[realdealblues]

To me the only people who find Klemperer's recordings out of fashion are those with tin ears, are not musicians themselves and/or have no idea what interpretation means in music.

Not everything Klemperer did was absolute gold, but the majority of his catalogue is fantastic and above all he stressed clarity in his recordings. Some people say that "Period Performances" allow you to hear the more clarity to which I call bull. A great conductor like Klemperer allows you to hear every detail from Strings to Woodwinds. You can hear every line because Klemperer actually knew how to balance an orchestra. I hear far more detail than I have ever heard in any period performance. He also sat the orchestra different than most everyone else which actually made him have to work harder to keep everything in order. He was a first class musician and a good composer which is sadly overlooked. But enough of my rant...

As far as favorite recordings:

Bach: Brandenburg Concertos, St. Matthew Passion
Beethoven: Fidelio, Symphonies, Overtures, Missa Solemnis
Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique
Brahms: Alto Rhapsody, Overtures, Symphonies, Requiem, Variations, Violin Concerto (w/David Oistrakh)
Bruckner: Symphonies 4, 6 & 7
Dvorak: Symphony 9
Franck: Symphony In D Minor
Handel: Messiah
Haydn: Symphonies
Hindemith: Nobilissima Visione Suite
Klemperer: Merry Waltz, String Quartet 7, Symphony 2
Liszt: Piano Concerto (w/Annie Fischer)
Mahler: Das Lied Von Der Erde, Lieder, Symphonies 2 & 9
Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night's Dream, Symphonies 3 & 4
Mozart: Cosi Fan Tutte, Die Zauberflote, Don Giovanni, Horn Concertos, Le Nozze Di Figaro, Serenades, Symphonies, Piano Concerto 25
Schubert: Symphonies 5, 8, 9
Schumann: Symphonies, Piano Concerto (w/Annie Fischer)
Strauss (R): Tone Poems
Stravinsky: Pulcinella Suite, Symphony In 3 Movements
Tchaikovsky: Symphonies 4-6
Wagner: Orchestral Highlights, Wesendonck Lieder, Der Fliegende Hollander
Weber: Overtures
Weill: Kleine Dreigroschenmusik

Most everything. His Bruckner 5 & 8 were ok but don't rate as my favorites, his Beethoven Piano Concertos & Choral Fantasy with Barenboim are also not among my personal favorites. His Beethoven Violin Concerto with Menuhin is good, but just doesn't rank among my favorites. Most everything else those is top notch.

 

[realdealblues]

What an effective way to eliminate debate. Perhaps you should just call anyone who disagrees with you "deplorable".

Glad to know I'm a "deplorable" because you don't feel I should have an opinion different than yours.

No one is going to perform Messiah or the St. Matthew that way in 2018.

How queer, I just saw Messah performed with Full Orchestral & Choral Forces with Slow, Moderate tempos a few months ago. Maybe it just went out with 2017 and myself and thousands of others haven't gotten the memo yet...

 

[realdealblues]

You are entitled to your opinion. What you're not entitled to do is assume that anyone who disagrees with you is an inferior listener with tin ears and no knowledge of music.

Even if I did say it with the intent that you have incorrectly attributed to it, it would still be "just an opinion" and thus you again are still saying I am not entitled to have an opinion.

If I were to say "anyone who listens to Cage's 4'33 is a moron" or "anyone from the south talks funny", it's still an opinion. So what, why do you care? If I believe I am the reincarnation of some great prophet, so what? I don't attack someone for posting something I disagree with, but thank you for proving again that I'm not entitled to an opinion as long as it's something you disagree or are uncomfortable with.

 

[realdealblues]

You're entitled to an opinion about Klemperer. You're not entitled to an opinion about me, or the reasons for my opinions.

You pretty clearly don't "get it", so I'm done here.

I don't have any opinion on you, but you obviously have one about me so it is clearly you who doesn't "get it".
Thanks for stopping by :tiphat:

Now back to Klemperer discussion and your favorite EMI recordings...

 

[realdealblues]

I kind of want to know more about this.

Klemperer would seat his orchestra in an arc and often slightly different then other conductors who used split violins.

I've also seen him set them slightly different depending on the venue.

Thinking about it like a clock and if Klemperer is sitting at 6 o'clock looking out at the orchestra.

Sometimes he would sit them:

The 1st violins would be at 9 o'clock
The basses would be at about 10:30
Cellos directly in front of him at 12 o'clock
Violas off to the right at about 1:30
2nd violins to the right at 3 o'clock

Brass would often be back behind the basses
Woodwinds behind the Cellos
Percussion behind the Violas

Other split conductors would often put the Cellos off to the left about 10:30 with the Basses behind them with just the woodwinds in the middle and usually the brass in a line all along the back behind the woodwinds, although I've also seen them split with Brass way off on the right and percussion in the back left.

I've also seen Klemperer put the strings all around him as described with the Woodwinds and Brass straight up the middle.

I use to have several charts from Klemperer and how his varied but I am unable to find them at the moment. If I can find them at some point, I'll post them.

 

[realdealblues]

Wow. Anyone ever seen this 1929 picture?

Sorry if it's off-topic.

Thanks, I hadn't seen that photo before. Some titan's there!