Reissue CD Reviews
SCHUMANN: Symphony No. 4 in D Minor, Op. 120; BRAHMS: Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 98 - Berlin Philharmonic (Schumann)/ Philharmonia Orchestra/ Herbert von Karajan - EMI
A rare Schumann symphony from 1955 and a Brahms 4th from l957 in stereo
Published on December 05, 2005
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SCHUMANN: Symphony No. 4 in D Minor, Op. 120; BRAHMS: Symphony
No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 98 - Berlin Philharmonic (Schumann)/ Philharmonia
Orchestra/ Herbert von Karajan
EMI Classics 7243 4 76881 2 68:25****:
The rarity on this reissue is definitely the Schumann D Minor Symphony recorded 26 May 1955, and issued in mono on LP in ten-inch format. Schumann’s orchestral music was not a high priority in the Karajan canon, and his approach is brisk, even perfunctory in the Toscanini tradition, although the emphasis on beauty and luster of tone is strong. Along with the hefty strings, upper and lower, the tympani part receives salient miking. No break between the first two movements, as Schumann requires. The Romanze proceeds diaphanously, with the unnamed concertmaster’s intoning the tracery of the violin part most delicately. Karajan plays the Scherzo for its vibrant, singing quality, executing its martial rhythms with tongue in cheek. The 16th notes which act as combination bridge-trio passage receive a glib series of runs, only to return to the dancing march of the original opening. Some wonderful diminuendi for the progression to the Lebhaft section of the finale, much more thoughtful than prior, perhaps aware of both the Cantelli and Furtwaengler dimensions afforded this fateful transition. Karajan plays the finale for alternating sonic clusters, occasionally turning the antiphons into chamber music, until the tympani urges itself on the proceedings; then to the fugato, the soul of transparent, romantic polyphony. Mannheim rockets take us to and through the lyric and hurried coda, a virtuoso rendition whose last page shimmers with a glitzy excitement.
The Brahms E Minor (25-26 April 1957, stereo) achieves the fluid buoyancy we associate with Karajan more thoughtful temperament, although I wonder if Celibidache’s period influence in Berlin (1948-1953) might be present in the handling of cadences and the strong emphases on the pizzicati in the strings. Karajan milks the opening movement’s rising and falling thirds to good effect in the winds, even to bringing out a bit of Hungarian dance before the recapitulation. The tonal warmth of the Philharmonia strings is worth noting for the second movement, and Dennis Brain’s horn part always resounds resplendently, a joy to hear. Fine pacing for the last two movements of the E Minor, reminding me how much sympathy Karajan had for Brahms, first revealed to me in his 1947 A German Requiem with Schwarzkopf and Hotter. The variations for the finale wind up a forceful, thoughtful momentum; a solid peroration which makes this rendition, along with the Schumann, a notable musical reference in the Karajan Collection.
--Gary Lemco
EMI Classics 7243 4 76881 2 68:25****:
The rarity on this reissue is definitely the Schumann D Minor Symphony recorded 26 May 1955, and issued in mono on LP in ten-inch format. Schumann’s orchestral music was not a high priority in the Karajan canon, and his approach is brisk, even perfunctory in the Toscanini tradition, although the emphasis on beauty and luster of tone is strong. Along with the hefty strings, upper and lower, the tympani part receives salient miking. No break between the first two movements, as Schumann requires. The Romanze proceeds diaphanously, with the unnamed concertmaster’s intoning the tracery of the violin part most delicately. Karajan plays the Scherzo for its vibrant, singing quality, executing its martial rhythms with tongue in cheek. The 16th notes which act as combination bridge-trio passage receive a glib series of runs, only to return to the dancing march of the original opening. Some wonderful diminuendi for the progression to the Lebhaft section of the finale, much more thoughtful than prior, perhaps aware of both the Cantelli and Furtwaengler dimensions afforded this fateful transition. Karajan plays the finale for alternating sonic clusters, occasionally turning the antiphons into chamber music, until the tympani urges itself on the proceedings; then to the fugato, the soul of transparent, romantic polyphony. Mannheim rockets take us to and through the lyric and hurried coda, a virtuoso rendition whose last page shimmers with a glitzy excitement.
The Brahms E Minor (25-26 April 1957, stereo) achieves the fluid buoyancy we associate with Karajan more thoughtful temperament, although I wonder if Celibidache’s period influence in Berlin (1948-1953) might be present in the handling of cadences and the strong emphases on the pizzicati in the strings. Karajan milks the opening movement’s rising and falling thirds to good effect in the winds, even to bringing out a bit of Hungarian dance before the recapitulation. The tonal warmth of the Philharmonia strings is worth noting for the second movement, and Dennis Brain’s horn part always resounds resplendently, a joy to hear. Fine pacing for the last two movements of the E Minor, reminding me how much sympathy Karajan had for Brahms, first revealed to me in his 1947 A German Requiem with Schwarzkopf and Hotter. The variations for the finale wind up a forceful, thoughtful momentum; a solid peroration which makes this rendition, along with the Schumann, a notable musical reference in the Karajan Collection.
--Gary Lemco
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