Beethoven: the 9 Symphonies

Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (soprano), Elisabeth Höngen (mezzo), Hans Hopf (tenor), Otto Edelmann (bass) & Wiener Philharmoniker, Stockholm Philharmonic & Chor und Orchester der Festspiele Bayreuth, Wilhelm Furtwängler

Beethoven was Wilhelm Furtwängler’s guiding musical force. In his interpretations of the symphonies, the conductor generates irresistible dramatic momentum – and a constant sense of imaginative freshness – through the interrelationship of form, harmony, texture, rhythm and tempo. These recordings, all made in the late 1940s and early 1950s, in the Musikverein in Vienna and at concerts in London, Bayreuth and Stockholm, were newly remastered in 2010, bringing their sound more alive than ever before.

Beethoven:
Symphonies Nos. 1-9 (complete)
No. 1 in C major, Op. 21
No. 2 in D major, Op. 36
No. 3 in E flat major, Op. 55 'Eroica'
No. 4 in B flat major, Op. 60
No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67
No. 6 in F major, Op. 68 'Pastoral'
No. 7 in A major, Op. 92
No. 8 in F major, Op. 93
No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125 'Choral'

Beethoven was de leidende muzikale kracht van Wilhelm Furtwängler. In zijn interpretaties van de symfonieën, genereert de dirigent onweerstaanbare dramatische momenten - en een constant gevoel van fantasierijke frisheid - door middel van de onderlinge relatie van de vorm, harmonie, textuur, ritme en tempo. Deze opnames, allemaal gemaakt in de late jaren 1940 en vroege jaren 1950, in de Musikverein in Wenen en bij concerten in Londen, Bayreuth en Stockholm, werden in 2010 geremastered, waardoor het geluid levendiger werd dan ooit tevoren. Aanbevolen.