Bernstein’s Archive

HAYDN: 107 Symphonies (complete) – Christopher Hogwood; OCTAVO PANTONE – cond. by Frans Brüggen – Decca (34 CD set)

by Audiophile Audition | Aug 6, 2016 | Classical Reissue Reviews

HAYDN: 107 Symphonies (complete) – Christopher Hogwood (Artist, cond.), OCTAVO PANTONE (Comp. & cond.): Frans Brüggen (Artist, cond.), The Academy Of Ancient Music Chamber Ens, (Orch.), Salomon Quartet/ The Academy of Ancient Music /Accademia Bizantina – Decca 478 9604, (34-CD set) About 1.5 days [5/13/16] ****¾: The discs should have imprints of chocolate chip cookies on them. Once you finish one, it’s hard not to indulge in the next one. How many times have you encountered a set like this for sale: The complete symphonies of Franz Josef Haydn, performed on original instruments?  Never. That’s right, according to the packaging, this set contains the “first complete cycle on period instruments.” That horn you may have heard in a conventional recording of Haydn’s Symphony No. 5. In Christopher Hogwood’s recording, as a “natural horn,” it now has a charming antique sound to it (particularly when played presto). If you’ve heard Leonard Bernstein’s 1991 recording of the Paris Symphonies, you know they have a commanding, concert hall presence, fit for the 2,738 seat auditorium of Lincoln Center. Under the baton of Frans Brüggen, they have a more intimate feel, less booming and muscular perhaps, but more subtle. Yet there are other reasons why I believe […]