Search - Johannes Brahms, Bernard Haitink, London Symphony Orchestra :: Brahms: Symphony No. 1

Disappointed in my favorite maestro

William Ellis | Atlanta, GA USA | 07/01/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I hate to have to say that this performance is disappointing. I have been one of Haitink's biggest admirers since the 70s, and especially love his Brahms orchestral works with the Concertgebouw. The LSO Symphony #2 was good if not thrilling. But I have to disagree with the other two reviewers: I find this performance uninspired, and the LSO's sound unsuited to Brahms. Worse yet, the Tragic Overture is fatally dull. The tempo is too slow and thus instead of a cohesive argument, I hear all the separate parts. Things may improve with the coming releases of Symphonies 3 and 4. As it stands now, Haitink's Concertgebouw recording and Ormandy's from Philadelphia, both budget-priced, are much better bets than this ordinary reading."

Haitink can be great at Brahms, but not here

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 11/26/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"
With the lasting memory of Haitink's first Brahms cycle in my head--it's with the Concertgebouw on Philips--I know he can be a great Brahms conductor. Over the years, however, he's become slower, less emphatic, more reflective. Brahms fits that model, too, but you have to be in the mood for 'autumnal' interpretations, as critics like to call them. This Brahms First is extremely well recorded, and the LSO plays with real commitment--the vibrancy in the string playing is very convincing.



On the other hand, the musicians aren't really being stretched. We get more inner drama than from Sawallish, Jochum, Muti, Eschenbach, and Chailly. Since those cycles are admired by ohters, I must give Haitink four stars for climbing to a higher standard but after a great beginning, he lets the second motto in the first movement slide into dulness, and the Scherzo feels too ordinary. It's like that throughout, wonderful moments followed by unconvincing lapses; that's true of Celibidache, too. Losing the inner tension of a Brahms symphony is never good, but even though Haitink doesn't soar to the heights he set for himself in his first cycle, this is the best of his third one."

The Beauty Of Brahms

Rudy Avila | Lennox, Ca United States | 05/22/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This recording of the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Maestro Bernard Haitink is exceptionally good. You can never go wrong with the London Symphony Orchestra and certainly not with this program- Brahms' first symphony and his Tragic Overture. This is a great recording, even if it's live and worth getting. Bernard Haitink is a great conductor, beautifully capturing the essence of Brahm's music. In his first symphony, Brahms was hailed as the successor to Beethoven, so much that his first symphony was dubbed Beethoven's 10th. The classical restraint and balance of his harmony, with the new Romantic dramatics, made him the 19th Century new Beethoven. Like Beethoven, Brahms was a master of theme and variations. His symphonies harked back to the classical symphony. It's extremely beautiful to hear, his first, especially the final movement. After a long cadenza for clarinet, the orchestra plays a melody that people instantly recalled the Ode To Joy of Beethoven's 9th. "Any idiot can see that" was Brahms comment. The Tragic Overture is like its title tragic and dramatic as was the Romantic style. The one movement, sonata form overture is orchestral magic. This is a great cd if you're a fan of the music of Johannes Brahms. Look also for his 4th Symphony and Tragic Overture as well as his famous Lullaby. He wrote many great works."