Not for me...Hurwitz’s top 3 is:
1. Dohnanyi/Cleveland
2. Davis/Concertgebouw
3. Neumann (digital one)
I know not everyone here on this forum likes Hurwitz, but that doesn’t matter right now. Personal opinions aside, what do you think about this list and the order?
Hurwitz’s top 3 is:
1. Dohnanyi/Cleveland
2. Davis/Concertgebouw
3. Neumann (digital one)
I know not everyone here on this forum likes Hurwitz, but that doesn’t matter right now. Personal opinions aside, what do you think about this list and the order?
I do agree about Kubelik's 7 (but think his 8 is wonderful). But I don't agree about Belohlavek. Monteux? You got that right!just relistened to the problematic slow movement of this as in in general, I do admire Kubelik (esp. in Mahler) and there are some very nice things in his 8th. However here, despite the passion and some wonderful moments, it's in places mannered and erratic and the Berlin sounds simply the wrong orchestra for Dvorak. Neither Pesek nor Neumann are ideal and Belohlavek is simply an over-rated conductor, especially in Dvorak. My first recording of this was actually Monteux and I still think he gets closer to the elusive slow movement atmosphere than most others. Rowicki is worth mentioning -- he does nothing horrendously stupid here and is generally a fine and underrated Dvorak conductor.
It's back to Talich....
I'm afraid I've never understood what people see in Belohlavek. Even in Martinu which is something of a speciality, I find him less idiomatic than Neumann for instance.I do agree about Kubelik's 7 (but think his 8 is wonderful). But I don't agree about Belohlavek. Monteux? You got that right!
in this case, I think it's just a fine recording. It doesn't sound at all Czech.OK. But isn't the opposite of idiomatic something like mainstream? Was Monteux recording of the 7th idiomatic or was it just a fine recording?
Szell is in my top 2 favourite conductors so maybe i should give him a tryI keep returning to the superb Szell/Cleveland Orchestra interpretation....Another very fine performance is Monteux's with the London Symphony.
I am not familiar with Davis/Concertgebouw, but the other two are fine recordings. Neumann's analog cycle is also superb. So is Rowicki, Kertesz, Anguelov, Suitner and Pesek. Ivan Fischer with the Budapest Festival Orchestra have also recorded Symphonies Nos. 7 - 9 superbly.
While he does receive regular bashing on this forum, I think Hurwitz's choices are usually fine. The fact that we agree about 80% of the time of course helps!