Keith_W
Major Contributor
The 200th anniversary of Beethoven's 9th Symphony is coming up on the 7th of May. Everybody who listens to music knows this piece, even non-classical listeners. It is the anthem of the E.U, has been sung in soccer stadiums, was used as Nazi propaganda, and was even used by Chairman Mao. It is without doubt one of the most influential pieces of music ever written. I normally find classical music which has transcended the divide and become popular to be incredibly grating because it is played too often (e.g. Pachelbel's Canon, Vivaldi Four Seasons, etc) but not the 9th Symphony, and especially not the first 3 movements which have not become popular sound bites.
So I thought that it would be fitting if we celebrate it on ASR. What are your favourite recordings, and why?
Wilhelm Furtwangler, Berlin PO 1942. IMO this is THE pinnacle of all recordings of the 9th. The performance has white hot intensity, full of torment and anger, and the 4th movement is even more uplifting than usual. One wonders what the Nazis in the audience thought of it. For me, this performance does not speak of German nationalism or German pride. It speaks of the suffering of the German people. So yes there are huge Swastikas seen in the video, but I feel that the sentiment of the music is "look what you have done to us". The recording quality is poor. There are various remasters but none of them reach an acceptable standard - all of them have no lows, no highs, suffer from severe clipping along with surface noise. IMO these are best heard on Bluetooth speakers, the flaws are not so grating that way.
Arturo Toscanini, NBC SO 1952. Toscanini's tempi is no less brisk than Furtwangler, but it has an inexorable quality as if you are being driven, willing or not, to the conclusion. A bit like being a helpless passenger in a crashing airplane. It is typical for audiophiles to think that clarity comes from the recording and mixing engineer, and technical factors such as dynamic range, resolution, and so on. This recording shows this thinking is wrong - the conductor is even more important. There are no extant Toscanini recordings which sound acceptable, yet the clarity of the performance is evident. Getting your orchestra to play together with proper spacing between notes, with transients at the right volume is what creates the clarity, and Toscanini was a master at this.
Erich Kleiber, Vienna PO 1952. This is a less frenetic take on the 9th than Toscanini or Furtwangler and sounds notably more spacious. It is weighty, meticulous, and has a certain gravitas. I just love the tone colours Kleiber is able to achieve. Kleiber tends to be forgotten these days so it's a real pity.
Why no modern recordings? I don't find them particularly convincing. Would love to hear your suggestions and why.
So I thought that it would be fitting if we celebrate it on ASR. What are your favourite recordings, and why?
Wilhelm Furtwangler, Berlin PO 1942. IMO this is THE pinnacle of all recordings of the 9th. The performance has white hot intensity, full of torment and anger, and the 4th movement is even more uplifting than usual. One wonders what the Nazis in the audience thought of it. For me, this performance does not speak of German nationalism or German pride. It speaks of the suffering of the German people. So yes there are huge Swastikas seen in the video, but I feel that the sentiment of the music is "look what you have done to us". The recording quality is poor. There are various remasters but none of them reach an acceptable standard - all of them have no lows, no highs, suffer from severe clipping along with surface noise. IMO these are best heard on Bluetooth speakers, the flaws are not so grating that way.
Arturo Toscanini, NBC SO 1952. Toscanini's tempi is no less brisk than Furtwangler, but it has an inexorable quality as if you are being driven, willing or not, to the conclusion. A bit like being a helpless passenger in a crashing airplane. It is typical for audiophiles to think that clarity comes from the recording and mixing engineer, and technical factors such as dynamic range, resolution, and so on. This recording shows this thinking is wrong - the conductor is even more important. There are no extant Toscanini recordings which sound acceptable, yet the clarity of the performance is evident. Getting your orchestra to play together with proper spacing between notes, with transients at the right volume is what creates the clarity, and Toscanini was a master at this.
Erich Kleiber, Vienna PO 1952. This is a less frenetic take on the 9th than Toscanini or Furtwangler and sounds notably more spacious. It is weighty, meticulous, and has a certain gravitas. I just love the tone colours Kleiber is able to achieve. Kleiber tends to be forgotten these days so it's a real pity.
Why no modern recordings? I don't find them particularly convincing. Would love to hear your suggestions and why.
