BaL 28.12.13 - Haydn's The Creation

[BBMmk2]

Bernstein and Haydn?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Bernstein and Haydn?

Oh, yes, Bbm - his set of Paris Symphonies on SONY are my favourite "Big Band" recordings, and he always conducted Haydn with a frisson that I find spontaneous and infectious. Having said that, I don't know either of his recordings of The Creation - neither had Janowitz , you see!

[verismissimo]

Bernstein and Haydn?

Oh yes. At his best in Haydn!

[gurnemanz]

I have sung it in amateur shows a few times (in English) but have only one CD version - Bernstein. I see that Harnoncourt live Concentus Musicus won last time (2004) with Weil as runner-up.

[vinteuil]

... curiously, not a work I listen to all that often. I have Karajan / Berlin Phil ( and Janowitz... ) and Bruno Weil. I prefer the latter It will be interesting to listen, and see if there are other contenders who might make me listen again...

[Rolmill]

I see that Harnoncourt live Concentus Musicus won last time (2004) with Weil as runner-up.

I have had the Weil for ages and like it a lot; as it happens, I picked up this Harnoncourt version second hand only a couple of weeks ago but haven't played it yet - my appetite is whetted. I should probably play it before listening to the CD Review, so that the opinion I form is wholly mine and not partly the estimable Mr Burnside's...

What I don't have is a big band version, so (rather against the prevailing tide here) will be listening out for a likely candidate.

Oh, and I agree with the various comments about Bernstein's Haydn: terrific zest, not just in the symphonies but the masses too.

[LaurieWatt]

I have had the Weil for ages and like it a lot; as it happens, I picked up this Harnoncourt version second hand only a couple of weeks ago but haven't played it yet - my appetite is whetted. I should probably play it before listening to the CD Review, so that the opinion I form is wholly mine and not partly the estimable Mr Burnside's...

What I don't have is a big band version, so (rather against the prevailing tide here) will be listening out for a likely candidate.

Oh, and I agree with the various comments about Bernstein's Haydn: terrific zest, not just in the symphonies but the masses too.

My favourite big band version by far is the live Tennstedt/LPO performance from the Royal Festival Hall on 19th February 1984. I must declare an interest because the LPO label recording derived from tapes I made from the R3 broadcast, but an old friend who was with me at the concert was in tears throughout, he was so moved by it and said he had never heard a performance like it! The recording is not bad either!

[MickyD]

- the explosion into sunlight isn't done better anywhere else.

Not even the superb Karajan/BPO which has the incomparable Gundula Janowitz - and is cut!! - but still my favourite "Big Band" version.

I also have the Hogwood, but would like a German-language HIP performance: Jacobs looks very tempting, but I'm grateful to MickyD for mentioning the Bruno Weil - I love his recordings of the Haydn Masses, and it would be appropriate to have Karajan next to one of his apprentices on the shelves.

Useful background reading to the work (and The Seasons) here:

http://www.earlymusicworld.com/id26.html

... Brian Robins may be a familiar name to EMS regulars - he edited the John Marsh Journals which featured recently.

I got hold of the Weil in a recently repackaged budget box of his Haydn masses - great value for 6 discs, but curiously the set omitted some of the other masses recorded with the same forces by Weil, which I had to seek out elsewhere. I agree with ferneyhoughgeliebte, they are superb performances.

[verismissimo]

Bernstein and Haydn?

Bernstein conducting Haydn. (A small Christmas gift.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oU0Ubs2KYUI

[BBMmk2]

Bernstein conducting Haydn. (A small Christmas gift.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oU0Ubs2KYUI

Thank you very much indeed for that clip, verimssimo! A wonderful present! :) Bernstein just let the VPO play, with only a few facial expressions and nodding of the head! I think the Austrian audience were rather puzzled!

[verismissimo]

Thank you very much indeed for that clip, verimssimo! A wonderful present! :) Bernstein just let the VPO play, with only a few facial expressions and nodding of the head! I think the Austrian audience were rather puzzled!

Perhaps they thought he wasn't doing his job properly, bbm.

[gurnemanz]

Thank you very much indeed for that clip, verimssimo! A wonderful present! :) Bernstein just let the VPO play, with only a few facial expressions and nodding of the head! I think the Austrian audience were rather puzzled!

Great clip. Thanks. Audience puzzled and maybe slightly annoyed that they couldn't actually see Bernstein's face.

[amateur51]

Perhaps they thought he wasn't doing his job properly, bbm.

Perhaps they thought he'd done it better in the mirror earlier

[Barbirollians]

Bernstein DG for me .

[Barbirollians]

I see that there are a few secondhand CD copies of the CFP Fruhbeck de Burgos version on Amazon going for a song .