Bruckner Masur Nyp - Bruckner Symphony No 7 in E Major Kurt Masur Inaugeral Concert As Music Director New York Philharmonic (4 tracks) +Album Reviews +Used CD available for Swap

Glorious 7th by NY Philharmonic

06/30/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Having heard several recordings of Bruckner's 7th Symphony, I can assure you that this recording with the NY Philharmonic (Kurt Masur's inagural performance, incidentally) is one of such pristine beauty and profound emotional drive that you will be simply astonished. This recording is live, though you would never know as there are no noticable crowd or otherwise intermittant sounds. However, the soaring cello lines, mellow and powerful wagner tubas, and precise intonation of the NY Phil are the strengths of this recording. The sound is appropriatley forceful, but never falling from the majesty of the huge and deep sound the orchestra achieves. If you are a horn player I strongly recommend this recording. Phil Myers will blow you away, especially in the phenominal brass choral near the conclusion of the second movement. This recording gets my highest endorsement."

A classic, sadly underrated performance....

Howard G Brown | Port St. Lucie, FL USA | 12/31/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In my mind this recording belongs on the shelf with von Karajan's final recording. Both offer classic statements of some of the most beautiful music ever composed for a symphony orchestra. Both conductors serve the composer; neither extends or rushes to make a point; neither wallows in the glowing tones of this remarkable work, though the temptation to do so must be strong.Masur follows the Haas edition and, like Rosbaud, Tintner, Wand, and Walter, he eschews the dubious cymbol crash in the second movement. For once it is not missed, since the New York Philharmonic literally rises to the occasion. This recording is all the more remarkable in that it is from a live performance, Masur's first concert of his first season with the orchestra.Von Karajan and the VPO had a long history together, so their success is no surprise. Masur and the New York Philharmonic, on the other hand, are a very big surprise -- and a welcome one at that."

An Underrated Great Version of Bruckner's 7th Symphony

John Kwok | New York, NY USA | 11/11/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is one of the most stirring accounts of Bruckner's 7th Symphony which I own, and quite easily the best, until I came across Chailly's exceptional interpretation with the Radio Symphony Orchestra of Berlin. The sound quality is impeccable for a live recording. More importantly, I doubt I have heard the New York Philharmonic play with such warmth and grace under Masur's baton. Quite simply, this is one of their finest recordings in the Masur era. Most noteworthy is the excellence of the strings and brass section. Both sections play not only with technical brilliance and warmth, but with much empathy for Bruckner's score. Here the New York Philharmonic shows it can play Bruckner as well as the Vienna Philharmonic or the Berlin Philharmonic. Those in search of a definitive account of Bruckner's 7th Symphony should look no further, unless they are interested in acquiring Chailly's interpretation."

Slightly disappointing

D. Castillo | Boulder, CO | 03/01/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I was very excited to get a chance to hear this recording, but it ended up being a disappointment. Kurt Masur was brought in to "turn things around" with the New York Phil, but honestly, I could never figure out what needed fixing. Many musicians from his era openly speak about their dislike for the man. Anyway...enough conductor bashing and on to the the review.

One or both of these two things interfered with what could have been a legendary recording. Either the recording engineers screwed with the balance after the recording was made, or Maestro Masur micromanaged the dynamics to ridiculous extreme. I kept waiting for the big climaxes and for the New York Philharmonic to flex their muscle in this recording, but that never happened. Instead you get a performance that is a little tepid. Everything is a little too smooth and beautiful, almost self consciously so. The Brass (and the NYP has some of the finest brass players in the world) sound as though they are being recorded from backstage. If Masur wanted to make a recording with the Staatskapelle Dresden, he should have just done that instead of trying to remake the Phil. That's like a round peg in a square hole. This is an American orchestra with American traditions, and it seems as though he tried to force a European sound down their throats. I could also be completely wrong about this, and it's the engineers who are to blame and not Masur. Either way, I can't find very many other New York Philharmonic recordings that sound like this one.

If you want what I believe is an amazing recording in the "American" style try Bruckner: Symphony No. 7 with the Chicago Symphony and Bernard Haitink. Now....if you're a little miffed about my Staatskapelle Dresden comment, I wasn't at all trying to imply that they are an inferior orchestra. As a matter of fact, their recording with Eugen Jochum Bruckner: Symphonies 3 & 7 is very good. This recording is more like what I believe Masur had in mind, but was not quite able to achieve. If you want a more "European" Bruckner, that's the way to go."

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