Dvorak: Symphonies 8 & 9

Antonin Dvorak (Composer), Ivan Fischer (Conductor), Budapest Festival Orchestra (Orchestra, Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Budapest Festival Orchestra
• Orchestra: Budapest Festival Orchestra
• Conductor: Ivan Fischer
• Composer: Antonin Dvorak
• Audio CD (August 14, 2001)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Philips
• ASIN: B00005LKEE
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #148,033 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A New Benchmark Recording, November 17, 2001

By 

K. Woods (Bristol England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dvorak: Symphonies 8 & 9 (Audio CD)

Ivan Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra have produced a disc that sets a new standard in this repertoire, and one that should stand for many years to come. Two things set this disc apart from other versions. First, Fischer and the BFO read Dvorak's text with scrupulous care, cleaning away much of the excesses of tradition. Like the cleaning of a great painting, this approach reveals Dvorak as a more sophisticated master of the orchestra, with a more vibrant variety of color and articulation then can be heard on any other recording. Also, freed from any "help" from conductors overinterpreting small details and taking gross liberties of tempi, Dvorak's mastery of form emerges with ringing authority. The second thing that sets this disc apart is the extraordinary unity of purpose in the BFO's playing throughout. Wind and brass chords are not merely fantastically in tune, but balances, colors, articulations and releases are all scrupulously matched. The strings, led by Gabor Takacs Nagy, formerly of the Takacs quartet, play like a great chamber ensemble throughout. The performances both combine a sense of drive and architexture with freedom, charm and passion. A masterful achievement, and beautifully recorded as well.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Has it's ups and downs, July 8, 2003

By 

Richard A. Leroux (Attleboro, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dvorak: Symphonies 8 & 9 (Audio CD)

There have been a number of excellent reviews for this recording by Ivan Fisher and the Budapest Festival Orchestra (it was Gramophone Magazine's "Recording of the Month" in October of 2001). Fisher's recording has good orchestral transparency and excellent sound. The horns and timpani stand out quite nicely.

Overall, however, I found Fisher's version less moving and less powerful than Kondrashin's with the Wiener Philharmoniker-my favorite version. To my ear, the Budapest Festival Orchestra sounds less like a sumptuous symphony orchestra and more like a large chamber ensemble-partly because of Fisher's way of handling tempo and orchestral textures. Fisher employs greater dramatic contrast than others do-this is not always advantageous. For me Fisher's version is this: too much modulation and too little repetition and pausing for emphasis. Passages that stand out to me in Kondrashin's version are glossed over here or just don't stand out. I find this especially the case in the slow movement of Symphony No. 9 (the cor anglais in Kondrashin's version is quite beautiful) and in the finale, where I found myself wishing that Fisher's had lingered a bit more on those closing chords.

While some people may find Fisher's way with these symphonies refreshing, I came away from this recording unmoved and slightly disappointed.

Fisher's version is not bad, but it cannot displace Kondrashin (in No. 9) or Chung (in No. 8).

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A mixed bag, October 22, 2001

By 

J. Buxton "cantabile" (Waltham, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dvorak: Symphonies 8 & 9 (Audio CD)

Fischer and his Budapest orchestra have recorded some wonderful stuff in recent years, particularly Bartok and Liszt. Therefore, it was with great anticipation that I purchased this generous (78 minutes)coupling of the 8th and 9th Dvorak symponies. I found the 9th to be a mixed bag. The lovely Largo second movement is played splendidly with really beautiful string tone. This is a very big plus, but ultimately I found... many details were lost in an overly spacious acoustic, which also gave the climaxes less impact. The final Allegro con fuoco is exciting, but there are a few drastic tempo changes that seem to not serve any larger purpose. Compare this to Harnoncourt's recent Teldec version, Kertesz, Szell, or Dohnanyi and my opinion is Fischer's New World just doesn't compete.

The 8th is a different matter. There are many more interesting details that can be heard. Take the trumpet calls in the middle of the Adagio. It seems as if they are played at least a half beat too late compared to any other version out there, but it sounds completely right. There are some tender moments near the end of this movement that the strings play wonderfully. The Allegretto Grazioso is played well, but it is taken too fast for my taste (compare here to Szell or Chung's Vienna version on DG), but here again the coda to this movement is a piece of genius with the strings and trumpets playing some fantastic trills that I've never heard before quite that way. The thrilling finale Allegro ma non troppo is played fine, but not nearly as well as other versions out there. The horn trills so characteristic of this movement are almost not heard at all (compare here to Dohnanyi's fine Decca version or better yet Chung's Vienna version). Again, Fischer is good but not the best by a long shot.

I would say unless you are a real fan of Fischer and his orchestra that you might look elsewhere for these works.