How many Karajan Beethoven Ninths are there ... and which one is top choice?

[head-case]

There's also this



and this

[Renfield]

For Eroica also check out Klemperer/Furtwangler. They are legendary, too.

Well, of course!

Klemperer's Philharmonia studio recording, Furtwangler's 1944 live recording with the WPO, the specific Toscanini/RCA recording whose date I keep confusing and so will look up before I post, and even Szell's Cleveland Eroica all find me most appreciative to have them in my collection, among other near-equally distinguished Eroicas which I might be forgetting.

My comment on the late Karajan's recording was more about personal (i.e. subjective, "emotional") preference, than an objective "best-of-ism".

Regarding the last two 9ths posted (the DVD ones), which I have heard (and own, in the case of the DG), I don't think they really measure up to any of his currently available CD/SACD recordings. In fact, the "Karajan Legacy for Home Video" one is very likely the same as the 1980's recording on CD, but with picture; I've only seen it once, though, so I might be mistaken.


And as far as the comparison I was planning goes, I've just bought both the old WPO and the Philharmonia recordings, so perhaps I might compare across the board (bar the live 1960's BPO edition one), for Karajan's sake. 0:)

[bluto32]

There are several readily available issues of Karajan's 1962 recording of the 9th:

(1) "The Originals" series (from 1995?) with "Original Image Bit Processing":
[asin]B000001GPY[/asin]
(2) SACD release from 2004:
[asin]B00029CX0E[/asin]
(3) Double CD release from 2008 coupled with the 8th symphony:
[asin]B001D7SZ6A[/asin]
4) From 2013 to "complement the release by DG and Touch Press of a Beethoven IX Symphony app...":
[asin]B00EKVSRQY[/asin]

I have (1) and love the performance, but am wondering if there is much (any?) difference in sound quality between that one and (2), (3) or (4) above. Note: I would only be interested in the CD layer for (2) as I don't have an SACD player.

Any opinions gratefully received.

Bluto

[trung224]

There are several readily available issues of Karajan's 1962 recording of the 9th:

(1) "The Originals" series (from 1995?) with "Original Image Bit Processing":
[asin]B000001GPY[/asin]
(2) SACD release from 2004:
[asin]B00029CX0E[/asin]
(3) Double CD release from 2008 coupled with the 8th symphony:
[asin]B001D7SZ6A[/asin]
4) From 2013 to "complement the release by DG and Touch Press of a Beethoven IX Symphony app...":
[asin]B00EKVSRQY[/asin]

I have (1) and love the performance, but am wondering if there is much (any?) difference in sound quality between that one and (2), (3) or (4) above. Note: I would only be interested in the CD layer for (2) as I don't have an SACD player.

Any opinions gratefully received.

Bluto

  I have only 2 of them, from "The Originals" series and the SACD, and they sound the same for me. Both of them are downsampling from 24/96 mastered edition , which is sold on hdtracks and qobuz now. The only different (and for me better) version is SACD layer of SACD disc.

[bluto32]

Thank you, Trung - much appreciated.
Anybody got a view on (3) or (4) above?

Bluto

[Karl Henning]

A new recording of the LvB Op.125 was just HvK's way of saying "Hello!"