Search - Robert Schumann, David Zinman, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra :: Schumann: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 4

Schumann 4 Symphonies: Im Alten Stile-Romantic

Dan Fee | Berkeley, CA USA | 05/29/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"With the re-release of these performances at midprice by Telarc, conductor David Zinman has the privilege of competing with himself by way of his new recordings of all four symphonies with the Tonhalle Orchestra of Zurich. So which set is better?Famous for their wide-frequency recordings that usually offer a large soundstage, American company Telarc need defer to no other label when it comes to recreating the orchestra in your listening room, in this case the Baltimore Symphony. This was Zinman's first recording of the four Schumann symphonies, and he gives each one a special Romantic fervor that serves the music especially well.While it is common to hear comments about Schumann's thick-headedness as an orchestrator, the fact is these performances yield great clarity and a special inner light that glows with suitable mystical intensities. Nature was ever inspiration for the Romantic era composers, Schumann included; the inner glow of these performances arises from the sheer genius of the typically Schumannesque melodies, as well as from the expert balancing of the different orchestral departments. You never feel that strings, woodwinds, and/or brass are obscuring one another, or that high-flying Romantic gesture has fallen plodding to earth without being able to rise again.In comparison with his new readings with the Tonhalle, Zinman takes slower tempos, and he appears to be using a larger orchestra in Baltimore. But he knows exactly what he is doing with his Baltimore players at his chosen speeds. Like an actor declaming on stage, the fact is you can speak much faster than your audience can listen; a fundamental point of theater that always makes young actors have to work to slow down, and project their lines, rather than just getting on with the play at everyday speed. Theater makes you slow down.Similarly, Zinman knows how to project the special identity of each of these four symphonies, while always capturing that characteristic Schumann musical blend of lyricism and vigor. You realize that the Schumann symphonies can go much deeper than we often credit them, when compared to such age-mates as the Mendelssohn symphonies.Five very bright stars for this set, then. At midprice, you can collect both versions, and not feel you are repeating yourself, so distinctive are the two Zinman sets."

Superb, Exciting Performances Of These Schumann Symphonies F

John Kwok | New York, NY USA | 05/28/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"American conductor David Zinman has often been underrated, despite having made many exceptional recordings with various recording labels, of which his most noteworthy ones include his recent Tonhalle Orchester Zurich recordings, especially of the Beethoven symphonies using the Barenreiter Edition scores. He's also a fine orchestra builder, having raised the musical excellence of both the Tonhalle Orchester Zurich, and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. Of these two fine orchestras, his more noteworthy achievement was with Baltimore, since he transformed it from a decent regional American orchestra into a first-rate ensemble worthy of ample international attention. Much of that attention is due to the superb recordings he made for Telarc, of which his two CD recordings of the four Schumann symphonies were among the reasons why fans and critics began noticing the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.



Zinman offers swift accounts of the 1st and 4th symphonies, replete with ample precise intonation from the Baltimore Symphony, especially from its winds and strings. He follows period instrument performance by emphasizing not only brisk tempi, but also lighter orchestral textures, and uses these to admirable effect, demonstrating that Schumann was a very good composer of orchestral scores. His exciting, riveting account of the 1st symphony is among the finest I have heard, taking its place alongside memorable accounts from the likes of Bernstein, Kubelik, and Sawallisch among others. If you're looking for a fine, inexpensive recording of the Schumann 1st and 4th symphonies, then you won't be disappointed."