Customer Reviews

Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 / Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

By any measure this is one of the greatest Beethoven Ninths on disc. The quality of the interpretation hasn't been well stated in the reviews here, however.

Karajan in 1962 wanted to perform Beethoven in a modern way compared to the overtly spiritual, often very slow, heavy, and rubato-laden style of the past in Germany. This recording is a lyrical Ninth in many ways: the entire slow movement is lightly voiced and songful, and in the last movement Karajan takes the vocal line faster and with more smoothness, less effort than usual.

By comparison, Karajan wasn't as hectically fast or intense as Toscanini, not as straight-faced and diect as Weingartner, not as willful and overplayed as Stokowski, not as granitic and solemn as Klemperer. He was finding his own way, and being the master conductor of the age, his aproach is fascinating in every bar.

The overall impression is a natural arc moving from the mystery of the opening bars to the palpable joy and reverence of the finale. In this respect his 1962 Ninth is unique.

Now as to the sound. The chorus is very large and remotely placed, which can make it sound diffuse but not murky or muffled as some have claimed. The winds are recorded forward of the strings rather than in their midst. As with many mono recordings, the mike placement gives the perspective, not of a front-row seat, much less a conductor's x-ray perspective, but a middle-row--this means that there is much less highlighting of solos than we are used to from digital recordings and multi-microphones. The blending of voices is more obvious here, especially in the woodwinds.

That's all I wanted to point out. Whether this Ninth is the "greatest" is a bit of a pointless contest, but its excellence is undeniable. Five stars well deserved.

This is Herbert von Karajan's THIRD of FIVE recordings of Beethoven's last and probably greatest symphony. It boasts the finest solo quartet on disc, the finest orchestral playing, but in the end, something is missing. This recording gets off to a great start with an electrically intense, gloriously played first movement. Karajan's ideal orchestral texture is at the service of emotion and interpretation, as it is in all his greatest recordings - and not the other way around, as it is in almost all of his recordings from the last twenty years of his life. The scherzo is similarly intense, at a fast tempo, and similarly well played, but the recording is a handicap: the all-important timpani lack presence and volume. But the third movement is probably the weakest part of this recording. The adagio gets it off to an excellent start with playing of hushed beauty from the Berlin Philharmonic. But as soon as we enter the andante moderato section, the spell is broken. This section is marked "espressivo" and piano, but we get matter-of-fact playing somewhere between mezzo piano and mezzo forte. A comparison to Furtwängler's recording (EMI Great Recordings of the Century) reveals the hushed, flowing serenity that this movement lacks in Karajan's hands. But as soon as we reach the finale, started off by a particularly jolting dissonance, all troubles are forgotten for the moment. Karajan's direction does not become matter-of-fact as we are taken on what can easily seem like a whistle-stop highlights tour of the first three movements. But then, with the hushed entrance of the famous "Joy" theme, we run into trouble again. Karajan's tempo for this section strikes me as too fast, and the playing is not as quiet and meditative as it can and should be. When the Joy theme comes floating in on the high violins, Karajan totally misses the essential serene sweetness: again, compare Furtwängler. When the theme enters on the brass and timpani, Karajan's tempo is exactly right: but here is where a tempo fluctuation would have been better. Furtwängler, the master of tempo fluctuation, starts this passage out slowly and meditatively, brings the violins with tender beauty, and then accelerates in the few crescendoing bars before the big statement of the theme. However, once we hear the dissonance again, we are in among the best solo team on disc. Walter Berry's voice sounds unusually dark and rich, easily encompassing the taxing two octave span of the bass-baritone part, Waldemar Kmentt's tenor has power and security (if not the tonal beauty of Hopf for Furtwängler), Hilde Rössel-Majdan sings richly and with great authority ... but the crowning glory of this set is the incredibly beautiful voice of Gundula Janowitz. She was only twenty-five when this recording was made in October 1962, but she easily surpasses every other soprano in this part ever, including the magnificent Schwarzkopf for Furtwängler. She sings the most taxing, high stretches with amazing ease, where every other soprano sounds somewhat strained, and she still manages to float over the soloists and chorus easily. No matter how many recordings of this symphony you may have, this one is essential for Janowitz's sublime singing. The chorus, on the other hand, is decidedly less impressive, and is not helped by the strangely backward balance - no match for the Philharmonia Chorus on Klemperer's 1957 set. But Karajan is inspired, and he conducts the last fifteen minutes with intense, magisterial power.

The next question is: how does it compare to other recordings? The answer is: it is very good, but not quite great. And I think the reason for this is that however intensely Karajan conducts, however magisterial the power of his conducting, he never achieves the inner fire, the spirituality, the incandescence of the truly great recordings of this symphony. There are only two recordings I have heard that have these qualities. The first is Klemperer's 1957 EMI recording, with the Philharmonia Chorus and Orchestra (the orchestra is every bit as good as the BPO, and the chorus is absolutely magnificent), which is in excellent stereo, but is seriously handicapped by the disappointing quartet of soloists, and, less seriously, by Klemperer's plodding tempo for the scherzo. My first choice, therefore, will always be Furtwängler's incandescent 1951 account, which has an excellent if somewhat nervous chorus and orchestra, a superb solo quartet, second only to this quartet, and, above all, Furtwängler himself, who is genuinely, greatly inspired, and communicates the radiant glory of this music with an Olympian yet still very human spirituality. However, it is in somewhat dry mono sound, with the chorus quite backwardly balanced, in addition to the audience noises (it was recorded at the concert that reopened the Bayreuth Festival on July 29, 1951). So my recommendation depends on whether you can take mono sound. If it is acceptable at all, get the Furtwängler immediately. If you must have stereo, take your pick between Klemperer and Karajan. Happy listening!

There are an awful lot of Karajan-haters out there. What I have noticed is criticisms generally range from "he was too smooth with his sounds, especially in his later years" to "The performance left me cold, it was too perfect" to "He was a Nazi, you knew that, right?" Well, I find most of these criticisms either irrelevant or naive. For all I know, old HvK may well have been a Nazi, but it certainly does not affect my opinion of his conducting, just like such things don't stop people from buying Mercedes-Benzes or Volkswagens. As for the other criticisms concerning smoothness, unity of sound and perfect execution, I ask you this: would you rather get a flavor of the conductor, or that of the composer? With overly interpretive conductors, you typically get a result that has the conductor's fingerprints in every nook and cranny, thus tarnishing the original intentions of the composer. This is not to say that Karajan has never altered tempo for his own aims at sound, but I like that Karajan let's it flow while engaged in a section, not constantly re-adjusting tempos, therefor not leaving his own stool behind, like so many conductors do (especially modern ones).

... anyways, about the music, this may well be the finest performance of this work. The tempi are furious in the opening and scherzo, as they should be. The hair on the back of my neck stands on end for the majority of the first two movements- we're talking Toscanini-fast tempi here. As for the slow movement, it is admirably pulled off if not quite as engaging as the preceding movements. In the finale, we have a vocal quartet which remains unsurpassed since, and a resultant finale that ranks among the all-time greats in terms of choice of tempi and overall performance execution. The BPO plays beautifully as well, these performances come from that orchestra's heyday. Only Solti's 1971 reading (with another fabulous quartet) comes close. Overall, there is not a better ninth in my opinion, where Karajan nails three of the movements and submits a rock-solid and effective slow movement, even if it is not as powerful as the others.

I have heard many 9ths, ranging from Bohm (1971), Abbado (1985, 1999), Bernstein (1978), Solti (1971), Karajan (1962, 1977, and 1982), Giulini (1972?), Szell (1962), Wand (1984), Fricsay (1958), Klemperer, Toscanini and Furtwangler...but for a combination of interpretation, drama and sound, this is my choice. Fricsay runs 2nd, and Solti 3rd. And I mean no disrespect to the Klemperer, the Toscanini or the Furtwangler, but that mono/early stereo sound is just AWFUL and really detracts from my experience.

I have 21 kinds of Beethoven 9th symphony. Permformnaces of Beethoven 9th symphony are divided into two classes. One class is performed with 18~19th century style, such as Gardiner's and Herreweghe's. Another class is performed with modern style such as Toscanini's, Karajan's, Bernstein's. This Performance is completely performed with modern style by Karajan. Well-trained orchestra, big and intense sound, exaggerated expression, and elegant strings are the characteristics of this performance. Even if I have 21 kinds of Beethoven 9th symphony, my frequent choice for listning is this performance.(But, if you want to choose 19th century style performance, do not choose this one.) The biggest advantage of this performance is the fugue in 4th movement. You can listen the most intense fugue in this performance; It's incredible. Soloists are also very nice. Especially Gundula Janowitz(sop.)'s voice is remarkable. Though I do not think this performance is the most standard one, you'd better listen to this, if you're a fan of 9th symphony. You'll love this.

My title pretty much sums it up. I have listened to many recordings of this masterpiece, but this one is certainly the best. Each movement is a jewel polished to perfection, and yet the performance very human, filled with the youthful enthusiasm that von Karajan had then. The first movement is wonderful; it is packed with drama, and a whole gamut of emotions are released in this intense performance. There is just the right balance between the sections of the orchesta; in most performances, the percussion simply dominates the rest of the orchestra, making you feel like you are listening to the drum and bugle corps, but not in this one. In most performances, the second movement is either taken much too slow, or the conductor moves too quickly for the orchestra and the performance is sloppy. However, von Karajan and the BPO work especially well together here, producing a spritely, energetic scherzo, with a refreshing breather in the form of a peaceful trio. Despite what other reviewers might say, I think that the slow movement is one of the best parts of this recording. Every measure is the epitomy of sublime music, everything is lyrical to perfection. The orchestra reaches a brilliant climax, and then dies away with a peaceful ending.
With just these three movements, this would be a classic recording. But the finale simply steals the show. The soloists are absolutely perfect; particularly Janowitz is magnificent, since in most other recordings that part is overbearing to say the least, but even in the most prominent and difficult parts, Janowitz works perfectly with the other soloists and the orchestra. Delightfully, despite the magnificent soloists, the orchestra is not overshadowed; in fact it comes into its own here and makes for a unique and beautiful artistic experience. A must for any serious collector.

The singing in this recording is wonderful, especially that of soprano Gundula Janowitz, and the orchestra does an excellent job overall. There are a few intonation issues and other small problems here and there. Sometimes the orchestra needs a bar or two to get back in sync when Karajan makes tempo changes. I liked the tempos Karajan takes; not too slow like other conductors I've heard. He also uses the chorus madrigalistically when they sing the words "All who can call at least one soul theirs, /Join in our song of praise; /But any who cannot must creep tearfully /Away from our circle." (They drastically reduce their volume when singing about creeping tearfully away from the circle.)

The worst aspect of this recording by far is the recording itself. Aside from the tape hiss (not too horrible, but audible) which can be expected of a 1962 recording, there are some very major technical problems with this recording. At the very beginning of the first movement it sounds like the recording engineer didn't have the levels set correctly, and in later movements there is some stereo weirdness that is somewhat distracting. In the fourth movement, the soloists sound great, but the chorus sounds like they are behind a large piece of cloth or something. The timpani generally sound like dead pots. Of course microphone placement and recording technology have improved since 1962, but this is definitely on the bad end of the spectrum of recordings from that time period.

Buy this recording for its musical excellence (especially the singing), but be aware that there are technical problems with it.

Herbert von Karajan made no less than 4 studio recordings of Beethoven's 9th symphony. One was a mono recording for EMI with the Philharmonia Orchestra of London. Avid Karajan will want that for its youthfulness.

This recording is the second, made in 1962 in Berlin as part of an integral cycle of all nine of Beethoven symphonies.

The third recording was made in 1977 for DG as part of another recording of the complete 9 symphonies.

The fourth was made in the 1980s for DG again, this time in digital sound. I won;t even consider that recording. It is inferior to this one and the 1977 recording in too many ways to even enter into the picture.

Karajan's vision of Beethoven's pioneering masterpiece deserves its place alongside many others, including Furtwangler, Klemperer, Fricsay, Weingartner, and many others. One of the beauties of Beethoven is that many different interpretations are possible, valid, and most often extremely rewarding. I will make no effort to pit Karajan against other interpreters. Take it as it is. It is magnificaent.

That said, I would not want to be without either this recording or the 1977 recording. But if I had to chose only one, it would be this 1962 version. This recording is one of those rare studio recordings that has an electricity about it that you normally only find in live events, particularly those that have some sense of occasion about them. Furtwangler's 1952 live recording at the reopening of the Bayreuth Festspiel would be a good comparison. Another is the 1989 live recording DG made of the 9th with Leonard Bernstein in celebration of the tearing down of the Berlin wall. Both of those live recordings exuberated a sense of victory and celebration that takes the music to a level that can rarely ever be achieved in recording sessions. This Karajan 1962 9th is one of those rare recordings. I admire Karajan's 1977 recording very much, especially in the recently remastered version (see Amazon ASIN # B00008CLNP) where the close multiple microphone techniques of DG in the 1970s seem to have been mitigated well with digital technology. There is a maturity about the 1977 account that is certainly superior to the 1962 account. But when it is all said and done, this recording leaves me more satisfied than the 1977 recording. Want an example? Just play the last 3 minutes of both recordings and you'll sense the difference. The 1977 recording just ends, period. This 1962 recording comes to a climax that you are stunned with. I expect an audience to instantly begin clapping and continue the celebration. I actually sometimes feel a letdown because there is no ovation for me to join in. The solists in the 1962 account are much more brilliant than their 1962 counterparts, especially Gundula Janowitz. And these last 3 minutes are the most convincing demonstration of their supriority also.

That says enough about why I overall prefer this recording to the 1977 reading.

Beethoven recordings are like Lays potato chips. Who can possible settle for only one? Get yourself several recordings of the Beethoven 9th symphony. Other reviewers of this recording have spelled out the merits of many other recordings. Get some of them, and this one too. Your musical experience will be much greater if you do.

Most of my life I have listened to and enjoyed Classical music. My teenage son has a deep appreciation for it as well. I am not a professional reviewer, but when I stumbled onto this recording it brought back memories that can still be stirred by a fine recording. Due to it's source recording being almost 30 years old there is a lack of crispness I have grown to appreciate that CD's bring out. This re release however still offers the magic that only a great composer and conductor can bring to the ear. There is no other way to explain it.

I have almost always stuck by the first recordings I buy for classical music. The only exceptions being the cheap Laserlight cd's I would buy in high school and college.

The first cd I had of Beethoven's Ninth was Solti's 1971 recording. I thought it was great and really enjoyed the soloists and chorus. I had heard much about this recording and thought I would give it a try. Wow.

I believe it has more power, depth, and enjoyment than any recording of the Ninth I have ever heard. There are instrumental parts that I had not heard before but are brought out here to great effect. The soloists are absolutely fantastic. I love Walter Berry and have played the beginning of track 6 (the Baritone entrance) about a thousand times. This cd must be in every classical music lover's collection.

The Ninth Symphony is certainly Beethoven's greatest work, his masterpiece, and in this recording von Karajan conducts the Berliner Philharmoniker in a stellar performance. Usually there is at least one movement that is weaker than the others, but not here. Under von Karajan's direction each movement could be considered a triumph by itself, especially the final movement with it's exquisite chorus. Add to this Deutsche Grammophon's "Original Image Bit Processing" technology, which allows the re-creation of the original sound image of the performance, and the result is the finest Ninth it has ever been my pleasure to enjoy. I have owned many different recordings of this work, but I'll never need to look for another- von Karajan and the Berliner Philharmoniker can't be topped!