Customer Reviews

Brahms: Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Kleiber's interpretation, as always, is unorthodox and puts it in a different category from the rest--the Kleiber category. This famous award-winning recording is one to keep alongside the your other Brahms 4 recordings--perhaps not your main recording, just the most powerful and riveting. It's a cliche, but once you start listening, nothing can distract you from following Kleiber all the way to the end. However, if you are not already familiar with this piece, I would not recommend Kleiber as the introduction to Brahms Symphony No. 4. Get another one first and then compare it to this one. You'll then see how Kleiber chooses to forsake the Romantic librato altogether with his trademark "clipped" phrasing and instead draws the listener into the underlying structure. At first one might think this is a emotionally "detached" reading, but paradoxically, it is actually the most passionate performance available. The CD cover photo shows how Kleiber really got into the dark mood of this terrifyingly tragic masterpiece. This is truly a listening experience unique in the world of classical music recordings.

The Amazon reviewer accurately identifies what makes this recording unique and indispensable with the phrase "cumulative power". No other recording I have heard is so compelling in this respect. The listener is caught up from the beginning and totally involved until the end. Kleiber does not attempt to soften or tame the music. Rather, he offers an interpretation that embraces the score in all of its awe-inspiring beauty.

Well, it is amazing what this recording has done among melomans as the reactions here prove it. And one thing is certain that this is no usual Brahms recording. On the contrary is a pretty remarcable happening in the recorded music history.

Now, let us consider the time of its appearance. It is 1981, some good years after almost all mentioned here as real Brahms achievers, at least on disc, were gone. Neither Furtwangler, Walter, Schuricht or Mengelberg were amongst us for a while then. So this recording came, in my opinion on a very dry land as far as good Brahms interpretations were considered. I might upset some here but Karajan and Abbado are far from understanding enough of Brahms to be real contenders here (Karajan judged well that the strings of Berliner can make a very beautiful sound with parts of this compositions). Giulini was doing a fine job even though he wasn't able to go really to the heart of this music.

So, here comes mister Kleiber who makes a new case for Brahms as an outstanding composer. A recording that entered the Big League completely worthy. All the sense, drama and music of the symphony were there, the Wiener played superbly (as they do not all the time). Kleiber masters the music and his orchestra, his control is complete and as usual his artistic intelligence takes out in the open all what is burried within the notes of this symphony. And he does it so energetically with such crispness and control, as many mentioned here. And I think that is where the whole thing suffers from my point of view.

It is true that Brahms' music is tragic and full of human passions and conflincting feelings. But can you really see the big beared man as being so crisp, so precise in his burst of energy, so "modern" lets say? I cannot. And that's why I am missing in this recording the warmth and deep yet intense and demanding expression of "humanity" you find in Walter or the very natural and less controled yet more powerful dramatic accents you find in Furtwangler. For me, here, between these two, one can find the ultimate expression of Brahms, as a complete musical and human experience.

Mr Kleiber gets four stars for understanding and expressing everything so well, with such perfection but is denied the last star for being to perfect and calculated. Briskness is not something that helps in Brahms in my opinion. As well as two focused energy.

But I have to agree with some of the reviewers. Try to listen as many recordings as possible to get the one that really "sings Brahms" to you

This DG performance of Brahms's symphonic swansong is one of the best versions of this powerful, heartfelt and life-affirming symphony ever recorded. With Carlos Kleiber at the helm of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, the experience that can be gained from listening to this fine performance is akin to the experience gained from listening to his Beethoven. Kleiber conducts the music with a keen sense of purpose, and he never fails to elicit a peerless and rapturous sound from the Viennese players. And to top it all off, DG gives Kleiber its typical top-drawer recording quality, with ample bloom and ambience on the sound.

Kleiber opens the first movement quietly and somewhat plaintively, setting the stage for the tragic destiny that the symphony is to present. This opening builds into a densely-argued movement, with the various strands of the argumentative thread tightly woven together and the contrasts in the quieter lyrical secions well brought out. The tensions of the first movement give way to calm and serenity in the second movement, with a rich and rounded horn sound, shimmering strings and lush woodwind contributions. When Kleiber lurches into the scherzo, he conducts it with a jubilant thrust that I have not encountered in many other recordings, even in Szell, and this is all the more so when the tempo of the music is driving and propulsive enough to bring out the rythmic spring. But in the passacaglia finale (which pays homage to Bach and, to some extent, the finale of Beethoven's Eroica symphony), Kleiber enables Brahms's passionate expression of tragic discourse speak for itself. The music has a driving force and emotional intensity that overshadows the quieter wind sections, and this is particularly so towards the end of the movement where the music displays the destiny that must be stormily confronted. The glory of the orchestra in these last few moments is enough to cap an excellent performance of a popular and life-affirming symphony.

On the whole, I find this performance an excellent version of the last Brahms symphony, and this is sure to be a basic staple in any beginner's classical music library.

Carlos Kleiber has the extraordinary ability to draw from a score the composer's intentions, coupled with an energy few other conductors have achieved since Arturo Toscanini. This recording on Brahms' Fourth Symphony was no exception.
Most often, conductors attempt to present an heroic mood which, for the most part, is fine, though it pales in comparison to Kleiber's interpretation, where he keeps a very dark and tragic feel throughout the symphony. Even the C Major Scherzo and the beautiful slow movement only seem to act as time passing, delaying the inevitable tragedy set forth by the first movement and the concluded with the last.
The lyricism of the VPO, the lush sound produced by the strings, and the presence of the winds are very evident in this recording, while control under the reigns held tightly by Kleiber give the piece much suspense, drama, and energy.

The first movement is quite lush and lyrical, the strings able to elicit a beautiful sound. The heroism that makes itself present in the second theme is, again, set behind an overall tragic atmosphere, Kleiber giving the feeling of an army bravely facing one twice it's size.
The second movement is quite beautiful and the balancing that Kleiber achieves between the sections is amazing. The horn solos are lovely. It's also very refreshing to hear pizzicato attacks that are together!
The third movement is jubilant, very much in the character of Brahms scherzos in earlier symphonies and Kleiber handles it very well. One can hear the string passages executed cleanly and flawlessly. The energy is everpreseent in this movement and, again using the previous analogy, Kleiber gives the feeling of a brief victory.
The fourth movement is tragic through and through, even during moments of delicate beauty. I personally like this interpretation of the fourth movement, despite Kleiber's tendency to change tempos more often then he usually does, because the Piu Allegro coda actually sounds Piu Allegro. Far too often I find recordings where, though the tempo actually does move faster, the change of phrase from three to a bar to one to a bar prevents the faster tempo from coming through. Here, Kleiber takes it a tempo that feels faster in the new phrase division and gives the coda a climactic drive leading to
a tragic finale filled with a sense of both martyrdom and final despair.
Overall, the recording made by Carlos Kleiber and the Vienna Philharmonic is exquisite. Though there are a few times where the rhythm and cohesiveness is lost for a few moments, these are only minor flaws. The playing is generally very clean and lush and I'm always happy to hear a thoughtful timpanist and brass section, who never overpower when they aren't neccessary to do so. The balancing is spectacular, every chord is crisp and powerful, and the dynamics are followed to the letter. It's everything that one would want in a Brahms' Symphony No. 4, with the delicacy, drama, and power from the touch of a master like Carlos Kleiber.

There are few symphonies as melodic and memorable as Brahms's Fourth, arguably his best. And, although there are other good performances (Walter, Abbado, Sanderling) of this wonderful piece, Kleiber is a master at clarifying the Classical era influences upon Brahms in this performance. True, Brahms was considered a Romantic, but like Beethoven, he could not completely escape the era that pervaded his early life. Walter in his performance of this symphony omitted this Classical nuance, and although his interpretation is intriguing and also beautiful, I feel that Kleiber's is more representative and compelling.

The sonics on this digital recording are excellent. Unlike earlier DG recordings, the strings are sweeping without the "edge" that made you want to soften the treble. In a nutshell this is a great symphony performed magnificently in stunning sound quality.

Brahms' 4th symphony (somewhat easy to perform acceptably, painstakingly hard to execute brilliantly!) poses a challenge for orchestras and conductors alike. Complex and shifting metric structures, broad, exuberant, often non-linear melodies, conservative instrumentation yet progressive orchestration; it is an exercise in rhythmic rigor, melodic ardor and textural management.

The catalog is blessed with dozens of recordings and many of them are nothing short of fantastic. I particularly cherish Abbado's 1992 BPO account for its romantic lyricism and luscious sound, Solti's 1978 recording with Chicago for its orchestral virtuosity and dramatic narrative, and, finally, George Szell's account in Cleveland, memorable mainly for its rhythmic and textural clarity. Each of them is brilliant in their own way, but none are all-emcompassing. Abbado's romantic rubato smudges metric patterns, Szell's perfect balance and clarity hinders lyric abandon, etc. Kleiber somehow encompasses all of those strengths, at no sacrifice. The result is exhilarating.

Kleiber masterfully morphs metric rigor into relentless drive, providing rhythmic stability yet sufficient ardor for melodies to soar. Textures revolve around the same principle: rigorous, focused accompaniments with passionate, fiery melodies. The Vienna Philharmonic, while not usually one of my favorite bands, are perfect. They bring an old-world quality to the recording and it still breathes freshness and consummate artistry. The strings are simply breathtaking in their malleability and nobility.

The sound is typical VPO: Dominating, rich, incandescent, strings and recessed, somewhat homogeneous winds. One could perhaps hope for a tad more sonic detail (especially for the woodwinds' sake), but the overall result is more than satisfying.

This is a rare recording and should be on any musician's shelves! With formidable insight and glorious playing, I recommend wholeheartedly!

I appreciate all the glowing reviews of Kleiber's version of the great Brahms 4. Nonetheless, I still believe his interpretation is too hard driven--not necessarily interpreted as some have done of the conductor's way with propeling the work. I think likewise there are "sunnier" elements in the score that need not be nail hammered.

There is no shortage of great interpretations of this extraordinary symphony, but this one is rather special. Despite having the great VPO, which can produce the most opulent sounds imaginable (listen to Barbirolli's recording from the 60s!) Kleiber opts for a lean, rather austere sound. His tempi are fast, and the dramatic climaxes - the coda of the first movement, for instance - are punched home with the greatest vehemence. He eschews any hint of sentimentality in the slow movement, and the final passacaglia movement is simply sensational: Brahms marks it "allegro energico e passionato", and that's exactly what we get. Kleiber's grasp of the architecture ensures a tremendously powerful cumulative impact. In the end, there is no doubt that this is one of the greatest tragic experiences music has to offer, and this performance does it full justice.

Lately, the more I listen to this recording, the better it gets (or rather, my appreciation of it grows...the CD remains the same); but, as I said in the title of this review, I initially thought it missed something or other (despite my trying to define 'what exactly', I couldn't place my finger on it). Maybe it was subconscious doubt as to whether a better Brahms 4th could be found.

Now I do not search very hard for a substitute: you may have gathered that I've grown very fond indeed of this CD.

Anyway, I penned this down because I thought people might run into a similar situation like mine; and in my vanity I also hoped one additional positive Amazon Reviewer might switch people's minds in such a way so that they give this CD a shot, or a second evaluation.

Now I think it should get a respected place in any collection of classical music.