HINDEMITH: Symphony "Mathis der Maler"; Konzertmusik for Brass and Strings Op. 50 / JANACEK: Sinfonietta – Boston Symphony Orchestra / William Steinberg /London Symphony Orchestra / Claudio Abbado – HDTT 96K/24bit DVD-R (also available as Gold CD-R, HQCD CD, and both 96K/24 & 192K/24 FLAC downloads) [www.highdeftapetransfers.com] 65:45 ****:
HDTT has come up trumps again with this new release of classic recordings of Hindemith and Janacek conducted by William Steinberg and Claudio Abbado. Although these recordings, originally on LP or 4-track reel-to-reel tape, were reissued on CD by DGG and Decca, they are now only available used or as expensive Japanese imports.
Janacek’s Sinfonietta has such clear fingerprints, every bar instantly recognisable, and its popularity remains undiminished. The young Claudio Abbado set down this performance in the Kingsway Hall in 1969, and it and its coupling, Hindemith’s Symphonic Metamorphoses were considered spectacular recordings at the time. Certainly the LSO, especially its brass, still sound very well in that accommodating acoustic, engineered by Decca near the top of its game. Apart from a slower than average tempo for the start of the first movement, the performance still thrills.
William Steinberg took over from Erich Leinsdorf at the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s helm in 1969 and after a few recordings made for RCA including a terrific Bruckner Symphony No. 6 he made three marvellous recordings with them for DGG when ill-health curtailed his career. All three: Holst’s Planets, Strauss’s Also Sprach Zarathustra, and the Hindemith recordings featured here (recorded in Boston Symphony Hall in 1971), are well worth seeking out – the Holst and Strauss paired on DGG Originals.
Steinberg’s performances of both of the Hindemith pieces vie with the best, the composer’s own recordings, Blomstedt’s collection on Decca and Tortelier and Belohlavek on Chandos. On SACD available in the West, only the Concerto for Orchestra has appeared in a fine recording from Krisjan Järvi on Ccn’C 02962, so the opportunity for acquiring Steinberg’s recordings in high resolution form, transferred from DGG 4-track tape is very welcome. While the sound is not quite the equal of that on one of today’s well-recorded SACDs, it is certainly less constricted at 96K than on previous CD issues. Some of Hindemith’s big fat sounds expand wonderfully into the Boston Symphony Hall acoustic, and his upper string writing doesn’t suffer from digital glare. Years of experience with this music come to fruition in these recordings – Steinberg was always adventurous with repetoire.
As with the Nielsen issue I downloaded the 24/96 FLAC files and burned to DVD using the excellent HD-Audio Solo Ultra package from circlinca, which allows DVD-A or DVD-V formats to result. Since my universal players are equipped for DVD-A I went down that route, but the vast majority of today’s DVD players will give equivalent sound quality from a DVD-V (or DAD) disc. Prospective purchasers wary of technical involvement can buy individually burned and tested discs in a number of formats direct from HDTT. The end result is sound quality which belies its age. [I agree wholeheartedly. Even the HQ versions on standard CDs are amazing…Ed.]
— Peter Joelson
