Chamber version of symphonies and orchestra

[wagnernn]

Hi all,

I just came across the chamber versions of Chopin's two piano concerti, and got heavily addicted to them ever since.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydunhRuXLe8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uD0bF4WEM3E

These performances sparked my curiosity for the chamber ensemble transcription of some large scale works.
I know that there is a wind ensemble of Beethoven's seventh (though I could never get along with Beethoven), and a chamber ensemble of Bruckner's seventh (which I am hunting for). Can you suggest more recordings of this genre?

P/S:
1/ I have tried Brahms' German Requiem with two piano and chamber chorus too, but frankly, it doesn't work for me! There are something really wrong about the approach.
2/ Britten' s chamber opera - they are genuine, not transcription- are quite interesting and worth investigating.

[Sergeant Rock]

Haydn Symphonies performed by Arco Baleno (violin, viola, cello, flute, pianoforte)

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Sarge

[Roberto]

There is a chamber version of Beethoven's 4th piano concerto for piano and string quintet and the 2nd symphony also:
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I have this album and I love the piano concertos but I haven't listened to the chamber CD yet.
And there is a chamber version of Mozart's early Viennese piano concertos too. Mozart himself advertised these works as potentially chamber music because he thought more people will buy the chamber version.

[wagnernn]

Cool, now the 18th century guys are in the game . I wonder if there are any interesting  Liszt, Mahler, Sibelius, Dvorak and Tchaikovsky?

[Sergeant Rock]

...any interesting Mahler?

There is Schoenberg's chamber orchestra version of Das Lied:

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Sarge

[wagnernn]

There is Schoenberg's chamber orchestra version of Das Lied:

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Sarge

Awesome suggestion!

[Brian]

There's also a chamber version of Beethoven's second piano concerto available on BIS, accompanied by either string quartet or quintet, I forget which. And Beethoven's Symphony No. 2 makes a good piano trio.

Also try:



Piano, flute, violin and cello playing seven Mozart concertos and the 40th Symphony, arranged by Hummel.

[aukhawk]

There's a chamber version of Shostakovich 15th symphony on this compilation.
I don't think it's an improvement on the real thing though.

The other works (chamber orchestra versions of the String Quartets) are more worthwhile.

[Oldnslow]

There is a wonderful piano quartet (Piano with strings) version of the Eroica Symphony on MGD

[Oldnslow]

The MGD  chamber Eroica is by the Mozart Piano Quartet, and is an excellent arrangment by Ferdinand Ries.

[springrite]

No chamber versions of the Gothic Symphony or Mahler 8?

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

These things are curiosities from the age before recordings. Then, they served a useful purpose. Now, I don't see any reason to listen to them.

[kishnevi]

Awesome suggestion!

I have that, with American performers on the Dorian Sono Luminos label.  I was underwhelmed with it, to be honest.   The musicians did a fine job with the material at hand, but the smaller instrumental forces just didn't cut it. 

Trevor Pinnock has just issued a recording of a chamber version of Mahler Four, originally made for the same group as this Schoenberg arrangement.  I can't make up my mind whether I want it or not.

I also--although I seem to be in the minority on this one--don't particularly care for the Barshai arrangments of the DSCH quartets.

[wagnernn]

There is a wonderful piano quartet (Piano with strings) version of the Eroica Symphony on MGD

I found an excerpt here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQNvJ8nuTMk
Sounds interesting.

[wagnernn]

I know that some chamber versions turned out to be failures. But what do you guys think about the Chopin's concerto I posted above?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uD0bF4WEM3E
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydunhRuXLe8

They are so well done that they give me an impression that Chopin was first intended to write for the small ensemble (especially the second).

[Papy Oli]

any interesting Mahler?

Here is a good pared-down version of the Mahler Fourth:

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