Haydn: The London Symphonies, Vol. 2

Franz Joseph Haydn (Composer), Colin Davis (Conductor), Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
• Conductor: Colin Davis
• Composer: Franz Joseph Haydn
• Audio CD (October 11, 1994)
• SPARS Code: ADD
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Philips
• ASIN: B0000041AR
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #11,187 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Pure Musical Delight, July 16, 2001

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DWPC (Ventura, CA United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Haydn: The London Symphonies, Vol. 2 (Audio CD)

A great convergence of wonderful music, an inspired orchestra, a talented conductor, AND high quality recording. This set is one of those rarities. Haydn's London Symphonies demonstrate his genius and sense of humor. No composer neuroses to be found here. This music is masterful, balanced, and in many movements, fun. No. 94, the "Surprise" and 100, the Military, show Haydn's ability to compose richly but not take himself or his patrons too seriously. The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra plays with skill and charm (even that horn player who's a bit flat in the Allegretto of the 100th), and Davis directs well (though I think Bernstein's conducting of the 100th had more swagger). Last but by no means least, the quality of the Phillips recording is excellent; clean and well engineered, with no studio boominess shading everything. With so many classical recording being mediocre, I hope your system can reveal all the detail here. This 2-disk set is a bargain.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Magnificent Bargain!, March 14, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Haydn: The London Symphonies, Vol. 2 (Audio CD)

One never ceases to be amazed at the inexhaustible invention and creativity displayed by the great Haydn in these marvellous works. As I mentioned in my review of Vol. 1 (q.v.) these symphonies, in which the mature genius was working at full stretch, are brimming with vitality, wit, excitement and the warm humanity that is Haydn's trademark. These performances, with the Concertgebouw magisterially conducted by Sir Colin Davis, are fully worthy of Haydn's inspiration. This set contains some of the finest moments: a desert-island version of the most famous of the twelve "London" Symphonies, the "Surprise" Symphony; an urbane and stylish version of "The Clock"; a performance of the "Military" Symphony with its great slow movement that is second to none; and, beginning the set, one of the lesser known masterpieces, the wonderful no. 93 in D Major, one of the perfect expressions of purely musical humor and wit: the minuet is a rollicking parody, with giddy, lumbering rhythms and hilarious contrasts of timbre and dynamics-- a masterpiece of musical humor (it's as if Haydn were lampooning the very form); the wonderful finale with its famous upbeat joke in the recapitulation. Indeed, each of the symphonies has its own delights. All told, this set is a magnificent bargain, the finest version available at any price, and with its companion volume 1 should be in the collection of every lover of truly great music.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Definitive Recordings of Haydn's Late Symphonies: Part II, June 2, 2001

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John Kwok (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Haydn: The London Symphonies, Vol. 2 (Audio CD)

Sir Colin Davis earned his reputation as a fine interpreter of Haydn, partly due to splendid recordings such as these. Both the Penguin Guide and the Grammophone Guide Classical CDs rate these as the finest recordings of Haydn's "London" symphonies. They are magnificient performances played with much enthusiasm and warmth by the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. Although there are a number of fine digital recordings of these symphonies around, none seem as elegantly played as Davis' splendid readings. The sound quality is superb, due to Philips' state-of-the-art digital remastering. Along with the two CDs in Volume One, these definitive recordings should be a part of any classical music lover's CD collection.