Search - Ludwig van Beethoven, Herbert von Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra :: Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 3 & 4 [Hybrid SACD]

Still no review for this outstanding recording? Ok then, I'l

dv_forever | Michigan, USA | 09/21/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Most people looking at this item are already aware of Karajan's first DG cycle and it's very high reputation. For those that are not aware, these two symphonies are from Karajan's first stereo foray into Beethoven. The sound has again been remastered, this time to the high standards of Hybrid SACD. The sound is better than any previous incarnation. If you have a SACD system, then obviously this is a winner on all accounts. If you have a normal stereo system like most people, this is still the recording to get since it sounds miles ahead of the only other version of these recordings still in print. I'm talking about that cheap, maroon colored box set. This Karajan cycle was also remastered for DG's massive Complete Beethoven Edition in 1997 but that's long out of print. The Hybrid SACD releases are the only way to get this cycle if you want optimal sound quality.



As for the performances themselves, Karajan does a great job of melding together the great tradition of German Romanticism with Italianate fire and lyricism that he learned from Arturo Toscanini. Some put this as Karajan's finest Eroica. The funeral march especially is quite moving, Karajan taking a full 17 minutes over it's heavenly span. In some instances I prefer Karajan's later digital version of this piece on the Karajan Gold label. In any case, this early 1960's version is one of the best Eroicas out there.



Plus we get a performance of the 4th symphony which is among the greatest you will ever hear. If you want this symphony played to the hilt with passion, fire and adrenaline, this will make your day. It's simply in a class of it's own. Furtwangler's live wartime reading of this score is the only version of the 4th that is anywhere near as good as this Karajan. If you want a small orchestra overviewing this music in a stop gap fashion between the Eroica and the Beethoven 5th, don't buy this CD. If you want an uncannily virtuosic, frenetic, massive powerhouse orchestra bursting with Beethovenian energy in the 4th symphony and viewing it as a masterpiece, then buy this CD. You won't regret it. Nice artistic cover photo too!"

High Gloss Reissue of Oustanding Playing of Berlin Under Kar

Doug - Haydn Fan | California | 03/31/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Anyone wishing to hear what Otto Gerdes and his recording team were hearing in playback from these early sixties recordings of the Berlin Philharmonic's first Beethoven cycle under Karajan can now do so. These SACD remasterings of the original tapes are fantastic! Finally we can enjoy some air around the instruments, and room ambience - even to the point of significant hall reverberation in loud passages!



Both performances are echt top Karajan - polished and finished playing of great drive with a regal Teutonic splendor. Some of Furtwangler - who led the Berlin less than a decade prior - survives, but generally this is definitely Karajan's orchestra, and he dominates. Look elsewhere for poetry, lyricism, or much in the way of spirituality: instead, Karajan drives his orchestra like some huge beautifully functioning machine - yet this power and pushiness is redeemed from excess by the conductor's genuine concern for and delight in beautiful balances and a keen appreciation in the many glories of his players. Several of these solists are superb, notably the oboe, and some of the horn sections playing can only be described as other-worldly.



Karajan's grand treatment of the slow movement of the Eroica is about as good as I have heard from any conductor these last fifty years. Modern and sophisticated and grand, it marks a high water mark in the early association of the conductor and the Berlin Philharmonic. If I find Furtwangler even more successful in searching out and revealing the intense spiritual angst, I must confess Furtangler never enjoyed such superb sound as we hear on this recording.



The Beethoven Fourth, recorded in many superb issues, is treated quite dynamically by Karajan; Beethoven's many jests where he plays back and forth with volumes and echo effects among his instruments is perfectly realized in the SACD issue. Also more effective in this medium is an added punch to the lower strings. Given that much of this work might not unfairly be termed a study in dynamics, this newly remastered format, with its extraordinary ability to capture the greatest possible range of volume levels in the orchestra, is a complete success.



To date no contemporary conductor has dethroned Karajan's statement in the Eroica, and with this spectacular SACD it's probably going to be some time before anyone comes close.



If you have a SACD system - buy it!"