.

Murray Prahia Mendelssohn piano concerto 1&2 is a real pleasure to hear too. 

[Sorin Eushayson]

Which Mendelssohn cd's do you recommend? I already have some, but want more. I am eager to hear your recommendation of his symphonies especially, because I can't find the right recordings of it.

This is an excellent Mendelssohn starter disc and one that I can't recommend highly enough:

[Mr. Darcy]

Some great recommendations so far! I, too, think Hahn's VC is very fine, and run to your nearest shop tonight for that chamber music collection by Hausmusik recommended by Dana!

I quite liked Chailly's recent "Lobgesang" symphony (and I'm not even that fond of the piece):



My favorite Hebrides Overture is a Britten/ECO recording from 1971:

[Sorin Eushayson]

I quite liked Chailly's recent "Lobgesang" symphony (and I'm not even that fond of the piece):

Haven't heard that recording in particular, but I'd like to point out the significance of having the Gewandhausorchester performing it as that was the orchestra Mendelssohn originally debuted the piece with!

Of course, they're using different methods and instruments now.  C. Spering has a fantastic recording of the piece using instruments closer to what the Gewandhausorchester would have used at the time...



Natural brass, gut strings, etc.  I've got a writeup on the piece and the recording here.

[flyingdutchman]

Maag and Mendelssohn's 3rd.  Mendelssohn's 3rd and Maag (from 1957).  They go hand in hand and are the best of that symphony.

[Grazioso]

An easy, inexpensive way to acquire a lot of really good Mendelssohn performances:

[DarkAngel]

A good start would be the Abbado/DG boxset for symphonies, some of his best work done around the same time as Abbados great Schubert set with COE. Also recommend the 2CD Dohnanyi/Decca 3,4,5 set, and single CDs by MacKerras, Bloomstedt and Sinopoli for 4th Italian symphony

[Mandryka]

I'm absolutely bowled over, gob smacked by the Op 13 here



Does anyone else know it? What are there other Mendelssohn records like?

[val]

The Octet by the string Quartets Smetana & Janacek.
Midsummer's night Dream, by Klemperer.
3rd Symphony by Peter Maag and the 4th by Guido Cantelli.
Piano works by Nikitta Magaloff.
The 2 Quintets by the Raphael Ensemble.
Lieder by Barbara Boney.
The violin Concerto opus 64 by Anne Sophie Mutter and Karajan.
Ouvertures by Claudio Abbado.
The piano Trios by the Trio Suk.
Elliah, by Sawallisch.

[Mandryka]

Rzewski Song Without Words

https://www.youtube.com/v/NIP1R72_T1c

[Elk]

There are not many mentions of Mendelssohn's chorale works here, and they're about all I listen of his: the 2nd Symphony; Elijah; St. Paulus; PSalm 42; Infelice.

Some recordings which I have and like: Elijah EMI with Baker, Gedda, Fischer-Dieskau, and de Burgos;
St. Paulus Hänssler Rilling;
Psalm 42 and Infelice Virgin Hickox.

O, and Peter Hurford's Decca recording of a few of his organ sonatas.

[Biffo]

This set also has the complete string symphonies in fine eprformances from Concerto Koln

https://smile.amazon.co.uk/Mendelssohn-Complete-Symphonies-String/dp/B01GSUHVMA/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1535114727&sr=1-1&keywords=masur+mendelssohn

I have just started working through the more familiar symphonies with No 1; sounds like a good performance but I only really know Nos 3 & 4 well enough for comparisons.