Brahms: Symphony No. 4; 8 Hungarian Dances [Hybrid SACD] [Hybrid SACD - DSD]

Johannes Brahms (Composer), Marek Janowski (Conductor), Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: Marek Janowski
• Composer: Johannes Brahms
• Audio CD (September 30, 2008)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Hybrid SACD - DSD
• Label: Pentatone
• ASIN: B001DELXGC
• Also Available in: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #125,584 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

ClassicsToday.com, David Hurwitz, October 2008

Marek Janowski concludes his superb Brahms cycle with this unquestionably great performance of the Fourth Symphony. Everything about it is memorable, stylish, and characterful. The first movement opens at a perfect tempo, and if you don't thrill to the way the strings bloom lushly in their answer to the woodwinds' initial phrase at the start of the second subject, then you may need medical attention. This passage reveals just one of the factors that makes Janowski's Brahms so special: his ability to inflect a phrase, to linger lovingly for just the right amount of time without ever breaking the long melodic line or compromising momentum. There's another wonderful example at the start of the finale, where the bowed strings come in "largamente" for the first time. So many conductors equate "passacaglia" with rhythmic stiffness. Janowski shows us that you can vary the tempo and heighten the emotional impact without becoming eccentric or sloppy.

In the Andante, Janowski once again finds an ideal tempo (truly "andante moderato" and not "adagio"), and he secures amazingly beautiful playing from the Pittsburgh strings and winds (clarinets and flutes, especially). When the "big tune" returns in the recapitulation, it has a positively Tchaikovskian fervor. The orchestra's glorious horn section really comes into its own in the scherzo, but then, this is truly great Brahms playing--warm, idiomatic, perfectly balanced, and rhythmically true, just like the conducting. The coupling consists of all the Hungarian Dances orchestrated by either Brahms himself or Dvorák, and they make a wonderful encore. Superbly realistic engineering in all formats provides the icing on the cake. Taken as a whole, this Brahms cycle belongs with the very finest (Levine, Klemperer, Dohnányi), and stands in a class of its own on SACD.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A direct and taut Brahms 4th, very well played and recorded, January 7, 2009

By 

Mr Darcy (Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brahms: Symphony No. 4; 8 Hungarian Dances [Hybrid SACD] (Audio CD)

Were I asked to recommend a single recording of the Brahms 4th Symphony, especially to someone for whom the work is new, I may well recommend this live recording of November 2007 with the excellent Pittsburgh Symphony under Marek Janowski.

Janowski's approach is essentially direct, with middle of the road tempos and consistency of pulse. It is tautly held together, but never cold - phrasing is pure but warm. Balances are very impressive - never is there a sense of one part of the orchestra being drowned out and, indeed, this performance reveals a level of instrumental detail and texture that is hard to match in my experience (thanks, no doubt, to the conductor as well as the recording team at Pentatone). The sound, overall, is full and clear, quite close but not unduly so (I listened to it in SACD stereo). And the playing of the orchestra? Superb - all departments.

The first movement sets forth in simple, almost understated fashion, a quality which I began to appreciate more and more in subsequent listenings in the context of a musical journey conveying a cumulative rise in tension. The transition to the coda and the coda itself are done very satisfyingly, showing ample contrast with the music that preceded it in tension and power but still presented as the natural culmination of the movement. A point of interest is that at the commencement of the coda Janowski appears to slow down the tempo just a touch, then shortly returns to a slightly quicker pace for the remainder. I didn't find this at all disruptive because it's subtle, and what is especially important is that Janowski ensures organic cohesion with the lead-up to the coda by resisting the temptation to speed up the tempo excessively, which can vulgarise the effect and, indeed, dissipate tension (Klemperer, Solti and Abbado are among the sinners). Karajan, in his performances from 1973 (DVD) and 1977 (CD), or even in his last recording (unjustly maligned in my view), remains the master in handling this coda in a way that creates enormous intensity whilst maintaining absolute continuity with the preceding music. Giulini (VPO) is also impressive in this respect.

Janowski keeps the second movement on a fairly tight rein with a flowing tempo, consistent with his overall approach. There is no sense of rushing, however, and Janowski is clearly sensitive to the movement's beauties. What particularly impresses is the delicacy of the playing, which lends an intimate, chamber like atmosphere to proceedings. By comparison, Karajan, who adopts a similarly flowing pace, is more stoic, although this works in the context of Karajan's spare approach to the entire work.

The third movement is muscular and weighty as well as energetic, played with great brio. Janowski is more ebullient than Karajan who takes a distinctively grim view of this movement.

The final movement is delivered forcefully and incisively, similar to Karajan, but not quite as driven as, say, Carlos Kleiber (VPO). Following the movement's quiet interlude, Janowski unleashes the Pittsburgh brass to thrilling effect as the movement gains in tension and momentum.

That Janowski does not interpret the score in a new or particularly individual way might be a factor for some (especially collectors) in deciding whether to purchase this CD. Janowski's account may not be as stark as some (eg Karajan/BPO) or as grand as others (eg Giulini/VPO), but he nonetheless conveys the music's austere and noble spirit with freshness and attention to detail, aided by stellar playing and excellent recorded sound. The absence of idiosyncracy may well be a huge plus for some, and Janowski's directness of approach does not translate into the routine and superficial (unlike, for example, Nagano in his fairly recent recording on harmonia mundi). It's a performance that I could turn to again and again for pleasure.

7 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow...sonic splendor!, November 12, 2008

By 

J. Milton "jmilton7043" (MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brahms: Symphony No. 4; 8 Hungarian Dances [Hybrid SACD] (Audio CD)

Greatly paced and stunningly recorded. Very realistic sound on a good system. Phrasing is just right. If you like Brahms, this recording will not disappoint. (SACD surround- caveat emptor)

1 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply Grandiose, Great, excellent, fabulos, June 14, 2010

By 

Denis Derigent - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Brahms: Symphony No. 4; 8 Hungarian Dances [Hybrid SACD] (Audio CD)

Top, Very thin, the sound quality is as usual with Pentatone exceptional!!!
Please Pentatone go to Bluray also with filmed concerto!!!
This SACD is Absolutely necessary in your collection if you hate mediocrity and love perfection.
Bravo Pentatone