Search - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz [Vienna] Schubert :: Carl Schuricht: Live Recordings, 1961-1966

Generally, very enjoyable

Jeffrey Lee | Asheville area, NC USA | 04/08/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Overall, this two disc set constitutes a pretty satisfying collection. The Beethoven First is very fine despite some audience coughing in the second movement, and a slight deficit of charm in the menuetto. In both the Beethoven and Mozart 40th, accents are well chosen and the performances are straightforward, energetic and tuneful. The Schubert "Unfinished" lacks intensity in some important areas. Also, the characteristic sound of the National Orchestra of France's horns seems rather peculiar for this symphony. My favorites in this darkly hued work are Bruno Walter with the N.Y. Philharmonic, Karl Bohm with the Dresden Staatskapelle and Leonard Bernstein with the N.Y. Philharmonic.



On disc two, the Mendelssohn Hebrides Overture is given a dynamic reading, though it falls a bit short on poetry. In a few passages, Schuricht seems to make the music sound inappropriately martial. Peter Maag's classic rendering with the London Symphony (along with his superb Mendelssohn "Scottish") still enjoys top billing here. Though not bad, the conductor's account of Wagner's Siegfried Idyll offers no special insights. I prefer the gentle, peaceful and endearing qualities displayed by Walter, Klemperer and Monteux. Schuricht's lovely Brahms Second with the South German Radio Symphony Orchestra is the high point in this collection. Brahms spoke of the air being full of melodies when he composed this work in Portschach on the Worthersee. And he cautioned about trampling on those melodies. Well, Schuricht certainly heeds his advice. The performance has a nice, relaxed flow though occasionally it could benefit from some of the vivid dynamic contrasts found in Schuricht's 1953 Vienna Philharmonic Brahms Second. Nonetheless, I slightly prefer his 1966 SGRSO reading because it projects a greater image of pastoral purity than the Vienna version. I place it on the same level with my other favorites in this radiant opus---Walter with both the N.Y. Philharmonic and Columbia Symphony, Jochum/Berlin Philharmonic, Weingartner/London Philharmonic and Kertesz with the Vienna Philharmonic."