Customer Reviews

American Masters: Harris / Thompson / Diamond (Bernstein Century)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This a great CD. The sound is incredible and the works have been greatly underrated. They deserve a place in e4veryome's collection, not just those interested in American music.

There are two Bernstein Harris 3rds readily available at present (not counting the one issued by the NY Philharmonic in one of its 10-CD special editions) and this is the better of the two. The performance is sleeker and more rousing and the sound is more open and inviting. Even the coupling is better: Schuman's 3rd (on DG) is pleasant, but the Diamond and Thompson symphonies offered here will leave you wondering why these works aren't a staple of American orchestras. Highly recommended.

I don't know if this CD is in the top five of all-time American symphonic recordings. Heck, it might be in the top two! All three of these symphonies are great, especially, of course, Harris' Third Symphony. I feared hearing that symphony at one time because I thought it might be overrated. It isn't. And this recording from the 1960s might even be better than Bernstein's later digital recording on DG, as good as that one is. I don't find Thompson's symphony dull as some, and Diamond's symphony is a cut above many (sorry about the pun!). Diamond, in fact, might be one of the most underrated composers ever. I'll put it this way, hoss -- This is All-American music recorded by the All-American team of Bernstein and the NYPO. If you are interested in American symphonic music, to not have purchased this CD is simply un-American!

This is a great reissue of three of the best (and most accessible) symphonies from the middle of the century. My personal favorite is Diamond's gorgeous symphony, but how can one not love the lyrical Thompson also. Harris' symphony inaugurated the American sound that Copland and others developed in the 40s. All three pieces receive energetic, loving performances from Lennie whose earlier recordings of this (and other) repertoire are invariably better than later remakes. (The Harris was redone on DG, but this is far better.) The sound is good if a little dated. Don't let that scare you off, this is a special disc that all Americans should listen to at least once.

Roy Harris's Third Symphony is, without a doubt, the greatest American symphony ever composed and one of the greatest symphonic statements of all times. There are essentially five performances to choose from: Koussevitsky, which is a great performance but the 1939 sound quality makes it uncompetative; Jarvi/Detroit, easily the worst recording available: Jarvi rushes through the entire thing without conveying any emotion or drama, almost as if he was in a hurry; Mata/Dallas, very good sound, solid performance, a good third choice; Bernstein's 1985 live recording for DG (now available on a budget CD with William Schuman's Third Symphony and the Barber Adagio for Strings), quite good but not as good as-; Bernstein's 1961 studio recording for Sony (this CD), the best of them all.
What makes the earlier Bernstein performance the best of the lot is the way in which Bernstein holds the work together, building tension as it develops, and never letting you forget that this is a one movement symphony in which each of the sections develops naturally from the last one. The drama and tragedy is all there, with a particularly rousing "big tune" in the middle, making it one of the most memorable tunes in all of American music. The closing bars of the symphony are shattering in their intensity. Bernstein's later performance for DG does not maintain this level of intensity throughout and, compared to the earlier one, actually sounds a bit (just a bit) lackluster at times. (I say this despite the fact that I usually prefer Bernstein's later recordings, including his later recording of Copland's Third Symphony for DG, recorded at the same 1985 concert as he recorded the later Harris Third!) The development section at the beginning is not held together as well as in the earlier Sony recording. The emergence of the "big tune" is not as exciting in this later performance, nor are the tragic last bars as hard hitting. The digital sound on the DG recording is nice, but the remastered Sony recording does not pale in comparison. In fact, it is one of the best remastered recordings I've ever heard from Sony. It is very clear, with a very strong dynamic impact, and minimal tape hiss. I was actually surprised the recording sounded so good, given when it was recorded. So while it's worthwhile to get the DG recording for the Schuman Third and Barber it is coupled with, the ultimate Harris Third will forever be this Sony recording.
The Thompson Second Symphony is a truly wonderful piece of American music, anything but dull. It is easy to enjoy and remains quite memorable long after it's over. It may not be as deep as the Harris, but it's an American masterpiece nonetheles. I am not a huge fan of the Diamond Fourth Symphony, but it is interesting, and deserves to be heard. Both of these symphonies are played to perfection by Bernstein and the NY Philharmonic.
In sum, this CD is a must own for lovers of American symphonic music, and it contains what is undoubtedly the best recording of Roy Harris's Third Symphony you'll ever hear.

[Later note: I have recently heard one last contender in the Harris Third recordings, the recently released Marin Alsop/Colorado SO on Naxos. This performance is definitely better than Jarvi in performance and Koussevitsky in sound quality but it is no match for either of Bernstein's two recordings. The Alsop performance is very underwhelming; she doesn't rush through it like Jarvi, but she doesn't give it the weight it needs to make an impact. The opening doesn't generate any tension and the entry of the "big tune" is very disappointing. It probably rates slightly behind Mata's Dallas recording, if only because of Mata's superior orchestra and sound. This 1961 Bernstein recording is still the best one ever done and will probably remain so!]

Randall Thompson's Symphony No. 2 is one of my favorite pieces, and this is the best recording of it of the three available. It is an American masterpiece, very melodic, but also rhythmically complex (in movements 1 and 3) and challenging to perform. Contrary to the uninformed comments of "hh01", the symphony was NOT written to fulfill the requirements of a doctorate in music (Thompson did receive an honorary doctorate a year after the Symphony premiered, but that was not the reason for its creation); and while the first four notes of the finale are indeed the same as "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," that is a complete coincidence, as the symphony was written twelve years BEFORE the song.

The CD also contains wonderful performances of the Harris Third and Diamond Fourth Symphonies, which are great companions to the Thompson.

Except for the Thompson Symphony, which is duller than dirt, this recording is probably a last opportunity to enjoy two of the great masterpieces of American Classical music. David Diamond's 4th symphony is his most popular, and this recording by his, one time, friend, Leonard Bernstein, is the best one that has ever been done. Gerald Schwartz dragged the tempi intolerably on his recording of the same work, but if it were not for Schwartz, we would have almost nothing of Diamond available.

Diamond is the most under-rated of all Amercian composers, and he is the most articulate. The transistion from LP to CD has not been kind to him, to say the least.

The Harris third symphony is that composer's masterpiece, and it is a seamless work of perfection, superbly performed by Bernstein and the orchestra. Would that the Thompson had been bypassed for Bernstein's own Symphony No. 1, which was the original companion on LP to the Harris.

These three symphonies are American symphonic classics and these performances by Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic are also classics. These are my favorite recordings of both the Harris and the Thompson; by the way, when was the last time you heard the Thompson in concert? It's ludicrous that it isn't programmed more often. The Diamond has had a sonically better recording from Gerard Schwarz and the Seattle Symphony, but I prefer Bernstein's way with the symphony, although Schwarz's effort isn't chopped liver, come to think of it. Neeme Järvi recorded the Thompson when he was with the Detroit Symphony, I seem to recall, but it didn't make much impression on me, although obviously the sound is more modern.

One of the previous reviewers commented that there was a lot of tape hiss on these recordings -- they do, after all, come from 1961, 1968 and 1958 respectively -- but I don't find it at all objectionable. It is perhaps most noticeable in the Diamond. The Philharmonic play as if to the manner born, as indeed with this repertoire they were.

Add to all this the budget price and this is a clear recommendation for those who don't know these wonderful symphonies or own these performances in previous incarnations.

Scott Morrison

In the 1970s, Roy Harris told me the 1939 recording of his Third Symphony made by Serge Koussevitsky and the Boston Symphony was the best one; and there's no recorded performance so spirited. But of all the modern performances, he said to "get Lenny's" with this one. And you can sure hear why.

This is a favorite disk. The Harris and Thompson symphonies are for me a revelation - great performances by Bernstein and the Philharmonic. As noted in one of the reviews, both the orchestra and Bernstein very much as home in this music. My only preference, I much prefer the 1990 Delos, Gerard Schwarz, Seattle Symphony recording of the Diamond 4th to this version. Diamond worked specifically with Schwarz on this recording, it reveals some refinement, subtleties and precision lacking in the Bernstein reading. I recommend the Schwarz, Seattle version now available on Naxos - perhaps my favorite piece of American orchestral music.

Excellent performances. Leonard Bernstien with the New Yorkers at their best in these home grown pieces. Considering the age of the original recordings the remastering to CD is excellent.