Customer Reviews

Holst: The Planets / R. Strauss: Also Sprach Zarathustra

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(1)
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2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

These 2 recordings are simply the best ones available, and it's due to the combination of a masterful conductor and a world-class orchestra in a superb hall with killer organ, and inspired interpretations. If only RCA or Mercury could have recorded these instead of DGG. Even with thin bass, overly close micing at times, and curiously distant micing at others, the performances survive as the best ever.
Much of the magic here is summed up in one word: tempos! Many have noted Steinberg's fast tempos in the Holst, often sighting Mars as particularly too fast. Well, they are plan wrong. The composer himself recorded this suite electrically in 1926. You think Steinberg's 46 minutes is fast? Holst gets through it in under 41! Now some have said the engineers rushed him so as to get the music to fit on the old 78 discs. That is totally false. Others have said he wasn't a good conductor. OK, ensemble sloppiness bears that out, but doesn't hold water when it comes to basic tempi. Holst marked Mars as "Allegro" which means, quite simply, "fast." At a timing of 6:18, Holst conducted it fast. He wanted it fast! Steinberg comes in at 6:34. In every other movement but Uranus, Steinberg is 0:30 to 0:70 slower than Holst, but still closely approximates the interpretations, and those interpretations are superb. Only in Uranus is Steinberg faster than Holst, but at 5:22, it's the tempo you're used to hearing, but with precision that's rarely matched, and an organ gliss that will blow you across the room!
Again, on the Strauss, the forward motion is always there, making Zarathustra as wonderfully unified as it can possibly be.
Bernstein and the 1962 Karajan [Vienna Phil] in the Planets have superior moments [especially Karajan's use of metal hammers on the chimes in Saturn as specified by Holst] and Reiner and Karajan also turn in superb Zarathustras, but here are both on one CD about as close to perfection as one can get and, I suspect, closest to the composer's intentions.

If you've followed the fortunes of the Boston Symphony Orchestra only casually, then you'll probably be thinking that, over the last half-century, this orchestra has had only two music directors: Charles Munch, followed by Seiji Ozawa. (If you were to go back yet another quarter-century, you'd throw in the name of Serge Koussevitsky.) But there was a decade, from the early 60's to the early 70's, when the BSO was led first by Erich Leinsdorf, a fine opera conductor whose strengths did not translate particularly well to the concert stage, and then by William Steinberg, who led it all too briefly for a few years (1969 - 1972). Regrettably, Steinberg made only a handful of recordings with the BSO, and this was probably his finest.

For me, Steinberg will best be remembered for his traversal of the Brahms symphonies on Enoch Light's Command Classics label, and for this Boston recording of Gustav Holst's "The Planets." Long a favorite piece of British music for me, I believe I've owned (or at least heard) all of the recorded performances by Sir Adrian Boult (long considered the "owner" of this work), as well as critically-acclaimed recordings by Bernard Hermann, Andre Previn, Sir Malcom Sargent and Leopold Stokowski. But this Steinberg performance immediately went to the top of my list when it first came out on LP thirty years ago. It has also been critically acclaimed by that all-too-British publication, the Penguin Guide, which seldom holds American recordings of British music in such high esteem, particularly when every British conductor of any merit whatsoever has recorded this work.

Now, with its reissuance as part of DGG's "The Originals" series, Steinberg's performance is back up there, on the top of my list, getting its fair amount of playing time. I don't believe that any other conductor has provided a "Mars" with anywhere near the visceral excitement that Steinberg supplies here, or the heroic "swagger" of the Elgarian "nobilmente" theme in "Jupiter." In "Saturn" one can feel - if not hear - the organ underpinnings at the close of the movement, and again in the allegro section of "Uranus." The ethereal mysticism of "Neptune," with its wordless chorus, is gauged very well, with a satisfyinlgy realistic fadeout at the end. All-in-all, a true showpiece for the virtuosic work of the BSO soloists, sections and full ensemble, captured in vivid sound.

The Strauss companion piece, at first glance an odd partner for the Holst work, is not really a strange discmate at all. "Also Sprach Zarathustra" - like "The Planets" - requires virtuosic solo, section and ensemble work. Joseph Silverstein, long the BSO concertmaster, is about as fine a violin soloist in this work as you're bound to hear. And, lest one forget (and how can one?), the Strauss work begins with the famous Introduction for brass, organ and timpani, so that in a sense it is the use of the organ that provides a point of continuity, so to speak. Unlike far too many recordings of "Also Sprach Zarathustra," in which the organ is either "overplayed" for dramatic effect or is not appropriately in tune with the orchestra, the balance and intonation here are nigh-perfect.

Probably - no, make that definitely - the best archival record we'll have of the brief association of Steinberg and the Boston Symphony. At a time in the relatively recent past when it could easily be said that the BSO was one of "the big five."

Bob Zeidler

Linked by their associations with "outer space" (an association forced on Strauss' "Also sprach Zarathustra" by its use in "2001: A Space Odyssey"), these two showpieces for orchestra have kept company on CD (and cassette) before. For example, there's a Double Decca two-fer with Zubin Mehta conducting the L.A. Philharmonic in audiophile-quality recordings from the early '70s. But as far as I know this DG Originals reissue is the only single-CD set combining both works. One reason it's not done more often is that "Zarathustra" generally comes in at 33-35 minutes and Holst's "The Planets" usually runs 48-51 minutes, for a total playing time that's too long for one CD. William Steinberg's fastish tempi make this coupling possible--his 29:56 for "Zarathustra" may be the swiftest on record, and "The Planets" comes in at about 46 minutes here. However, such was this underrated, under-recorded conductor's natural sense of flow that nothing sounds rushed or glided over. He takes to "The Planets," a work he apparently learned only just prior to making this recording, with as little apparent effort as he does to the Strauss tone poem that had certainly been a part of his repertoire for decades. Not to mince words, this is a disc to treasure, even if you already have other recordings of both works. If you don't, you may decide you're set for life with this CD.

I would like to concur with the other reviewers here regarding this disc of Holst and Strauss. It is rightly issued as a legendary recording in my opinion and the Holst is perhaps the finest version available today. A combination of three factors make this a winning disc: first, Steinberg's fine reputation in English music is obvious throughout the Holst, not least in the more familiar Mars and Jupiter movements; second, the Boston Symphony Orchestra produce a full bodied, voluptous sound; and third, the DG engineers do a fine job of capturing it all in the near ideal acoustic of Symphony Hall (a word of caution, however: the louder passages can be very loud). The only version of the Planets I know of which can compare is Dutoit on Decca (for sound quality...Boult's recordings are also excellent), which is rather tame by comparison. Even though Steinberg's "Also Sprach..." is quick, the organ peddle at the beginning is truly ominous and exciting.

A thrilling Zarathustra. A bouyant Planets. Others here have said it better than I. These are indeed "legendary performances". Beautifully remastered to CD, the analog recording is clean and clear and has wonderful presence. If you are reading these reviews to ascertain whether or not you should make this disc your next purchase, let me assure you, whether you are new to these works or whether you are well acquainted with them -- this is the one to buy.

I must mention the New England Conservatory Chorus closes out The Planets beautifully. Thanks to DGG/UMG for this fabulous disc!

Steinberg's readily available recording is the one to buy now. The only other modern Planets recording to get it close to right is that led by Roy Goodman with the New Queen's Hall Orchestra (Carlton Classics 30366 00432), which uses orchestral instruments of the same type in use in the 1920s, and where the conductor deliberately sets out to mirror Holst's own 1920s recordings. Sadly, this Carlton CD is evidently no longer available; maybe it will be back again someday. Those who think Steinberg's Mars is too fast should know that both of the recordings Holst conducted himself (1923, 1926) are at a nearly matching fast tempo (Holst is slightly faster). In addition, Holst marked a reduced score of Mars for two pianos in his own hand with the metronome indication "quarter note = 176," which is close to the tempo he, Goodman, and Steinberg use. "Fast" is clearly the tempo Holst wanted; it is right. Far too many people have become accustomed to hearing it wrong thanks to the ostensibly "official" versions of Boult and his followers. Boult takes nearly eight excruciating minutes to slog through his last (1979) Mars recording. The same argument holds for another frequently abused movement, Saturn, where some conductors approach an agonizing ten minutes, instead of the correct seven minutes or so, thus completely missing the "Funeral March" character of the movement (Steinberg is a touch slow here at 7:45, but still well within reason). All conductors should be required by law to listen to Holst's 1926 recording, once available on CD (Legacy 3-7018-2 H1), before being allowed to conduct The Planets. The abused critical catchword "definitive" actually applies to Holst's work here, in one of the greatest recordings ever made. Holst's own Jupiter is electrifying, the "big tune" a part of the jovial celebration, not the sentimental patriotic hymn it is so often made out to be. To sum up, Steinberg is the best available right now: very slightly slow here and there, but brilliantly played by a great orchestra, and as close to right as any you can buy at this moment. If you love the piece and want more, get Holst's and Goodman's recordings if you can somehow find them, but if you can't, or only want one, be happy to have Steinberg.

Among recommended recordings of Also Sprach Zarathrustra by Richard Strauss, this is one seldom mentioned. Before this recording, I listened to Tennstedt, Reiner (1964) and Karajan and only this recording blows me away. Listening it in my car, living room stereo, or even through my Discman, this recording is exciting. There is lush lyricism, massive voices and fiery passion, despite the speed of this recording that could turn off seasoned Straussians. The famous introduction has the best organ chord at the end, I think largely due to the accoustics of Boston Symphony Hall, one of the best in the world. The strings surprisingly has Viennese nuances and the highlight is Joseph Silverstein's solo performance, which is a delight to listen to and my favorite *concertmaster* violinist. The recording has sardonical wit and humor that all Zarathrustra recordings I hear lacked.

The Planets, no need to for me to add, is a reference performance, although "Jupiter" for me is too dry and lacked the excitement of Boult and Rattle has. Sadly there are too few of Steinberg's recordings with Boston Symphony and they're finished when Ozawa took over. Can James Levine bring them back to the former glory of kouzzevetsky, Munch or Steinberg?

The heyday of the Boston Symphony is recorded here in all of it's glory. A feverishly intense Also Sprach is simply electrifying. The tonal quality of this recording is excellent with great balances between sections. Of all of the American recordings ever made of Also Spach this is certainly the one to own...wind solos are beautifully phrased and paced..the orchestra Trumpets are splendid and Steinberg has a geniune idea of when blend is important and when musical ideas have to dominate.

Compared to the leisurely interpretation of Ormandy(boring!) you cannot only come up with superlatives for this disc!

The HOLST is done very well, without any agogic rubato or mannerisms, Steinberg certainly comes out a giant of a Conductor. His was a short tenure iin Boston unfortunately...It was not too be for too long , Steinberg passed away a few years after these landmark recordings.

This really is one of the best "Planets" I've ever heard, if not THE best. The transition from the cruel, marching onslought of Mars, to the lush, welcoming orchestral sweetness and warmth of Venus is the most touching bridge you can hear placed between such opposing musical ideas. And the other movements continue to bring the listener further and further inward. The music really is astounding. The only thing that I really don't understand here is why Steinberg chose to be so sloppy with his Mars tempos. In fact, Mars is the only section here that really bothers me. It doesn't pack the usual emotional weight, because you don't get the subtle undertones of fear and dread in the build-up. In fact, there are moments when the orchestra sounds completely arrhythmic, like they themselves don't know where they should be at the moment. I don't understand those reviewers who say that a faster Mars makes for a more exciting Mars. I couldn't disagree more, but that's just my opinion. Still, it's a wonderful piece of music, and a great recording despite its flaws. Jupiter (my personal favorite movement of the piece) truly is played with jollity. I almost imagine a drunken, giddy banquet, interspersed with brief moments of solemnity and brotherhood. Saturn truly creaks and wheezes with the rheumatism and meandering sentiment of old age. Uranus sizzles with magical meanness and mischief, and Neptune sparkles with mysterious promise, beckoning us from the depths of the unknown. Plus, a wonderful placement of Richard Strauss' "Thus Spake Zarathustra" rounds out the package, making this disc choc-full of content at over seventy-five minutes long! How much more star-gazing could you ask for? The Planets were truly in allignment when Steinberg recorded this one.

Of all the different versions of Holst's classic The Planets I've heard over the decades, Steinberg's simply passed me by for some reason. Having just heard it recently, it has instantly become one of my favorites. Steinberg's interpretation is relatively straight forward but compelling nonetheless. My favorites are those done by Boult in 1945 and Sargent in 1954.

But my main concern here is the overall audio quality. As has already been stated, the sound is basically bright and beautiful with great stereo separation. But the main issue here has been the lack of bass or midrange. So, being the audio perfectionist that I am, I think I solved that problem quite nicely.

What I have done is remastered each of the Planets through my computer using "Audacity." I'll get straight to the point. Because of the high volume of each selection, I reduced the volume of each movement by -2.5db. I then added the standard "bass boost" option (200hz frequency response and "bass boost" of 12db). It was necessary to reduce volume because adding the bass boost increases the volume and would otherwise result in over amplification. I believe the results are truly remarkable with just enough bass response to enhance each movement without any exaggeration or distortion whatsoever. The results are particularly impressive on the quieter passages of Saturn and Neptune but have given the entire opus the "bottom" it was missing before. I didn't think anything needed to be done with the Strauss selections. Though totally unrelated to the Planets they are a nice bonus to this package.

Anyone who loves The Planets should definitely check this one out. And I hope my suggestions are helpful!