BaL 29.11.14 - Schumann: Symphony no. 2

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

9.30am
Building a Library
Richard Wigmore with a personal recommendation from recordings of Schumann's Symphony no.2

Available versions:

Orchestra Mozart, Claudio Abbado
Suisse Romande Orchestra, Ernest Ansermet
COE, Vladimir Ashkenazy
CHicago SO, Daniel Barenboim
Robert-Schumann-Philharmonie, Frank Beerman
Bavarian State Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein (download)
NYPO, Leonard Bernstein
New York Stadium SO, Leonard Bernstein
VPO, Leonard Bernstein
VPO Leonard Bernstein (DVD)
Czech Chamber PO, Douglas Bostock
LPO, Sir Adrian Boult
LSO Yondani Butt
(orch. Mahler) Bergen PO, Aldo Ceccato
Munich PO, Sergiu Celibadache
RAI SO Rome, Sergiu Celibadache
Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana, Sergiu Celibadache
(orch. Mahler) Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly
(1841 version) Swedish Chamber Orchestra, Thmas Dausgaard
Czech PO, Lawrence Foster
Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique, Sir John Eliot Gardiner
SWR SO Baden-Baden und Freiburg, Michael Gielen
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Bernard Haitink
COE, Nikolaus Harnoncourt
WDR SO Koln, Heinz Holliger
Deutscher Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Paavo Jarvi (DVD/Blu-ray)
RPO, Dirk Joeres
Suisse Romande Orchestra, Armin Jordan
BPO, Karajan
New Philharmonia Orchestra, Otto Klemperer
Israel PO, Paul Kletzki
Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Franz Konwitschny
BPO, Rafael Kubelik
Bavarian RSO, Rafel Kubelik
Haydn Orchestra of Bolzano & Trento, Gustav Kuhn
Tasmanian SO, Sebastian Lang-Lessing
BPO, James Levine
VSO, Fabio Luisi
NHK SO, Jun Marki
Stuttgart Radio SO, Sir Neville Marriner
VPO, Zubin Mehta
VPO, Dimitri Mitropoulos
Boston SO, Charles Munch (DVD & CD versions)
Philharmonia Orchestra, Riccardo Muti
VPO, Riccardo Muti (download)
COE, Yannick Nezet-Seguin
SWR Stuttgart, Sir Roger Norrington
RPO, Grzegorz Nowak
Israel PO, Paul Paray
BPO, Sir Simon Rattle
Estonian SO, Gennady Rozhdestvensky
Staatskapelle Dresden, Wolfgand Sawallisch
Netherlands Radio Chamber PO, Michael Schonwandt
Stuttgart RSO, Carl Schuricht
Paris Conservatoire Orchestra, Carl Schuricht (download)
Seattle SO, Gerard Schwarz (download)
Deutsche Radio Philharmonis Saarbrucken, Stanislaw Skrowaczewski
Staatskapelle Dresden, Giuseppe Sinopoli
VPO, Giuseppe Sinopoli
VPO, Sir Georg Solti
Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz, Karl-Heinz Steffens
Stokowski SO, Leopold Stokowski
BPO, George Szell
Cleveland Orchestra, George Szell
Philharmonia Orchestra, Christian Thielemann
Scottish CO, Robin Ticciati
Symphony Nova Scotia, George Tintner (download)
NBC SO, Arturo Toscanini
Budapest SO, Tamas Vasary
Slovak State PO, Johannes Wildner (download)
Polish National Radio SO, Antoni Wit
Orchestra of the Swan, Kenneth Woods
Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, Christian Zacharias
Sarbrucken RSO, Hans Zender (download)
Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, David Zinman


Also: Berlin Philharmonic vinyl set of the symphonies

[umslopogaas]

I have seven of the above, and one not on the list: a mono LP of L'Orchestre de la Societe des Concerts du Conservatoire de Paris and why cant you find a snappier name?, conducted by Carl Schuricht. If I could only have one, it would probably be the Cleveland Orchestra conducted by Szell.

[Alison]

Another BAL winner from Abbado wouldn't be the biggest surprise !

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

I have seven of the above, and one not on the list: a mono LP of L'Orchestre de la Societe des Concerts du Conservatoire de Paris and why cant you find a snappier name?, conducted by Carl Schuricht.

I think you'll find it's on the list now.

[visualnickmos]

A BaL to look forward to.

Kletski/IPO - looks interesting....

Great list - as always. Your lists are always so helpful, as I often see versions of works that I like, by conductors and/or orchestras that immediately stand out as 'worth investigating.....'

[pastoralguy]

I remember having to prepare the scherzo for an orchestral audition... No wonder I have grey hairs...

[pastoralguy]

I have a soft spot for Lenny's Vienna Philharmonic DG disc. Some lovely pizzicato twangs from the 'cellos...

[umslopogaas]

Thanks, Ein Alp.

[visualnickmos]

I have a soft spot for Lenny's Vienna Philharmonic DG disc. Some lovely pizzicato twangs from the 'cellos...

I don't know his (later?) VPO set, but I do enjoy his NYPO set very much - but then, I do particularly like Leonard Bernstein.

[Alison]

A positive verdict for either Nezet-seguin or Ticciati would inspire me to invest in their complete set for Christmas.

[pastoralguy]

I don't know his (later?) VPO set, but I do enjoy his NYPO set very much - but then, I do particularly like Leonard Bernstein.

Both his Pastoral's are at the very top of my list!

[pastoralguy]

Thanks, Ein Alp.

[cloughie]

I have a soft spot for Lenny's Vienna Philharmonic DG disc. Some lovely pizzicato twangs from the 'cellos...

I've a soft spot for Sir Georg's VPO Decca disc - the contrast between the zipping second and the slow third movement and then back to a zipping finale.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

I've a soft spot for Sir Georg's VPO Decca disc - the contrast between the zipping second and the slow third movement and then back to a zipping finale.

That's interesting. This was the first version I had, but found the Decca sound surprisingly scrawny - most uncharacteristic for this company and the matchless orchestra.

[Petrushka]

Another BAL winner from Abbado wouldn't be the biggest surprise !

The 2nd was the last of Schumann's symphonies I came to and it took a surprisingly long time when I knew all of the others as far back as the early 1970s.

Abbado's Orchestra Mozart recording is the one that really convinced and it's a thrilling disc. I'll nail my colours firmly to the mast now and say that this will be the 'winner'. A magnificent disc in every way and a thousand pities that this partnership could not record the complete cycle.