BaL 5.10.24 - Brahms: Symphony 1

[Pulcinella]

There was a recording on Nimbus by the LSO conducted by Yondani Butt- would this be a GOAT candidate?

How about one by Bertrand de Billy?

I've streamed all four YNS and they've not displaced those on my shelves in my affection.

[pastoralguy]

How about one by Bertrand de Billy?

I've streamed all four YNS and they've not displaced those on my shelves in my affection.

Apparently, when Karajan und Die Berliner Philharmoniker performed a Brahms symphony cycle, he would leave the First Symphony until the end. I use this approach with any new new Brahms symphony cycle and thank goodness I did when listening to YN-S’s new recording. The beginning of the symphony is quite… perky!

[silvestrione]

Thanks to makropulos for bringing this thread back to reality. The suggestions of shadowy influences on reviewers were getting a bit silly. If the BBC really did have some hidden agenda to promote new recordings on behalf of Big Gramophone, they could start by restoring Record Review's original slot and runtime so that listeners would have a better chance of hearing them! As it is, I think I saw 16 copies of the winner on Amazon on Saturday, which is now down to 9. If Presto, Europadisc, Ebay and the major download sites have had similar numbers of sales, then DG might have shifted dozens of extra copies of this recording. Yannick Nézet-Séguin won't be able to retire just yet.

I am rather baffled by the short interval between BaLs of some works while others are curiously neglected, though. Even allowing for popularity and numbers of new recordings, some pieces seem to come around more often than the next set of allegations of bad behaviour by a famous conductor, while other major works languish unreviewed for several decades. Who actually decides this? Some anonymous figure on the production team? Don't they have a spreadsheet of previous BaLs?

Yes, I am too. Beethoven 4 was not done at all until Rob Cowan did it a few years back, now it's on again, but in my memory the Eroica has only been done once in my about 50 year listening to BAL. Beethoven's wonderful D Major Piano Sonata op 10, NOT AT ALL. Schubert's wonderful late G Major Piano Sonata, NOT AT ALL. We could all go on, of course...

[Barbirollians]

Thanks to makropulos for bringing this thread back to reality. The suggestions of shadowy influences on reviewers were getting a bit silly. If the BBC really did have some hidden agenda to promote new recordings on behalf of Big Gramophone, they could start by restoring Record Review's original slot and runtime so that listeners would have a better chance of hearing them! As it is, I think I saw 16 copies of the winner on Amazon on Saturday, which is now down to 9. If Presto, Europadisc, Ebay and the major download sites have had similar numbers of sales, then DG might have shifted dozens of extra copies of this recording. Yannick Nézet-Séguin won't be able to retire just yet.

I am rather baffled by the short interval between BaLs of some works while others are curiously neglected, though. Even allowing for popularity and numbers of new recordings, some pieces seem to come around more often than the next set of allegations of bad behaviour by a famous conductor, while other major works languish unreviewed for several decades. Who actually decides this? Some anonymous figure on the production team? Don't they have a spreadsheet of previous BaLs?

I suspect they might look at our Summer BALs - when there was a discussion of how long it had been since Beethoven 4 had been done - a couple of months later up popped Joanna McGregor on the very piece . Conincidence possibly - I do still think this remarkably short gap between Brahms 1 BAL's is somewhat odd.

[Barbirollians]

Yes, I am too. Beethoven 4 was not done at all until Rob Cowan did it a few years back, now it's on again, but in my memory the Eroica has only been done once in my about 50 year listening to BAL. Beethoven's wonderful D Major Piano Sonata op 10, NOT AT ALL. Schubert's wonderful late G Major Piano Sonata, NOT AT ALL. We could all go on, of course...

I think Rob did the Emperor after a very long gap.