Search - Ludwig van Beethoven, Claudio Abbado, Berlin Philharmonic :: Beethoven - Die Symphonien (Symphonies 1-9) / Abbado, Berlin Philharmonic

A New Definitive Cycle

John Kwok | New York, NY USA | 12/28/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a great cycle of Beethoven symphonies. It could be a new definitive cycle due to Claudio Abbado's virtually faithful adherence to the new Jonathan Del Mar-edited scores and the Berlin Philharmonic's warm, crisp playing that is more reminiscent of a chamber orchestra than a major symphony orchestra. This is undoubtedly due to Abbado's decision to use a smaller orchestra, in an effort to create music more evocative of the early 19th Century without using original instruments. Sure, there are a couple of glaring flaws, most notably the excessive speed through which Abbado and the Berlin Philharmonic rush through the finale of the 7th Symphony. I concurr with Amazon's reviewer in his comparison of Abbado's and the Berlin Philharmonic's two recordings of the 9th symphony; the earlier Sony version is a bit more electrifying than the one for Deutsche Grammophon. Yet there is much to be admired in this new cycle, starting with what is unquestionably the best recorded - and performed - digital version of the 3rd Symphony. The employees at my favorite used CD store in New York City speak highly of this cycle; after hearing it in its entirety, I join them in their lavish praise."

Mostly Superb Insightful Performances, Questionable Sound

Steven O. Hemenwayjules | Centralia, WA, USA | 09/13/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As Abbado writes in the liner notes of this set he is guided by the new critical edition of Beethoven's symphonies by Jonathan Del Mar, which he apparently follows quite closely, but which apparently allows some freedom of choice. According to Abbado he does depart from Del Mar's printed score in a few places. It seems that this in addition to the use of a modern orchestra makes these performances somewhat of a balance between authentic period and modern. However, they are closer in spirit, definitely in tempo and leanness of texture to period performance.

All of the playing is very "fleet of foot" and technically precise with perfect ensemble with the possible exception of the final movement of no.7 in which they almost seem to lose control and can't quite maintain

tempo because to put it bluntly it is almost ludicrously fast. Otherwise no. 7 is almost dead on. Symphony no.8 is Beethoven's funniest; none the less Abbado chooses a tempo for its final movement which is which is simply wacky.

Symphony no.9 is exceptionally well played and generally satisfying but a little too light weight. It is not a very lofty or spiritual performance

but it is very human one. Many conductors have emphasized the lofty aspects of this great work to the point of its detriment making it somewhat heavy and draggy. But Abbado probably goes too far away from that. It is a very human work by a very eccentric, human person but it aspires to the best in humanity. This performance could have benefited greatly from more of a sense of aspiration and perhaps some slightly slower tempos movements 2-4. But the final bars are not to be missed. They are taken at such a breakneck tempo without missing a beat or note

while retaining most of the drama; simply astonishing.

Symphonies nos. 1,2,4,and 5 are simply the best recorded versions available because although there may be other versions as equally well performed they do not have the same claim to authenticity along with modern instruments that these do. Other authentic or period performances simply do not measure up. The only fault I would give would be the opening of no.5 which lacks sufficient punch for it to equal the over all performance. Appropriately, the repeat has a little more almost making up for the openings slight weakness.

Although symphony no. 3 is also of very high quality it is somewhat less convincing and has a lot of competition out there. David Zinman's recording of the third with the Tonhalle Orchestra on Arte Nova might even be better.

I love Abbado's take on the sixth. It has the energy of other more authentic performances but is absolutely lovely. It is also very fun. The tempos of most movements are faster than more typical recordings especially the second movement "Scene By the Brook" which at 11:06 is the fastest I know of by at least 50 seconds. It does not really sound rushed and adds a dance like energy. Judging by the timing on Roger Norrington's recording of the sixth, Abbado's fifth movement "Shepherd's Song' at 8:26 is about 20 seconds faster than Beethoven's metronome markings which is reasonable and gives it lilting quality making it as much a celebration as a prayer which I think Beethoven had in mind. This version may not be lofty enough to make it the "greatest ever" but it may well be my favorite.

My biggest problem with this set may be that it could have been possibly the greatest one ever but the recording engineers blew it with rather distant sound which is much lacking in presence. Although it is quite clear and has body across all frequencies it is simply not worthy of the performances contained on these discs. It only worsens the slight lack of impact of the fifth symphonies opening. It is my thought they probably did not adjust for the reduced size of the orchestra used in these recordings. I don't know if this recording can be fixed but if it can the

the label should do so and replace the discs of everyone who bought this set. If it can't the label, conductor and orchestra should consider going back and doing the whole thing over again and along with the sound use it as an opportunity to fix the few problems with the performances and issue the new recording at a discount to those who purchased the first one.

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