I am NOT really "into" Symphonies, but recently I spent a good time listening Schubert's symphonies cycle. I just want to know populary which symphonies favorite each other, and also your personal references.
My cycle is the old '60s Staatskapelle Dresden by Wolfgang Sawallisch which the audio still sound excellent.
My favorite, temporary, like this :
1. no.5
2. no.8
3. no.4
4. no.9
and the rest in same order
I haven't heard the First and the Second, but leaving them off my three personal favourites are the Fourth, Fifth and Ninth.
Heare are the recordings I like the most (I've only listened to three or four different versions of each one)
Fourth Symphony - Carlo Maria Giulini/Chicago Symphony
Fifth Symphony - Leonard Bernstein/Concertgebouw Orchestra
Ninth Symphony - Leonard Bernstein/Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (it's a DVD)
Ha! I could do that when I was even less developed! Anyway when I was knee high to a grasshopper I had already inhaled 12 entire oil tankers in one go. Bet you couldn't have done that!
When I was still inside my mother's womb I consumed the Royal Albert Hall. It was replaced by a cardboard box and everyone in the world had to be hypnotised into thinking that it was still there in its proper form.
I thought we were really connecting here, but then you have to go and tell a lie like that. How could you bring lies in to what has been such an honest conversation? You sicken me.
I've put myself on a truth drug all through that conversation actually. I bet you've done none of the things you've mentioned. I've certainly done the things I mentioned (plus more, and on an even larger scale).
I don't think I can choke. (Ever since I first swallowed a planet my oesophagus has become so wide that I would need to find something insanely big in order to choke on it. And that's going to take a while.)
Most of Schubert symphonies have high quality. His style is more similar to Haydn rather Beethoven, more like the best of Haydn. My least favorite is No.7, it hasn't much feeling in itself.
I find No.2 the Schubert's most impressive. Then, No. 8,5 and 10. Number 9 is 'great', but after sometime it bores you.
Has anyone heard Harnoncourt's cycle. I obtained this smart package and so far, I love it with the exception of his 8th 1st movement which I find a bit plodding (I prefer it faster, like Mackerras'). Harnoncourt's 5th is particuarly good.
I just got it a few weeks ago. It's amazing. It has completely changed my perception about these works, especially the 4th. Good God the Bohm and Abbado cycles are total bores. No wonders I wasn't crazy about Schubert's 4th. Now it ranks among my most favorite symphonies.
No 8 has always been my favourite especially as it was my late father's favourite too and so it reminds me of him.
Performances? Karajan (Live, EMI and DG), Beecham, Kleiber, Abaddo.
I need to hear that. I can see Szell and the Clevelanders being great with this symphony. No pun intended.
I feel like I'm not getting as much out of Schubert's 9th as is really there. Could be that I have yet to hear a really great recording, or maybe my head is just not there lately.
@gellio, your enthusiasm has caused me to revisit Schubert's 4th. I listened to the Blomstedt/Dresden recording in full, which I thought was pretty good, but I wasn't convinced by the last movement. Then I listened to the first movement of the Harnoncourt/Concertgebouw. Wow!! What an absolutely riveting performance. I do not like collecting cycles of Schubert's symphonies, as I'm not a huge fan of all of them, but I think I need to get the Harnoncourt cycle to supplement the Blomstedt/Dresden that I have. There is nothing wrong with it, but I think the symphonies are interpretively a little dry. Which can be a good thing.
I think all of Schubert's symphonies are probably really good. I just have yet to come around on many of them. That being said, my favorite is definitely the 8th, the Unfinished. The others I like are the 5th, the 4th, the 9th, and the 3rd. I'm afraid 1, 2, and 6 don't do terribly much for me.
There's not one I don't like. However, I voted for no 8
The collection conducted by Istvan Kertesz is top notch. Although recorded in the 1960s and 70s, they sound superb. For around £20, the cycle is an absolute bargain.
Is there a better boxed set to be had? If there is please let me know.
The performances knock the Haroncourt set, which I also have, into a cocked hat.
^ I also rate the Kertesz set very highly. It gives us excellent accounts of the early symphonies and great accounts of 8 and 9 - not many sets manage both. Is there a better set to be had? Harnoncourt's second cycle with the Berlin Philharmonic is exceptional. Menuhin's cycle with Sinfonia Varsovia is good throughout and has a uniquely fast 9. For the rest, there are a few sets where 1-6 are done really well (including Minkowski, van Immerseel and Zinman) but which have less good 8s and 9s. Those sets can be very worthwhile because many of "the best" 8s and 9s are not part of sets and can be bought as standalones.
Ive not played that Kertesz set in years. I should revisit it but I tend to turn to Menuhin and Davis more than many others. Tiime to put a few different sets on the car USB for a change. I've yet to listen to all of Manacorda's set and I've had it months.
No. 9 - Szell/Cleveland, Krips/London, and Furtwängler in his various versions. I’m always reminded of Schumann’s quip - “it is as if the all the instruments have become human voices.” Followed by No. 5, but only the Böhm/Vienna version, not speed-demon HIPsters who rip through the first movement. No. 4 is a wonderful work that deserves more attention. I like No. 8, but not nearly as much as some seem to.
No. 9 - Szell/Cleveland, Krips/London, and Furtwängler in his various versions. I'm always reminded of Schumann's quip - "it is as if the all the instruments have become human voices." Followed by No. 5, but only the Böhm/Vienna version, not speed-demon HIPsters who rip through the first movement. No. 4 is a wonderful work that deserves more attention. I like No. 8, but not nearly as much as some seem to.
I'm not keen on HIP versions either. They leave me cold. Must check out the Böhm/Viena no.5. I'm not so thrilled by Böhm's no.9, which must be here somewhere. Any recommendations for the no.4?
Regards,
Vincula
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