Otto Klemperer - Philharmonia Orchestra
Birgit Nilsson: soprano [Incidental Music: Egmont Op. 84]
Lossless: Ape (img + cue + log) = 392 mb
Lossy: Mp3 (lame "preset standard") = 114 mb
Artwork @ 300dpi = 13 mb
Total playing time: 77:20
Recording:
Symphony No 6 in F major Op. 68 ‘Pastoral’
Recorded 7-8 October 1957
Overture: Prometheus Op. 43
Recorded 25 November 1957
Overture: Coriolan Op. 62
Recorded 21 October 1957
Incidental Music: Egmont Op. 84
Recorded 21 and 25 October and 25 November 1957
All recordings made in the Kingsway Hall, London
Released 2003
EMI Classics 7243 5 67965 2 2
Track listing:
1. Overture "Prometheus", Op.43
2. Overture "Coriolan", Op.62
3. "Egmont" - Incidental music, Op.84 - I. Overture
4. "Egmont" - Incidental music, Op.84 - II. Die Trommel gerühret
5. "Egmont" - Incidental music, Op.84 - III. Freudvoll und leidvoll
6. "Egmont" - Incidental music, Op.84 - IV. Klärchens Tod bezeichnend
7. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - I. Allegro ma non troppo
8. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - II. Andante molto mosso
9. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - III. Allegro
10. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - IV. Allegro
11. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - V. Allegretto
Reviews:
Musicweb
Yet more illustrious recordings emerge, proudly refurbished from EMI’s vaults. In this case just a cursory look at the recording details gives many indications of excellence. The performances date from 1957, perhaps the high noon of the relationship between Otto Klemperer and the Philharmonia. The recording was engineered by one of EMI’s best balance engineers, Robert Gooch and was produced by the eagle-eyed (or should it be "eagle-eared"?) Walter Legge. As if this were not enough the marvellous acoustics of the Kingsway Hall, allied to the skills of conductor, engineer and producer ensure that we hear a beautifully natural, musical sound.
It must be said straight away that Klemperer’s ‘Pastoral’ may not be to all tastes. Geniality was not one of the attributes with which one first associates him and, of course, geniality is at the heart of much of this music. That said, the performance has many insights and is characteristically thoughtful and trenchantly argued. In the first movement, Klemperer’s walk in the country is that of a sturdy hiker. The reading may lack something of a sense of wide-eyed wonder but there are abundant compensations. Klemperer is attentive to all the subtle nuances of the score, observing Beethoven’s accents and dynamic markings conscientiously but never pedantically. Here and, indeed, throughout the disc, the playing of the Philharmonia has a wonderful depth of tone, securely founded on a firm and sonorous bass line. The string playing is polished and we can also hear some top drawer wind playing.
In the second movement Klemperer lays before us not a "babbling brook" but one which runs slowly and deeply. The currents move with an imposing inevitability. There is much dignity here and, once again, every detail is keenly observed and allotted just its rightful place, no more, no less, in Beethoven’s musical landscape. This is a deeply satisfying traversal of one of Beethoven’s most lyrical inspirations.
However, I’m afraid I’m in danger of parting company with Klemperer in the third movement where the peasants’ dance is stolid almost to the point of being earthbound. It was of this movement that a member of the Philharmonia allegedly had the temerity to voice a reservation about the maestro’s tempo to his face to which Klemperer retorted that the player shouldn’t worry; he’d get used to it! Well, I’m afraid I’ve tried and I find great difficulty in getting used to it. To be sure, the performance does have an undoubted rustic feel and I do like the sturdy "clog dance" when both Beethoven and Klemperer pick up the tempo (track 9 from 2’05"). At random I got down from my shelves versions by three very different conductors. Toscanini’s 1952 NBC performance is surely too mercurial (he takes a mere 5’01" for the whole movement against Klemperer’s 6’33"). However, Willem Mengelberg (Concertgebouw, 1937) and Klaus Tennstedt (LPO, 1986) seem to be pretty much of the same mind as regards tempi; they weigh in at 5’34" and 5’38" respectively. I must say I feel much more comfortable with their pacing.
I’m much more at ease with Klemperer’s pacing for the remainder of the work. In his hands the storm is urgent and thrilling but, rightly, he keeps the speed on a tight rein; there is no rushing in the heat of the moment. In fact he exhibits a masterly control both of tempo and of dynamic contrast. One small typographical point. EMI’s track listing indicates that the storm movement lasts 8’43" whereas the actual timing is exactly five minutes shorter. However the overall timing given for the symphony is correct.
The skies clear magically in one of Beethoven’s most masterly transitions. Klemperer handles the join to the final movement with effortless mastery. He and the Philharmonia do the serene Shepherds’ Hymn of Thanksgiving superbly. Michael Steinberg has pointed out that in his sketchbooks Beethoven wrote the words "gratias agimus tibi" from the ‘Gloria’ of the Mass next to the theme of this movement, making quite clear to whom the hymn was addressed. It is beatific music and here it receives a devoted, majestic performance.
Despite my reservations over the third movement, and who am I to argue with a conductor who has so self-evidently thought through every note of the score in great detail, I am in no doubt that this is a masterly reading of the ‘Pastoral’. It is the product of Klemperer’s extensive performing experience of the score and of his deep reflection about it.
The remaining items are equally distinguished. The Prometheus overture is grand and splendidly articulated while the performance of its companion, Coriolan is patrician and magisterial.
In a recent review of a CD by Nicolai Malko and the Danish State Broadcasting Orchestra my colleague Jonathan Woolf fascinatingly suggested that Malko’s account of the Egmont overture was "Mendelssohnian rather than Wagnerian". Faced with such a choice I’d have to put this Klemperer reading firmly in the Wagnerian camp. It sounds as if it has been hewn from granite and I mean that as a compliment. I do wonder if the pace of the main allegro isn’t just a touch too deliberate but the blazing conviction and white-hot intensity of the performance sweep aside any such minor reservations. In his excellent and discerning liner note Richard Osborne comments: "No conductor in the present writer’s experience has shown a more precise sense of the balance between the overture’s symphonic and theatrical elements." I would also concur with his judgement that Klemperer’s way with the coda is "no vulgar grandstand finale … but a beautifully paced dénouement in which a sense of aspiration … is nobly maintained."
As well as this splendid account of the familiar overture Klemperer adds three of the other eight movements from the incidental music to Goethe’s tragedy which Beethoven wrote for the play’s Vienna premiere in 1809. Two are short vocal items, both sung by Klärchen, Egmont’s mistress. These are performed here by Birgit Nilsson, luxury casting indeed, who invests these two short items with all her great theatrical skill and presence. The extracts are completed by a brief oboe-led lament which is heard following the suicide of Klärchen. It’s a very moving piece, especially when played with the stoic dignity on display here. These pieces may not be top drawer Beethoven but their inclusion is much to be welcomed.
As I’ve said, the notes by Richard Osborne are of the high standard you’d expect from such a source. EMI’s recording wears its forty-six years lightly and has come up here as if new-minted. The sound is very full and truthful.
In summary, this is a highly distinguished release. Not every listener will agree with every interpretative decision. However, the performances are thoughtful and thought-provoking. These are Beethoven recordings of the highest distinction which have the power both to humble and exalt the listener. They fully merit their inclusion as Great Recordings of the [Twentieth] Century and I highly recommend them.
Classicstoday
Yes, it's mostly slow and sober, but the sheer concentration, textural clarity (notably in the forward-balanced woodwind writing), and spiritual integrity of Otto Klemperer's 1957 Beethoven Pastoral stand the test of time. So does Birgit Nilsson's statuesque, laser-like soprano that graces the Egmont selections. This is the Pastorale's fourth CD remastering, and it sounds virtually identical to EMI's previous 1998 version. In fact, A/B comparisons yielded so little difference that I found myself blocking out the music to focus on sonic issues. As it happens, this Great Recordings of the Century edition boasts marginally less tape hiss and a bit more presence--but don't replace the 1998 transfer if you already own it. The present option's your best bet, however, if you've yet to acquire Klemperer's Pastoral.
Gramophone
This is a tremendous performance, measured, controlled and completely confident ; and in the result wonderfully convincing. It is at least as convincing as Toscanini's though utterly different. Toscanini pushes the music serenely on. He is very close to Beethoven's metronome marks, but, except in the first movement, a little quicker. Klemperer at first sounds almost plodding by comparison. Except in the finale (where he is "dead-on ") he is much slower than the metronome marks, a purist might say too slow. Yet it works. He has all the time in the world as he unfolds this pleasantly long-winded music, and moulds it into transcendental shape. The orchestra clearly sense his high purpose and they have responded with playing that must surely have gratified him.
I found it fascinating to compare this performance, presumably made in 1957, with Klemperer's previous recording for Vox, made about 1952. Both playing and recording are much better ; perhaps of more interest, the interpretation has changed. Rhythms are more rock-like. With more years, he takes more time. The first and last movements, and also the "Storm ", are all much slower. He no longer has any desire to push the players along, and he now eschews such tricks as going a shade faster at bar 53 of the scherzo. He varies his tempi astonishingly little and yet nothing could be less boring. He has acquired a few new tricks : in the development of the first movement each chain of four tied minims starts by dropping to pianissimo and then grows to a climax ; in bars 479-487 he treats all the forte marks as comparatively mild accents (which I now see is what Beethoven meant ; otherwise why put so many ?), dropping the tone immediately after each so that for once the clarinet can be heard ; in bars 133-9 of the finale he emphasises the horn phrases (which I never remember noticing before they are inaudible on most records) to match up with the violin figures a few bars earlier, and he plays the first subject of this movement much quieter and much slower with mesmeric effect. The whole performance is a bit mesmeric ; it persuades you for the moment that this is as good a symphony as Beethoven ever wrote. Which it isn't, not that it matters.
Click here to download
Birgit Nilsson: soprano [Incidental Music: Egmont Op. 84]
Lossless: Ape (img + cue + log) = 392 mb
Lossy: Mp3 (lame "preset standard") = 114 mb
Artwork @ 300dpi = 13 mb
Total playing time: 77:20
Recording:
Symphony No 6 in F major Op. 68 ‘Pastoral’
Recorded 7-8 October 1957
Overture: Prometheus Op. 43
Recorded 25 November 1957
Overture: Coriolan Op. 62
Recorded 21 October 1957
Incidental Music: Egmont Op. 84
Recorded 21 and 25 October and 25 November 1957
All recordings made in the Kingsway Hall, London
Released 2003
EMI Classics 7243 5 67965 2 2
Track listing:
1. Overture "Prometheus", Op.43
2. Overture "Coriolan", Op.62
3. "Egmont" - Incidental music, Op.84 - I. Overture
4. "Egmont" - Incidental music, Op.84 - II. Die Trommel gerühret
5. "Egmont" - Incidental music, Op.84 - III. Freudvoll und leidvoll
6. "Egmont" - Incidental music, Op.84 - IV. Klärchens Tod bezeichnend
7. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - I. Allegro ma non troppo
8. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - II. Andante molto mosso
9. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - III. Allegro
10. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - IV. Allegro
11. Symphony No.6 in F, Op.68 "Pastoral" - V. Allegretto
Reviews:
Musicweb
Yet more illustrious recordings emerge, proudly refurbished from EMI’s vaults. In this case just a cursory look at the recording details gives many indications of excellence. The performances date from 1957, perhaps the high noon of the relationship between Otto Klemperer and the Philharmonia. The recording was engineered by one of EMI’s best balance engineers, Robert Gooch and was produced by the eagle-eyed (or should it be "eagle-eared"?) Walter Legge. As if this were not enough the marvellous acoustics of the Kingsway Hall, allied to the skills of conductor, engineer and producer ensure that we hear a beautifully natural, musical sound.
It must be said straight away that Klemperer’s ‘Pastoral’ may not be to all tastes. Geniality was not one of the attributes with which one first associates him and, of course, geniality is at the heart of much of this music. That said, the performance has many insights and is characteristically thoughtful and trenchantly argued. In the first movement, Klemperer’s walk in the country is that of a sturdy hiker. The reading may lack something of a sense of wide-eyed wonder but there are abundant compensations. Klemperer is attentive to all the subtle nuances of the score, observing Beethoven’s accents and dynamic markings conscientiously but never pedantically. Here and, indeed, throughout the disc, the playing of the Philharmonia has a wonderful depth of tone, securely founded on a firm and sonorous bass line. The string playing is polished and we can also hear some top drawer wind playing.
In the second movement Klemperer lays before us not a "babbling brook" but one which runs slowly and deeply. The currents move with an imposing inevitability. There is much dignity here and, once again, every detail is keenly observed and allotted just its rightful place, no more, no less, in Beethoven’s musical landscape. This is a deeply satisfying traversal of one of Beethoven’s most lyrical inspirations.
However, I’m afraid I’m in danger of parting company with Klemperer in the third movement where the peasants’ dance is stolid almost to the point of being earthbound. It was of this movement that a member of the Philharmonia allegedly had the temerity to voice a reservation about the maestro’s tempo to his face to which Klemperer retorted that the player shouldn’t worry; he’d get used to it! Well, I’m afraid I’ve tried and I find great difficulty in getting used to it. To be sure, the performance does have an undoubted rustic feel and I do like the sturdy "clog dance" when both Beethoven and Klemperer pick up the tempo (track 9 from 2’05"). At random I got down from my shelves versions by three very different conductors. Toscanini’s 1952 NBC performance is surely too mercurial (he takes a mere 5’01" for the whole movement against Klemperer’s 6’33"). However, Willem Mengelberg (Concertgebouw, 1937) and Klaus Tennstedt (LPO, 1986) seem to be pretty much of the same mind as regards tempi; they weigh in at 5’34" and 5’38" respectively. I must say I feel much more comfortable with their pacing.
I’m much more at ease with Klemperer’s pacing for the remainder of the work. In his hands the storm is urgent and thrilling but, rightly, he keeps the speed on a tight rein; there is no rushing in the heat of the moment. In fact he exhibits a masterly control both of tempo and of dynamic contrast. One small typographical point. EMI’s track listing indicates that the storm movement lasts 8’43" whereas the actual timing is exactly five minutes shorter. However the overall timing given for the symphony is correct.
The skies clear magically in one of Beethoven’s most masterly transitions. Klemperer handles the join to the final movement with effortless mastery. He and the Philharmonia do the serene Shepherds’ Hymn of Thanksgiving superbly. Michael Steinberg has pointed out that in his sketchbooks Beethoven wrote the words "gratias agimus tibi" from the ‘Gloria’ of the Mass next to the theme of this movement, making quite clear to whom the hymn was addressed. It is beatific music and here it receives a devoted, majestic performance.
Despite my reservations over the third movement, and who am I to argue with a conductor who has so self-evidently thought through every note of the score in great detail, I am in no doubt that this is a masterly reading of the ‘Pastoral’. It is the product of Klemperer’s extensive performing experience of the score and of his deep reflection about it.
The remaining items are equally distinguished. The Prometheus overture is grand and splendidly articulated while the performance of its companion, Coriolan is patrician and magisterial.
In a recent review of a CD by Nicolai Malko and the Danish State Broadcasting Orchestra my colleague Jonathan Woolf fascinatingly suggested that Malko’s account of the Egmont overture was "Mendelssohnian rather than Wagnerian". Faced with such a choice I’d have to put this Klemperer reading firmly in the Wagnerian camp. It sounds as if it has been hewn from granite and I mean that as a compliment. I do wonder if the pace of the main allegro isn’t just a touch too deliberate but the blazing conviction and white-hot intensity of the performance sweep aside any such minor reservations. In his excellent and discerning liner note Richard Osborne comments: "No conductor in the present writer’s experience has shown a more precise sense of the balance between the overture’s symphonic and theatrical elements." I would also concur with his judgement that Klemperer’s way with the coda is "no vulgar grandstand finale … but a beautifully paced dénouement in which a sense of aspiration … is nobly maintained."
As well as this splendid account of the familiar overture Klemperer adds three of the other eight movements from the incidental music to Goethe’s tragedy which Beethoven wrote for the play’s Vienna premiere in 1809. Two are short vocal items, both sung by Klärchen, Egmont’s mistress. These are performed here by Birgit Nilsson, luxury casting indeed, who invests these two short items with all her great theatrical skill and presence. The extracts are completed by a brief oboe-led lament which is heard following the suicide of Klärchen. It’s a very moving piece, especially when played with the stoic dignity on display here. These pieces may not be top drawer Beethoven but their inclusion is much to be welcomed.
As I’ve said, the notes by Richard Osborne are of the high standard you’d expect from such a source. EMI’s recording wears its forty-six years lightly and has come up here as if new-minted. The sound is very full and truthful.
In summary, this is a highly distinguished release. Not every listener will agree with every interpretative decision. However, the performances are thoughtful and thought-provoking. These are Beethoven recordings of the highest distinction which have the power both to humble and exalt the listener. They fully merit their inclusion as Great Recordings of the [Twentieth] Century and I highly recommend them.
Classicstoday
Yes, it's mostly slow and sober, but the sheer concentration, textural clarity (notably in the forward-balanced woodwind writing), and spiritual integrity of Otto Klemperer's 1957 Beethoven Pastoral stand the test of time. So does Birgit Nilsson's statuesque, laser-like soprano that graces the Egmont selections. This is the Pastorale's fourth CD remastering, and it sounds virtually identical to EMI's previous 1998 version. In fact, A/B comparisons yielded so little difference that I found myself blocking out the music to focus on sonic issues. As it happens, this Great Recordings of the Century edition boasts marginally less tape hiss and a bit more presence--but don't replace the 1998 transfer if you already own it. The present option's your best bet, however, if you've yet to acquire Klemperer's Pastoral.
Gramophone
This is a tremendous performance, measured, controlled and completely confident ; and in the result wonderfully convincing. It is at least as convincing as Toscanini's though utterly different. Toscanini pushes the music serenely on. He is very close to Beethoven's metronome marks, but, except in the first movement, a little quicker. Klemperer at first sounds almost plodding by comparison. Except in the finale (where he is "dead-on ") he is much slower than the metronome marks, a purist might say too slow. Yet it works. He has all the time in the world as he unfolds this pleasantly long-winded music, and moulds it into transcendental shape. The orchestra clearly sense his high purpose and they have responded with playing that must surely have gratified him.
I found it fascinating to compare this performance, presumably made in 1957, with Klemperer's previous recording for Vox, made about 1952. Both playing and recording are much better ; perhaps of more interest, the interpretation has changed. Rhythms are more rock-like. With more years, he takes more time. The first and last movements, and also the "Storm ", are all much slower. He no longer has any desire to push the players along, and he now eschews such tricks as going a shade faster at bar 53 of the scherzo. He varies his tempi astonishingly little and yet nothing could be less boring. He has acquired a few new tricks : in the development of the first movement each chain of four tied minims starts by dropping to pianissimo and then grows to a climax ; in bars 479-487 he treats all the forte marks as comparatively mild accents (which I now see is what Beethoven meant ; otherwise why put so many ?), dropping the tone immediately after each so that for once the clarinet can be heard ; in bars 133-9 of the finale he emphasises the horn phrases (which I never remember noticing before they are inaudible on most records) to match up with the violin figures a few bars earlier, and he plays the first subject of this movement much quieter and much slower with mesmeric effect. The whole performance is a bit mesmeric ; it persuades you for the moment that this is as good a symphony as Beethoven ever wrote. Which it isn't, not that it matters.
Click here to download
Thank you for this superb performance of the Beethoven Sixth. 'Rectitude' is a word that comes to mind when I think of Klemperer's conducting--although he once called himself an "amoralist" with regard to his vision of Mahler. I love the gravitas of his performances. Thank you for choosing records by this great master of the baton. You might consider posting his version of Mozart's 40th Symphony in, if you can find it, the mono version where miracles occur that I don't hear on the stereo version.
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