Beethoven by the Wiener Akademie

[MickyD]

We've had quite a few discussions on the boards about HIP Beethoven symphonies from Immerseel, Krivine etc but I can't recall anyone giving their impressions of Martin Haselbock and the Wiener Akademie's cycle in the Alpha 'Beethoven Resound' series - performances given in the actual halls of Beethoven's time. Any comments?

[MickyD]

32 views but not a single comment! I imagined there would be at least someone on here who'd heard these recordings and had something to say about them, but never mind.

[Richard Barrett]

32 views but not a single comment! I imagined there would be at least someone on here who'd heard these recordings and had something to say about them, but never mind.

I didn't even know of their existence, although, being an admirer of Stefan Weinzierl's eye-opening book on Beethoven's concert halls, I find the idea very interesting, so I will certainly listen when the chance arises.

[Bryn]

32 views but not a single comment! I imagined there would be at least someone on here who'd heard these recordings and had something to say about them, but never mind.

Somewhat pedestrian compared to Krivine in this movement. The CD set appears a little difficult to source from the UK, so that may partly expalin the lack of comment here.

There's a live 'Eroica' here which I have yet to listen to throughout. I will try this evening.

Just ordered the Egmont double CD (German and English versions, apparently). at a a low price via the amazon.co.uk marketplace.

[Bryn]

I didn't even know of their existence, although, being an admirer of Stefan Weinzierl's eye-opening book on Beethoven's concert halls, I find the idea very interesting, so I will certainly listen when the chance arises.

Hmm. They may have used the same venues and size of orchestra as the at the first performances but nowhere near the tempi the composer called for. Listening to the 9th via QOBUZ now it sounds decidedly laggardly, much of the time.

[MickyD]

Ah, thank you gentlemen, nice to hear from you! I'm surprised that they went so unnoticed, as the project was given a spot on Record Review some time ago.

Surprised also, Bryn, that the CDs are hard to get, as they are on the Alpha label, which I would have thought was well distributed.

[HighlandDougie]

32 views but not a single comment! I imagined there would be at least someone on here who'd heard these recordings and had something to say about them, but never mind.

From the various reviews which exist (Music Web; Fono Forum) and comments on Amazon Germany, there seems to be a positive, albeit not wildly enthusiastic, response. The USP of recording performances in venues as close as possible to the originals is seen as interesting but not significant in relation to the musical quality of the various performances. Other available cycles (Immerseel, for one) also try to replicate the size and timbre of the original orchestras. Some of the individual CDs seem to be available cheaply, at least here in France, so they might be worth a try.* Sorry not to be more helpful, Micky.

* I’ve just ordered the 7th (coupled with Wellington’s Sieg) for 2,99€

[Bryn]

From the various reviews which exist (Music Web; Fono Forum) and comments on Amazon Germany, there seems to be a positive, albeit not wildly enthusiastic, response. The USP of recording performances in venues as close as possible to the originals is seen as interesting but not significant in relation to the musical quality of the various performances. Other available cycles (Immerseel, for one) also try to replicate the size and timbre of the original orchestras. Some of the individual CDs seem to be available cheaply, at least here in France, so they might be worth a try.* Sorry not to be more helpful, Micky.

* I’ve just ordered the 7th (coupled with Wellington’s Sieg) for 2,99€

Just ordered the same pairing via amazon.fr for €1.99, though p&p to the UK took it up to €6.18.

[MickyD]

On the contrary, your comments were very helpful, Dougie.

I've heard that recording of Wellington's Victory and think it would be worth getting for such a small outlay.

[HighlandDougie]

One shouldn't generalise on the basis of having heard one symphony but the seventh is really rather good. Bryn will keep us right as I'm not a very good judge - I don't think I've ever heard a bad performance of the seventh, at least on record. The performance venue (Ceremonial Hall of the Austrian Academy of Sciences) has a fairly reverberant acoustic so tutti can be a bit blurred but that is balanced out by the overall warmth and depth of the sound. Excellent orchestral playing - they have quite a 'dark' sound, as per their Liszt series, which I think suits Beethoven. As well as the seventh and Wellington's Victory (not exactly LvB at his most profound but a wonderful use of the space for antiphonal effects, as well as an orchestra which sounds as if it's enjoying itself), the disc also contains two marches (by Pleyel and Dussek), written to be performed by Mälzel's, 'Mechanical Military Trumpeter', which was a discovery for me. So, as a package, well worth seeking out.

[Bryn]

One shouldn't generalise on the basis of having heard one symphony but the seventh is really rather good. Bryn will keep us right as I'm not a very good judge - I don't think I've ever heard a bad performance of the seventh, at least on record. The performance venue (Ceremonial Hall of the Austrian Academy of Sciences) has a fairly reverberant acoustic so tutti can be a bit blurred but that is balanced out by the overall warmth and depth of the sound. Excellent orchestral playing - they have quite a 'dark' sound, as per their Liszt series, which I think suits Beethoven. As well as the seventh and Wellington's Victory, the disc also contains two marches (by Pleyel and Dussek), written to be performed by Mälzel's, 'Mechanical Military Trumpeter', which was a discovery for me. So, as a package, well worth seeking out.

My copy of the Egmont/Consecration of the House disc arrived yesterday from browns-books (£3.29 plus £1.26 p&p). Unfortunately disc 2 has a bad scratch which messes up track 4. However, it does not affect the English narration at the start of track, only the orchestral contribution. Since this appears to be identical to that of the German narrated version on disc 1, it will be possible to overcome this defect. The vendor has offered a refund of 20% or return for refund. I have opted for the former. I am finding the discs a delight. I had expected to find myself considering the Egmont music to be the 'fill-up' to the Consecration of the House overture. However, I am enjoying works of similar merit in these recordings.

[vinteuil]

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... I see that in April this series will continue with the Eighth Symphony + the D major piano cto [op 61a] derived from the violin cto.





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[Bryn]

One shouldn't generalise on the basis of having heard one symphony but the seventh is really rather good. Bryn will keep us right as I'm not a very good judge - I don't think I've ever heard a bad performance of the seventh, at least on record. The performance venue (Ceremonial Hall of the Austrian Academy of Sciences) has a fairly reverberant acoustic so tutti can be a bit blurred but that is balanced out by the overall warmth and depth of the sound. Excellent orchestral playing - they have quite a 'dark' sound, as per their Liszt series, which I think suits Beethoven. As well as the seventh and Wellington's Victory (not exactly LvB at his most profound but a wonderful use of the space for antiphonal effects, as well as an orchestra which sounds as if it's enjoying itself), the disc also contains two marches (by Pleyel and Dussek), written to be performed by Mälzel's, 'Mechanical Military Trumpeter', which was a discovery for me. So, as a package, well worth seeking out.

I find myself generally in agreement. The seventh etc. wa on the door mat when I got home this afternoon. I have to say it's pretty impressive, if not quite up there with Krivine et al, to my ears. However, what's the "Wellington Wins in Dolby Surround" all about? This is a 2 channel stereo recording, so I guess it's supposed to be some sort of allusion to the step up from Panharmonicon to human Orchestra. If so, I don't think it's that good an allusion. Perhaps I have missed something. Great fun to have the modern reconstructions of Mälzel's mechanical trumpeters in the Pleyel and Dussek marches.