Beethoven's 4th Symphony

[longears]

You hear all the notes and that's it - nothing else! No inspiration, joy, warmth, pathos, excitement - it's all missing with JEG

I don't get the praise for Gardiner's Beethoven.  To me it's like a pretty clockwork.

Last night I listened to Zinman's 4th and was more than satisfied.  All the liveliness and color that JEG lacks.  I don't pretend to expertise and I'm more a listener than a collector, but I do own several recordings of the fourth in LvB cycles and this thread has encouraged me to give the 4th more attention.  And I'll be interested to hear what Gurn & D make of the new Mackerras. 

[Renfield]

This is becoming predictable but, again I have to name:

Kletzki/CzPO, Jochum/RCO and Furtwängler/BPO ('43 live).

Q

Oh, yes! That one is truly excellent.

And now that I've finally got the Kletzki cycle, I can disagree with you, here: even though the cycle is quite an exceptional one, I found the 4th dragging.

(Unless it was my mood that was foul, in which case we'll know soon enough. I've only gone through the cycle once, so far. )

[Que]

And now that I've finally got the Kletzki cycle, I can disagree with you, here: even though the cycle is quite an exceptional one

So you like it? 
I'll refresh my memory of the 4th!

Q

[Renfield]

So you like it? 
I'll refresh my memory of the 4th!

Q

I do! It made quite an impression on me, and a bigger one than even the "shock and awe" Gardiner cycle (which I also recently bought). Surely, Kletzki and his players "had something special going", in that cycle.

[Larry Rinkel]

That's why I want Gurn to buy it ....... so he can be the Guinea pig ........

Or rather, the Gurney pig ........

[Larry Rinkel]

For once I agree with Larry, and for the same reason.

Just this once, Mr. Premont? With such an encouraging comment, who knows that I might not post again? 

[Heather Harrison]

This symphony finally captured my attention a few years ago (probably when I heard it at a concert) and I started listening to it more often than I had previously.  It may not be Beethoven's most popular, but it has grown on me.  Like some of the others here, I prefer the smaller orchestras to the large modern ones that tend to muddle things up a bit.  With this symphony, it seems especially important.  In the realm of the smaller orchestras, I have performances by Hogwood, Gardiner, and Goodman/Hanover Band.  So far, I like Hogwood's best, but I haven't done detailed comparisons.  The Hanover Band recording has a lot of reverb that manages to muddle the music even though the performance is reasonably clear.

Heather

[wilhelm]

My absolute favourite

[Mark]

I'm not generally a fan of the way Barenboim stretches out Beethoven's symphonies to disproportionate lengths, but I have to put in a good word for what he's done for the Fourth with Staatskapelle Berlin. I'm re-listening to it now, and I'm finding that his interpretation makes good sense, despite the much-slower-than-Mackerras tempi. Yes, it's 'big band', but in a good way. He gives this 'slender Greek maiden' a more muscular tone, making her more a warrior than a wife. Not a bad recorded sound, either.

[Sergeant Rock]

My absolute favourite

Mine too....and for something completely different, these versions get a lot of play also:






Sarge

[Lethevich]

The Hanover Band recording has a lot of reverb that manages to muddle the music even though the performance is reasonably clear.

The recorded sound of that cycle makes me cry

[Mark]

The recorded sound of that cycle makes me cry

Sounds like a good reason to avoid it.

[Gurn Blanston]

The recorded sound of that cycle makes me cry

It wouldn't be so sad if the performances weren't so damned good. What the hell were they thinking in the booth



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Now playing: Beethoven 9ths - Minnesota Orchestra/Vanska - Beethoven Symphony #9 in d Op 125 4th mvmt - Presto - Allegro assai

[Heather Harrison]

It wouldn't be so sad if the performances weren't so damned good. What the hell were they thinking in the booth

Agreed.  Beneath the muddled atmosphere, there are some very good performances in that cycle.  It makes me wonder if one could do some advanced digital signal processing on the recording to remove the unwanted effects.  However, I know just enough about digital signal processing to be dangerous, and I know it would be a difficult problem.

Heather

[Iago]

Best Beethoven 4th in captivity. The joyousness of the music making is overwhelming.

[hautbois]

Best Beethoven 4th in captivity. The joyousness of the music making is overwhelming.

This performance made me dance and jump around my seat, literally.

Howard

[Iago]

A good, (but not quite equal to the Kleiber/COA) performance is

[Valentino]

My absolute favourite is the Bav. St. O/C. Kleiber on Orfeo.
Is the Concertgebouworkest/C. Kleiber Philips DVD even better? Opinions please!

[Iago]

My absolute favourite is the Bav. St. O/C. Kleiber on Orfeo.
Is the Concertgebouworkest/C. Kleiber Philips DVD even better? Opinions please!

Absolutely!!
And watching Kleiber visually communicate with his orchestra while at the same time evoking a masterful performance cannot be bettered.

[hautbois]

My absolute favourite is the Bav. St. O/C. Kleiber on Orfeo.
Is the Concertgebouworkest/C. Kleiber Philips DVD even better? Opinions please!

Simply a better orchestra at that particular time frame, the Concertgebouw delivers. What a stunning woodwind section!

Howard