Bruno Walter

[MichaelRabin]

I am inclined to think that Bruno Walter's Sym 6 Sony is the "best" there is out there. Also, I love his Brahms Sym 3 Sony as well. In fact, I don't like Brahms 3 at all - except when Walter conducts it.

[Renfield]

I am inclined to think that Bruno Walter's Sym 6 Sony is the "best" there is out there. Also, I love his Brahms Sym 3 Sony as well. In fact, I don't like Brahms 3 at all - except when Walter conducts it.

Have you heard his 1935 (IIRC - could be '36 or '37) version with the Vienna Philharmonic?

I have it on Andante, and could make a case for it being the best Brahms 3rd I've heard in terms of reading. Melodic and heart-on-sleeve like the Columbia version, but also powerful, even more than with the New York Philharmonic.

[MichaelRabin]

No - I didn't invest in many Brahms Sym 3 CDs. Sorry!

[Renfield]

No - I didn't invest in many Brahms Sym 3 CDs. Sorry!

Nothing to apologise for.

Besides, I have a particular obsession with Brahms' 3rd.

[dirkronk]

Have you heard his 1935 (IIRC - could be '36 or '37) version with the Vienna Philharmonic?

I have it on Andante, and could make a case for it being the best Brahms 3rd I've heard in terms of reading. Melodic and heart-on-sleeve like the Columbia version, but also powerful, even more than with the New York Philharmonic.

You've got me salivating, Renfield. While Walter's ColSO Brahms cycle isn't exactly chopped liver, I've long held that his NY Brahms 2nd from c. 1953 is one of the best I've heard, and the 3rd from that cycle is pretty darn good, too. But now it sounds like his Vienna version may be better still. I do have a Brahms 1st from sometime in the 1930s, which I haven't listened to in ages, but apparently I need to start tracking down that 3rd...

Dirk

[Lilas Pastia]

Not wanting to disrupt the thread's focus, but I'll give another thumbs up to Walter's stereo Brahms 3rd. Along with the Double Concerto, the Schumann PC (Istomin) and the Beethoven 6th already discussed, I find them to be on a very, very high plane in these work's discography.

I'ts been too long since I heard the stereo CSO Mozart symphonies, but the earlier NYP versions are splendid.

[MichaelRabin]

Thanks to everyone for the recommendations!  I've been having a fine time revisiting some of Walter's recordings this week -- I may dial up the Dvorak tonight.

On a personal note... as I was ripping my MP3s, I noticed that my disc with the Columbia Beethoven 3 & 8 has some sort of defect, which renders the 8th pretty much unlistenable.  If anybody happens to have a copy or high quality MP3 of the 8th that they'd be willing to share, kindly shoot me a PM -- I have oodles of Beethoven in my collection, & I'd be happy to share the wealth. 

Have you found a good copy of this yet?

[Coopmv]

[asin]B0056K4VRM[/asin] 

I have Bruno Walter's older New York Mozart from the old Bruno Walter Edition CDs, but not the Columbia remakes...

I have been looking to get one of the Bruno Walter's sets but only want a stereo set.  Any suggestion?

[jwinter]

 Quote from: Coopmv on Today at 01:49:24 PM

I have been looking to get one of the Bruno Walter's sets but only want a stereo set.  Any suggestion?

 
For Mozart, you mean?  So far as I can tell, this one is with the Columbia SO, which is stereo (other than the Requiem, which is rather old and mono).  It's still flying here via the post, so I can't make any definite comments just yet.

The Mozart in the Bruno Walter edition single CDs is a mixture of Columbia stereo & mono recordings from New York.  I didn't have the Columbia versions of the late symphonies, nor the Violin concerti, so I pulled the trigger on this box. 

If you mean Bruno Walter in general, the new Mahler box from the same series would be a good choice (I have the earlier & much more expensive Mahler + Bruckner + Wagner Original Jackets set, which I would certainly recommend if you have the $$$).  Walter's stereo Beethoven, Schubert, and especially his Brahms are excellent and well worth acquiring, although I don't know if they're available in a box.  Walter's Columbia Brahms symphonies are some of the best I've ever heard.

[jwinter]

if you mean mozart, i'd recommend this one:

For the record, I think those recordings are all included in the newer set referenced above (although not the rehearsal extract, alas...)

[annie]

For the record, I think those recordings are all included in the newer set referenced above (although not the rehearsal extract, alas...)

yes, but not remastered versions... No 36 is mono by the way

[Coopmv]

Quote from: Coopmv on Today at 01:49:24 PM

I have been looking to get one of the Bruno Walter's sets but only want a stereo set.  Any suggestion?

 
For Mozart, you mean?  So far as I can tell, this one is with the Columbia SO, which is stereo (other than the Requiem, which is rather old and mono).  It's still flying here via the post, so I can't make any definite comments just yet.

The Mozart in the Bruno Walter edition single CDs is a mixture of Columbia stereo & mono recordings from New York.  I didn't have the Columbia versions of the late symphonies, nor the Violin concerti, so I pulled the trigger on this box. 

If you mean Bruno Walter in general, the new Mahler box from the same series would be a good choice (I have the earlier & much more expensive Mahler + Bruckner + Wagner Original Jackets set, which I would certainly recommend if you have the $$$).  Walter's stereo Beethoven, Schubert, and especially his Brahms are excellent and well worth acquiring, although I don't know if they're available in a box.  Walter's Columbia Brahms symphonies are some of the best I've ever heard.

I am just looking for Bruno Walter in general.  While I have no problems with piano performance in monaural sound - have many historical recordings by Schnabel, Cortot and Moiseiwitsch, etc., I am no big fan of orchestral music in mono, which almost invariably sounds thin.  I will skip the original jackets set, as I am not prepared to shell out hundreds of dollars for a conductor that I am not too familiar with.  A reasonably priced box or two will do it for me.

[jwinter]

I honestly can't think of anything that I'd recommend more highly than this.  Superb in every way:
   
Ah, and thanks for adding this to the old thread, o mysterious movers of the universe!   

[Bogey]

Without looking through this thread, how is this?

[Todd]

Without looking through this thread, how is this?

Still probably my favorite First.  The Second is pretty nifty, too, though not in the Bernstein III category.

[nico1616]

Without looking through this thread, how is this?

Superb all the way, my favorite 1st and this recording made me appreciate the 2nd. Bernstein didn't ...

[Lilas Pastia]

A fantastic First. Doesn't get more natural and more nature-sounding than this. Very good sound. The Second is not earth-shaking, but rather earth (and Heaven) embracing. The Columbia Symphony 9th is my current favourite among the couple dozen versions on my shelves.

I bought these Walter boxes (Mahler and Mozart) and wish that more is coming: the Beethoven symphonies + violin concerto and triple concerto, the Bruckner symphonies and Te Deum and all the Romantic music he also did in his indian Summer: Wagner, Schumann, Dvorak, Schubert...

[jwinter]

yes, but not remastered versions... No 36 is mono by the way

FYI, I just received my set today, and 36 is marked as stereo (ie there's no asterisk * next to it denoting that it's mono), recorded 1960.  I haven't had a chance to play it yet to verify either way.  Did he record it more than once with the Columbia SO?

[annie]

FYI, I just received my set today, and 36 is marked as stereo (ie there's no asterisk * next to it denoting that it's mono), recorded 1960.  I haven't had a chance to play it yet to verify either way.  Did he record it more than once with the Columbia SO?

Yes, in 1955...

http://www.virtuosochannel.com/2012/05/bruno-walter-mozart-symphony-36-linz.html

[George]

Yes, I succumbed a while ago to the temptation of yet another LvB cycle...

It's good, it's surprisingly fierce, it's almost like another conductor compared to his later cycle.
It sounds very Viennese in style, very much in the Weingartner and Erich Kleiber mould: meticulous, driven, searching. For anyone familiar with his prewar recordings this will sound familiar.

He does overegg the pudding now and then, with climaxes collapsing, and Walter never seems able to get the 9th right. Despite these (minor) downpoints, I much prefer it to his later cycle and would not part from it. Sounds is OK but on the primitive side as far as the early '40s is concerned (rec. from 1942 - 1952). Remasterings/transfers are really excellent - original source quality.

Q

Hi Que!

Is your post referring to the 6CD United Archives set?