Beethoven: The 9 Symphonies [Box set]

Ludwig van Beethoven (Composer), Wilhelm Furtwangler (Conductor), Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra), Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra), Bayreuth Festival Orchestra & Chorus (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, Bayreuth Festival Orchestra & Chorus
• Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwangler
• Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven
• Audio CD (July 1, 1991)
• Number of Discs: 5
• Format: Box set
• Note on Boxed Sets: During shipping, discs in boxed sets occasionally become dislodged without damage. Please examine and play these discs. If you are not completely satisfied, we'll refund or replace your purchase.
• Label: Angel Records / EMI
• ASIN: B000002S1Z
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #304,428 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21: 1. Adagio molto - Allegro con brio

2. Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21: 2. Andante cantabile con moto

3. Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21: 3. Menuetto (Allegro molto e vivace) & Trio

4. Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21: 4. Adagio - Allegro molto e vivace

See all 8 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 36: 1. Adagio molto - Allegro con brio

2. Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 36: 2. Larghetto

3. Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 36: 3. Scherzo (Allegro) & Trio

4. Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 36: 4. Allegro molto

See all 8 tracks on this disc

Disc: 3

1. Symphony No. 5 in C minor ('Fate'), Op. 67: 1. Allegro con brio

2. Symphony No. 5 in C minor ('Fate'), Op. 67: 2. Andante con moto - Piů mosso - Tempo 1

3. Symphony No. 5 in C minor ('Fate'), Op. 67: 3. Allegro

4. Symphony No. 5 in C minor ('Fate'), Op. 67: 4. Allegro - Presto

See all 8 tracks on this disc

Disc: 4

1. Symphony No. 6 in F major ('Pastoral'), Op. 68: 1. Awakening of happy feelings on arriving in the country (Allegro ma non troppo)

2. Symphony No. 6 in F major ('Pastoral'), Op. 68: 2. Scene by the brook (Andante molto mosso)

3. Symphony No. 6 in F major ('Pastoral'), Op. 68: 3. Merry gathering of the country folk (Allegro)

4. Symphony No. 6 in F major ('Pastoral'), Op. 68: 4. Storm and tempest (Allegro)

See all 9 tracks on this disc

Disc: 5

1. Symphony No. 9 in D minor ('Choral'), Op. 125: 1. Allegro ma non troppo, un poco maestoso

2. Symphony No. 9 in D minor ('Choral'), Op. 125: 2. Molto vivace

3. Symphony No. 9 in D minor ('Choral'), Op. 125: 3. Adagio molto e cantabile. Andante moderato. Adagio

4. Symphony No. 9 in D minor ('Choral'), Op. 125: 4. Presto. Allegro ma non troppo. Allegro assai. Presto. Allegro assai. Allegro assai

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply the best, February 12, 2000

By 

"y_botteron" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beethoven: The 9 Symphonies (Audio CD)

Furtwangler's Beethoven symphonies are now part of legend. Especially the Ninth symphony, recorded in Bayreuth just after WWII. This recording is full of tension and also of hope. No one ever understood Beethoven as well as Furtwangler. A must have for any Beethoven listener. (By the way, the recordings are in mono, but who cares ? )

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic, great, but there's one even better, July 21, 2000

By 

Joel Rafi Zabor (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beethoven: The 9 Symphonies (Audio CD)

As great as this set undoubtedly is, it is surpassed by Furtwangler's wartime performances of Symphonies 3 - 7 and the Ninth, now available, stupendously well remastered, on a 4CD set from Music & Arts. The set also includes the wartime 1942 Berlin Ninth, an inspiring, frightening thing that to me is clearly the greatest single orchestral performance ever recorded--also available as a single CD from Music & Arts, whose CEDAR remastering is now the only way in which to hear it, superceding all previous releases. The sound on the Eroica and the Fifth in the 4CD set is nearly miraculous in its clarity, given the age and circumstances of the recordings.

Furtwangler's postwar Beethoven performances are more Olympian, measured and serene--the Pastorale on the EMI set is unbeatable (except for a rare live version from 1947), its noble Eroica is a revelation, and the Seventh and Fourth may have an edge on their more hyper wartime version--but in general the voltage of the wartime performances, in which the conductor was trying to maintain the height of true human culture in the midst of our history's ultimate nightmare, is unmatchable. I hope the circumstances will never be repeated anywhere, but the turn of that particular screw wrung from the greatest of all recorded conductors the highest reaches of his extraordinary art. Fans of this great artist will, of course, want this set too.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A MUST FOR BEETHOVEN AND FURTWANGLER FANS!, October 19, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Beethoven: The 9 Symphonies (Audio CD)

I can't add much to the superlatives already expressed below except to quote the one and only Maria Callas while listening to a recording of the 8th symphony in a taxi and immediately recognizing the interpreter, "Furtwangler was Beethoven." You are not likely to hear this type of interpretation again, fully romantic, fully integrated and fully Beethoven. Truly inspired readings from the soul of Furtwangler and Beethoven. This has been remastered with EMI's ART technology and released in Europe (CHS 567496-2). The sound is considerably better, especially in Nos. 2 & 8. You might find more critically acclaimed individual interpretations of the symphonies, but as a whole, this is very impressive. Enjoy!