BaL 26.11.22 - Strauss: Don Juan

[Ein Heldenleben]

Yet on Strauss' famous recording with the Berlin Statskapelle they play it legato; at any rate, the ensemble is so slack some of them could be playing an upward glissando. Much easier!

I heard it said that when virtuoso orchestras came along who played evry note precisely, Strauss didn't like the result.

It’s definitely not legato on the lovely Krauss VPO mono version. My word the attack they get on the opening. Interestingly on the fifth repetition they are slightly flagging but who wouldn’t ?

ps can’t find the Strauss VPO on Qubuz . The Furtwangler VPO isn’t quite as “clean” an opening but I’m nit picking.

[smittims]

Thanks for reminding me about the Krauss. What a splendid series of discs that was, thanks to Victor Olof, a particular admirer of the conductor.

I wouldn't expect Furtwangler to be precise; anecdotal evidence tells that he was not mainly interested in precision, as can be heard by comparing the opening bars of his Eroica' with Toscanini .

[Darloboy]

I could be wrong but this seems like another work making a relatively quick reappearance on BAL.

It might seem like that because Strauss tone poems are featured quite often but it hasn't been covered since 1998.

Previous BaL choices - Michael Kennedy (May 84) and David Nice (May 98) both chose Cleveland O/Szell.

[richardfinegold]

I really like the SFSO under Blomstedt in Strauss these days.

[richardfinegold]

It might seem like that because Strauss tone poems are featured quite often but it hasn't been covered since 1998.

Previous BaL choices - Michael Kennedy (May 84) and David Nice (May 98) both chose Cleveland O/Szell.

as mentioned above, that was my first introduction to it and I never felt a need to replace it. It hasn't however, been consistently available

[Keraulophone]

There have been occasions when the music has started as the radio announcement is still going on, I'm pretty sure.

[cloughie]

There have been occasions when the music has started as the radio announcement is still going on, I'm pretty sure.

I can’t remember when but I’ve certainly heard it thus on a couple of occasions!

[gradus]

Only ever listen to it when broadcast these days, but I think that VPO/Karajan (coupled with the Romeo and Juliet overture) play it plenty well enough for me.

[Barbirollians]

It might seem like that because Strauss tone poems are featured quite often but it hasn't been covered since 1998.

Previous BaL choices - Michael Kennedy (May 84) and David Nice (May 98) both chose Cleveland O/Szell.

Must be confusing it with Till - where Szell also shone . My favourites are all quite different Furtwangler,Kempe,Krauss ,Reiner and Szell.

[Pulcinella]

Only Dresden/Kempe here (there's not even a BBC MM one).

Hurrah!

Quite a good BaL, I thought, though I still hate the faux camaraderie.

[Alison]

Quite a few versions illustrated. No mention of Szell at all?

Didn’t realise there was a Rattle version; didn’t like Honeck.

Happy enough with the winner :-)

[visualnickmos]

"Sweating in their pants" is a phrase that I NEVER would have imagined in a million years, would be said on BBC Radio 3 !

[RobP]

I've hopefully counted them all and it turns out to be 31. To be honest I thought it was more until I came across duplications between boxes (eg Jansons and Jochum).

Don Juan was the very first item I heard at a live classical concert (RPO/Kempe, May 1972) so it has a special place in my affections. Incidentally, there is/was a recording by Kempe and the RPO that I don't see on the list. It was recorded in May 1964 and originally issued on Readers Digest. There was a Chesky CD issue (coupled with an unexpectedly fine Symphonie Fantastique with the RPO and Massimo Freccia, of whom I've never otherwise come across). This same Kempe recording of Don Juan was also included in a Scribendum box, 'The Art of Rudolf Kempe'.

Despite having so many recordings there are two that, for me, stand out from the pack: Staatskapelle Dresden/Kempe and the 1970s BPO/Karajan. Both superb.

The RPO version - which is the slowest of the 3 Kempe versions available, if you count an excellent mid-fifties BBC SO one on YouTube - was recorded by Ken Wilkinson, where the sound is better than the Dresden one.

High Definition Tape Transfers have recently released it in various formats. The one to go for is the DSD256 download, which is superb, with a better dynamic range than the first label LP I have and more space. It's coupled with a tremendous Pines of Rome, also from Readers Digest.

[RobP]

"Sweating in their pants" is a phrase that I NEVER would have imagined in a million years, would be said on BBC Radio 3 !

Why?

[richardfinegold]

So who won? Kempe/Dresden?