Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7

Unlike I suspect many people I bought this to get a good copy of the Seventh, not the Fifth. However, this rapidly became my usual listening copy of the Fifth as well. Technically the CD is of excellent quality, limited of course by the age of the recording. There are some little noises and scratchs, the "studio cat" chasing mice under the sound floor. These don't detract though, there is very little hiss, the music is clear and easy to listen to. In terms of artistic merit though, Kleiber extracts the very best and then just gives more. Interpretation of any music is always subjective - is my 1930's mono copy of Toscanini better than a 1970's stereo rendition of the same work by Kleiber, or a modern one by Rattle? Different times, different eras - the best I can say is that this is what I reach for when I want either the fifth or seventh, and I have never regretted doing so. Kleiber brings life and vivacity to the music. In particular the third movement of the seventh (once uncharitable described as being like a lot of jumping yaks!) has taken on new life beyond my previous recollections on both vinyl and watching live. I doubt that many people will be disappointed with this CD. Technically I would only rate it as four stars if a modern recording, but considering it's age I would overlook that - one must work with what masters you have and hence give it five.

In the era of CDs, this compilation became one of the most acclaimed recordings of Beethoven's most famous symphony, to a certain extent following in the footsteps of the rave review back in the mid-1970's. This "Fate"/"Schicksal" is red-hot in intensity and surgical in precision. The No. 7 beautifully complements the No. 5 as a coupling on the CD, making this a very concise, much-comprising statement of Beethoven spirit. This may be a good start when you would like your children or students to become interested in classical music. And although many versions do not fall behind this one, you can't go wrong here.

No question but that for me Carlos Kleiber was the best conductor of Beethoven - ever - as his father before him. I'm not a musician so I cannot explain in musical terminology what his magic was except that it is never sloppy or fuzzy. He produces much light, shade, drama, beautiful shaping, and crispness when required - magical. He didn't record enough for me (and my original LP is now worn - thus my need for this excellent CD replacement) but understand that he wanted lots of rehearsal time, and that costs money! He also conducted a live performance of La Boheme at Covent Garden and although an opera I knew backwards, it was as if I was hearing something familiar for the first time. I came out of the theatre in a 'dream'! Anyone with a CD of this?

I'm an aging Metal head and wanted to try something different. Inspired by the classical element present in some of my favorite metal bands e.g. Metallica's 'Master of Puppets,' but more directly in this case, Sepultura's 'Ludwig Van' track off the Clockwork Orange-inspired 'A-Lex,' a few 'Where to start with Classical Music?' searches into Google later, pointed me in this albums' direction a couple of times. Beethoven's' probably the most 'Metal' composer as far I could see as well, so bonus points! As mentioned, I'm not a Classical music buff, so really my opinion is pretty moot, however, I do find the music here to be pretty accessible and very enjoyable to listen to, so to me, that makes this album great! And that's from a Classical virgin! Despite there being different 'tracks,' I feel it's best to listen to this as a whole (if you can), but the individual pieces are great too! Loses one star as, and this might be silly, but to me, the massive dynamic range here (something no doubt atypical of Classical music) is so great, it's hard to find a correct volume without scaring your neighbors or giving yourself a heart attack while driving the car! The low volume sections are sometimes barely audible, whereas when the orchestra 'booms' it's deafening. Probably not the CD's fault, but something I found a little problematic.

The late great Carlos Kleiber could see into Beethoven's mind in a way that no other conductor has been able to do. From the first bars, his interpretation showed a completely new understanding. But the real question must be why Carlos could see into this music in a way that not even his late dad Erich was able to do. Personally, I suspect that Kleiber fils started where Erich left off. But why were our totemic leaders (like Karajan, Böhm, Furtwängler, Haitink, Jochum, Maazel and Wand) not able to penetrate what we all thought was a fairly simple score? Another similar barrier might help answer this question. Look at Beethoven's Missa Solemnis and we find a similar story. The only conductor to get under the skin of this work was a non-typically Beethoven conductor, Nikolaus Harnoncourt who miraculously achieved the deep insight that was missing. (But sadly he died just afterwards). The truth probably is that the scores of the great works never really reveal what the composer was after. No wonder then that conductors who think that their job is to interpret the score miss the possibility of playing what the composer intended, not what he wrote. What would Carlos have gone on to achieve had he not died young (that is young for a conductor, who tend to live long lives)?

Happy with purchase. New. No damage to case as sometimes happens. Excellent recording. Just what is was after.

Both symphonies are long held favourites of mine, being representative of Beethoven at the height of his powers. Knowing that this recording has long been the primary recommendation, I treated myself to it. The moving slow movement of the Seventh is particularly impressive to the extent that I almost convinced myself I was hearing it for the first time. A great buy.

LOVELY CONDITION

Très belle interprétation des symphonies 5 et 7 de Beethoven, que je redécouvre !

08-07-2014-------Ok, Ok, so i'l join the legions of fans marching to the abyss of extasey with this gold Standard 5th and 7th with Carlos Kleiber and the Vienna philharmonic on DGG.Not since the release of the Gorecki 3rd Symphony, "of Sorrowful Songs, " hs Classical Music enoyed such rabid popurity, so why is this so? Well, for one thing, Kleiber, to my ears, simply lets the eenergy and vitality of the composer sing out naturally and we can ear Beethoven as he really was. That's areat in itself as so many conductors think they have his voice in hand. Kleiber prefers to stand to the side and I, for one, appreciate that move. the 7th in A, a symphony I prefer to the more famous little brother 5th, is particularly notable for the gripping soaring and wonderuflly poignant Adagio funeral march. The Symphony #5 in c-minor runs a compact 33:22 and the 7th is abit longer at 38;36, and both have a fully satisfying well reared feel to them. Kleiber, noted for his detailed and meticulou and very particular venues, making his USA Debut in 1978, age 48 with the CSO. In fact, that Chicago performance was his only American date in his 74 lears of life, which also included a tota;of pn;y 96mcncerts total, in any country. opera dates were restricted to about 400 in total. He was offered the Md post of the Berlin Phil. but declined and sometimes, instead of a money fee for service. he would opt for a specially engineered Audi, tailored to his specifications. Yes, Kleiber was eccentric, but a genius and Claudio Abbado said of him, that he was "one of the greatest, if not THE greatest conductors of the 20th Century." High praise from a high place--WOW! BBC Music Magazine stated in it's March issue in 2011, that CK had been selected as "the greatest conductor of all-time." He came in ahead of Bernstein and Abbado, two pretty heavy-duty names. All in all, despite the interesting figure of the artist, a titan amongst smaller, yet equally earnest peers, Kleiber was, noted for being a maestro who understood these works on the essential visceral level, deeply, totally, lovingly and with an uncompromisingly keen sense of balance and appropriateness. This disc comes highly recommended. and a stratospheric 5 star stretch, as few of my other reviews have ever contained. I find, unfortunately, little if any evidence of his having recorded the entire Beethoven cycle, but I'm still searching. If so, it could be a once in a lifetime treasure to unearth and purchase, anyone know if he did such a project?? Until then, best wishes and God bless you, everyone, Tony. AMDG!!

Mit dieser Aufnahme beweist Kleiber wieder einmal sein ganzes Können und zeigt, welch tiefes Verständnis er für Beethovens meisterhafte Musik besitzt. Bereits mit der Einspielung von Brahms 4. Sinfonie, die ich zu meinem Glück ebenso sehr in meiner Musiksammlung schätzen darf, landete dieser Dirigent für mich eine absolute Referenzaufnahme. Somit habe ich mit gutem Gewissen und hohen Erwartungen zu dieser CD gegriffen und wurde in keiner Hinsicht enttäuscht. Das Schicksal klopft an die Tür, und diesmal aber richtig! Wo andere beim Kreieren des Spannungsbogens nur kläglich scheitern, schafft dieser Dirigent ein beispielloses Wunder der Dramatik. Genau so knisternd habe ich mir Beethovens Musik immer vorgestellt, nur langweilte und ärgerte ich mich bisher bei vielen Beethoven Einspielungen immer wieder über schlappe, kraftlose Spannungsmomente, die des Unvermögens ihrer Interpreten wegen, einfach nicht ihren Höhepunkt erreichten. Ja, Beethovens Musik wirklich schön zu spielen erfordert eben äusserst grossen Anspruch, und zwar mehr als sich die meisten zutrauen mögen. Doch an Kenntnis und Kompetenz mangelt es Carlos Kleiber nicht im Mindesten. Kleiber erfindet zusammen mit den Wiener Philharmonikern einen Klang, dem es, was gewaltige Kraft, Tiefe und vollständig ausgereizte Spannungsdynamik anbelangt, an nichts fehlt. Hört man die Bedachtheit der etlichen Details, die aus den einzelnen Sinfonien liebevoll herausgearbeitet wurden, erkennt man ganz deutlich, wie sehr sich Kleiber in diese Werke versenkt haben muss und wie bedacht und respektvoll er den Umgang mit Meisterpartituren pflegt. Die Arbeit, die hier geleistet wurde, ist wirklich grandios und ich kann nur sagen: „Bravo!“. Wenn man sich vorstellt, mit wie viel technischer Ungenauigkeit zu Beethovens Zeit noch an diese Musik herangegangen wurde, kann man sich fast denken, Beethoven würde heute vor Freude weinen.

Tout a tellement été dit sur les grandes symphonies de Beethoven qu’il n’y a plus d’argument qui puisse encore en nourrir le débat. Par conséquent, tout commentaire ne saurait être que l’écho d’un discours maintes fois ressassé et désormais obsolète, duquel la crainte du ridicule m’invite à m’abstenir. Sans quoi, autant commenter la Joconde! Mais... Il convient toutefois de rappeler qu’aux côtés des grandes références de ces 9 symphonies que sont les intégrales de Furtwängler (EMI mono), de Karajan (DG 1962), et de Harnoncourt sur instruments d’époques (Teldec) autour desquelles le consensus n’est plus à remettre en question, il y a tout de même de précieux enregistrements séparés - fleurons incontournables de toute discothèque classique digne de ce nom – qui n’ont jamais encore été surpassés. La 3ème (Héroïque) par Otto Klemperer par exemple, ainsi que les 6ème (Pastorale) et 9ième par Karl Böhm font partie de ceux-là. Enfin, pour ce qui est des 5ème et 7ème, c’est sans doute un Carlos Kleiber touché par la grâce qui, depuis le pupitre d’un Philharmonique de Vienne au meilleur de sa forme, porte encore le flambeau du plus incontournable de tous les enregistrements qui nous soient parvenus avant, et même – j’ose le prétendre - après lui. Et pour cause, jamais sensibilité, souci du détail et énergie n’auront aussi bien fusionné. Cela étant, peut-on prétendre connaitre ces 5ème et 7ème symphonies tant qu’on ne les connait pas dans cet enregistrement-là? Pour moi, la réponse est sans appel: C'est non.

Smooth purchase.