Our Summer BAL 12 - Bruckner's 4th Symphony

[Richard Tarleton]

- anyone know why this is a 2-disc set?

Well I've just listened to the digitally remastered Walter/CSO Bruckner 4, and I think it's stupendous - my cramped LP is heading for the charity shop. A spacious, sonorous recording, the braying trombones especially magnificent. I think this wil be my default recording from now on.

Incidentally I used to have the "Great Conductors" programme on VHS which included Klemperer's famous remark that "Walter is a moralist, I am an immoralist". Trying to find the clip on Google I found a mass of references to it, for example this. Any thoughts?

[BBMmk2]

Yes, that's a very fine performance indeed and one I completely forgot that I had! I bought my copy in the RAH when Abbado and the LFO played Mahler 3 at the Proms.

I think I have mentioned this before in this threead. I have Abbado conducting the VPO in this work. I am strongly tempted to order this DVD,as I admire the work that Abbado is doiung at Lucerne. How does this one coimpare to the one he did in Vienna?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Well I've just listened to the digitally remastered Walter/CSO Bruckner 4, and I think it's stupendous - my cramped LP is heading for the charity shop. A spacious, sonorous recording, the braying trombones especially magnificent. I think this wil be my default recording from now on.

Excellent news, Richard!
But why is it on two discs? Does the Symphony take longer than 79 minutes? (And, if not, why the Wagner couplings?)

Incidentally I used to have the "Great Conductors" programme on VHS which included Klemperer's famous remark that "Walter is a moralist, I am an immoralist". Trying to find the clip on Google I found a mass of references to it, for example this. Any thoughts?

Not many: I'd put Klemperer's muscular Mahler on a par with Olivier and Walter's lyricism closer to Gielgud's Shakespeare. And all that guff about "Atonality and Dodecaphony" - rather dates the quaint article, methinks!

[amateur51]

Incidentally I used to have the "Great Conductors" programme on VHS which included Klemperer's famous remark that "Walter is a moralist, I am an immoralist". Trying to find the clip on Google I found a mass of references to it, for example this. Any thoughts?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEJqA1D-vZI

[Richard Tarleton]

Excellent news, Richard!
But why is it on two discs? Does the Symphony take longer than 79 minutes? (And, if not, why the Wagner couplings?)

The Bruckner has a disc to itself - the other is of Wagner chunks - T'hauser prelude and Venusburg, M'singer & FH preludes, Parsifal prelude and GF music - no idea why but at £10 the lot you can afford to ignore it! (Timings - 64.82 for the Bruckner, each movement a minute or two quicker than Wand/BPO live)

[Petrushka]

I think I have mentioned this before in this threead. I have Abbado conducting the VPO in this work. I am strongly tempted to order this DVD,as I admire the work that Abbado is doiung at Lucerne. How does this one coimpare to the one he did in Vienna?

BBM, it's a CD not a DVD. If, like me, you admire Abbasdo in Lucerne then this disc is self-recommending.

[Richard Tarleton]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEJqA1D-vZI

Thanks ams - the DVD of the "Art of conducting" documentary from which this comes is available at around £250 new , even the VHS is going for £89. I used to have a copy

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Bruckner's 4th Symphony (BaL 13/11/12)

9.30am Building a Library
Stephen Johnson with a personal recommendation from recordings of Bruckner's 4th Symphony.


Available recordings:


Wiener Philharmoniker, Claudio Abbado
Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Volkmar Andreae
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim
Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Herbert Blomstedt
Staatskapelle Dresden, Herbert Blomstedt
Staatskapelle of Dresden, Karl Böhm
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Karl Böhm
Mozarteumorchester Salzburg, Ivor Bolton
Aachen Symphony Orchestra, Marcus Bosch
SWR Sinfonieorchester Baden-Baden und Freiberg, Sylvain Cambreling
Münchner Philharmoniker, Sergiu Celibidache
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly
Philharmonia Orchestra, Christoph von Dohnányi
Orchestre de Paris, Christoph Eschenbach
USSR TV and Radio Symphony Orchestra, Vladimir Fedoseyev
Wiener Philharmoniker, Wilhelm Furtwängler
Klangverwaltung Orchestra, Enoch zu Guttenberg
Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, Bernard Haitink
London Symphony Orchestra, Bernard Haitink
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Nikolaus Harnoncourt
Radio-Sinfonie-Orchester Frankfurt, Eliahu Inbal
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Mariss Jansons
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Eugen Jochum
Concertgebouw Orchestra, Eugen Jochum
Hamburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Eugen Jochum
Staatskapelle Dresden, Eugen Jochum
Munich Philharmonic, Oswald Kabasta
Berliner Philharmoniker, Herbert von Karajan
Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Rudolf Kempe
London Symphony Orchestra, István Kertész (2 versions)
Concertgebouw Orchestra, Otto Klemperer
Kölner Rundfunk-Sinfonie-Orchester, Otto Klemperer
Philharmonia Orchestra , Otto Klemperer,
Wiener Symphoniker, Otto Klemperer
Bavarian State Orchestra, Munich, Hans Knappertsbusch
Wiener Philharmoniker, Hans Knappertsbusch
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Franz Konwitschny
Wiener Philharmoniker, Clemens Krauss
Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Rafael Kubelik
New York Philharmonic, Kurt Masur
Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano della Rai, Lovro von Matacic
Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Lorin Maazel
Leningrad Philharmonic, Evgeny Mravinsky
Berliner Philharmoniker, Riccardo Muti
Royal Flanders Philharmonic Orchestra, Gunter Neuhold
Orchestre Métropolitain, Yannick Nézet-Séguin
Radio Symphony Orchestra Suttgart, Roger Norrington
Berliner Philharmoniker, Sir Simon Rattle
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Heinz Rögner
Symphonieorchester des Bayrischen Rundfunks, Kurt Sanderling
Philharmonie Festiva, Gerd Schaller
Stuttgart SWR Radio Symphony Orchestra, Carl Schuricht
Saarbrücken Radio Symphony Orchestra, Stanislaw Skrowaczewski
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, William Steinberg
Berlin Staatskapelle, Otmar Suitner
NHK Symphony Orchestra Tokyo, Otmar Suitner
Berliner Philharmoniker, Klaus Tennstedt
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Klaus Tennstedt
Münchner Philharmoniker, Christian Thielemann
Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Georg Tintner
Minnesota Orchestra, Osmo Vänskä
Sinfonieorchester Basel, Mario Venzago
Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, Hans Vonk
Columbia Symphony Orchestra, Bruno Walter
NBC Symphony Orchestra, Bruno Walter
Berliner Philharmoniker, Günter Wand
Kölner Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester, Günter Wand
Münchner Philharmoniker, Günter Wand
NDR Sinfonieorchester, Günter Wand
Basel Symphony Orchestra, Walter Weller
Hamburg Philharmonic, Simone Young
Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Jaap van Zweden

[Hornspieler]

I have a great respect for Stephen Johnson. His cocert interval talks show a great insight into the music discussed.

I dare to forecast that his recommendations would include:

Rudolf Kempe - Munchner Philharmoniker

Gunter Wand -Berlin Philharmonic

Karl Böhm - Vienna Philharmonic

Riccardo Chailly - Royal Concertgebouw

Would anyone else like to have go (or just mention their favourites)?

HS

There's not much else to talk about on these boards, is there?

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

I would have liked to have listed the recordings in groups according to the different versions available, but in most instances this is not specified.

[John Shelton]

I would have liked to have listed the recordings in groups according to the different versions availabke, but in kost instances this is not specified.

Both Norrington and Young are the 1874 version (different scherzo).

(The length of EA's superbly comprehensive list shows how problematic the 'Building a Library' concept has become, doesn't it?)

[Don Petter]

It's a fait accompli, it seems. On my copy of the Weiner Philharmoniker/Bohm, picked up recently in a charity shop, is a sticker declaring 'The top choice - Building a Library - BBC Radio 3'.

Which year was that, I wonder? (I expect some of our archivists know.)

[vinteuil]

... many thanks once again to Alpie for his wonderful list.

I have enjoyed -

Herreweghe / orchestre des Champs-Elysées
Harnoncourt / Concertgebouw
Norrington / Stuttgarters
Klemperer / Bavarians
Furtwängler / Viennese
Wand / Cologne
Böhm / Dresden
Jochum / Dresden
Jochum / Berlin
Barenboim / Berlin
Tintner / RSNO
Celibidache / Munich
Haitink / Concertgebouw

... in fact I can't think of any recording from which I haven't derived great joy.

I really pity the Reviewer here!

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Which year was that, I wonder? (I expect some of our archivists know.)

Well, the current website is no help! c1995-ish?

Not my favourite Bruckner Symphony - I have real problems with the Finale - but Karajan's 1970s EMI recording with the BPO is as good as any I know. In spite of the textual infelicities. As it's SJ, it won't be mentioned favourably ("too sugary; air-brushed 'beauty' - pronounced with faint sneer - at the expense of line/architecture; lack of involvement with the text in favour of the conductor's idea of what it says about himself" - you heard it here first) but I hope he's kinder to Klemperer with the Philharmonia (another favourite of mine).

[HighlandDougie]

There is also a very fine Claudio Abbado/Lucerne Festival Orchestra performance, recorded in Tokyo in 2006, and still, I think, available on their Lucerne Festival label at, given the terrible exchange rate between sterling and the Swiss Franc, monstrous cost