Customer Reviews

Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 35, 40 & 41

5 star:		(11)
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3 star:		(1)
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For those who enjoy Mozart played on modern instruments, this Szell recording is well worth hearing even at full price. To those who find this sort of practice objectionable, I would mention that in the course of the compositon of the piano concertos, the piano itself changed dramatically in number of keys and range of sound, and Mozart, without hesitation, exploited every new sound opportunity that he could. Had these orchestral instruments been available to Mozart, he would almost certainly have written for them. All 3 symphonies can be accommodated onto one disc as Szell has omitted exposition repeats. This decision does not in any way diminish the stature of any of these pieces; the Jupiter in particular provides ample weight by the accuracy and precision of the orchestral playing. The sound quality from Severance Hall in Cleveland is very good for early stereo, and practically every note of the scores can be heard clearly. Szell plays these scores without interpretative exaggeration, letting the notes speak for themselves, and this disciplined approach works as well in his Mahler 6th as it does here. A very generous programme at a modest cost. Strongly recommended.

I have several other performances of all three of these Symphonies recorded on this CD, but not one of those performances equals that as performed by the Cleveland Orchestra and George Szell on this wonderful and inspiring CD. I don't think I have ever heard the Haffner Symphony played as well, especially the Finale, where the speed and clarity work to bring this movement to almost heavenly heights in music. Symphony 40 is the Orchestra and Szell at their finest, with the music sounding so rich and emotional. The Jupiter Symphony, with a much briefer "molto allegro" than I have listened to in other performances, is spectacularily played, with all the finese and power that Mozart would have wanted.

But this CD is worth the price for just the Haffner Symphony alone. It's the best recorded performance of this symphony that I have heard to date, performed by an orchestra that has, in my opinion, no equal in the world. Please purchase this CD and be reborn again in the glorious music of Mozart!

Rarely are these symphonies heard with such energy and clarity. In particular, the recording of Mozart's 35th symphony is the best I've heard The tempos are quick but never rushed. A note to you musicians; this recording is a pefect tool for studying Mozart's late symphonies. The clarity of the final movements will be especially helpfull as you try to learn all those notes for the first time.

It proves that age doesn't matter: George Szell and the Cleveland orchestra are today what they were back them. Oh, sure, they've got competition, but no one has out-done the clarity of detail (you hear almost every single note!) and the liveliness and excitement of performance. When I was young, I sought my perfect 41/iv; I stopped looking for quite a few years as soon as I heard Szell. For this amount of money, you can afford this superb recording.

I've been listening to the late Mozart symphonies for years and these Szell recordings continually stand out as some of the finest. Szell beats Marriner, Bernstein, Gardiner and even Karajan most of the time. Szell's Haffner is radiant, one of the finest ever played. His account of the 40th symphony, the famous G Minor is still unsurpassed, the richness and dark emotions of the opening movement are brought out as never before or since. Szell gives off no sentimentality whatsoever and this music sings and flies under his baton. Bernstein and Karajan are easily superseded in the Haffner and G Minor symphonies. The final symphony, number 41, the magnificent Jupiter, one of Mozart's greatest creations and one of the most perfect symphonies ever composed gets a stunning performance. Here the competition is stiffer and you should definitely hear Karajan in the Jupiter, check out his DG 2CD set of the late Mozart symphonies. Other than Karajan, Szell reigns supreme on modern instruments, utilizing the full orchestra.

Szell skips many of the repeats which have become customary these days, the repeats sure can get annoying, it's nice to hear Szell letting the music speak for itself instead of being merely academic. Szell takes the repeat in the opening movement of the Haffner symphony, this is something that recent day conductors don't do since Mozart did not put a repeat sign for this movement. The 40th symphony also gets the all important exposition repeat in it's opening movement, the finale moves along sans repeats. The Jupiter is repeat free in the opening movement and the finale. The finale especially can get very tedious if both halves of it's structure are repeated like in the Bernstein recording.

Basically if you love Mozart played by modern instruments on a full-sized orchestra, I can't recommend Szell's CD enough, it's a classic in every sense, fast, elegant, dramatic and full of charm. You must buy it if you love Mozart.

Just as with virtually everything else that Szell and his Clevelanders recorded in the late 50's thru the late 60's, this is superbly crafted music-making. It is a shame that he never recorded the "Linz" or the "Prague" symphonies with HIS orchestra. These present recordings ahain show the microscopic read of the score that the maestro was famous for throughout his career...not one note out of place, sheer perfection in balance and pitch, a kinetic drive and virtuosity of the highest level. What a shame Dr. Szell isn't still around. Granted, he would be 102 years old...but wasn't Stokowski still shaking his baton at 95?

Mozart's symphonies, unlike those of Romantic composers don't have taken too deeply when it comes to emotions; what's more important would have to be the technical side of the pieces, and Maestro George Szell is the man for the job, and Symphonies 35, 40, and 41 are no exceptions. His performance is light, confident, and crisp, and at the same time, never overexpressive or demanding(such as Karajan), nor too dull or straightforward. The balance is perfect.

An absolute album at a budget price. Never hesitate to buy it.

Sony's budget-price "Essential Classics" line is entirely aptly named in this case. Szell and the Clevelanders deliver superb mozart---a seductive blend of elegance, precision, emotion and heart. This is as powerful a 'Haffner' as you're likely to hear outside of Bruno Walter, and with perhaps more clarity. While Szell leaves out the exposition repeats that doesn't really bother me. This is all-out great.

I especially enjoy Szell's performance of the Haffner, which is exceptionally well timed, witty and humane. What a shame he never recorded Figaro commercially!

They made miracles. Especially, George Szell, who were acknowledged as one of the conductors who have sensitive ears by the recording engineers of DECCA,shall be praised.

Usually, the name of Mozart reminds us of the conductors like Bruno Walter and Christopher Hogwood. But Szell is totally different.

His analysis is more strict than the soft tone of Walter.

His analysis is better arranged than the one of Hogwood.

There shall be nobody who will regret after listening to this CD.