Search - Anton Bruckner, Manuel de Falla, Modest Mussorgsky :: Giulini Conducts Bruckner, Falla, Mussorgsky

An astonishing Bruckner Seventh

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 09/29/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"On CD Giulini's Bruckner has often been very measured and even a bit lugubrious. This live Seventh in quite good radio stereo preceded his commercial recording of the symphony and is much more inspiring, as well as faster. Giulini had to have personal belief in any piece of music he conducted, and here the personal connection is very evident--such tender phrasing and depth of emotion are rare, even from great Bruckner conductors. I never thought I would rate a live performance as first choice in any Bruckner symphony, but I would here. Five stars."

Unusual Giulini

Andre Gauthier | 06/27/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This two CD set centers around the Bruckner 7th symphony. I think it relects Giulini at his very best. His DGG studio recording of this piece is excellent, but doesn't have the life force that his live performances do. Seeing Giulini conduct Bruckner during the late 70s and early 80s was something to behold. He is a tall man, and his beat in certain key moments would start with his arm extended straight up over his head and culminate with it going all the way down, nearly hitting the floor. He used a lot of energy to get that special something from his players. Other conductors simply cannot accomplish what he so often does in Bruckner.



Concerning the "most helpful critical review", I disagree about the sound. It is fairly consistent with other BBC broadcasts of the period and from the same venue. One generally doesn't have a "live performance" with "studio sound". The audience absorbs a great amount of the sound one would hear in an empty hall. When you hear something that is labeled as a "live performance" that also sounds plush, clearly articulated and with lots of reverberation, one is often safe in assuming that many of the takes came from rehearsals with no audience present. How else does one come across so many "live" DGG performances without any audience noises? Record companies are notorious for stating things that just aren't so.



Buy this while you can. Classical CDs are vanishing faster all the time. It would be a shame not to be able to hear how he treats this music in a "live" setting."