Customer Reviews

Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 35, 40, 41

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

When it comes to Mozart, I'm one of those people who prefer his works on period instruments. To my ears, the sound and size of a period orchestra suits his music much better. When it comes to George Szell conducting Mozart though, there simply is nothing better. Interestingly, his approach to Mozart (as well as Haydn) is a precursor to the Historical Informed Performance movement that would emerge in the 70s and gain popularity in the 80s. Unlike Szell's peers in the 60s, he performed Mozart without heavy-handed romanticism and a bloated orchestra. He takes full advantage of Cleveland's chamberesque sound, transparency and razor sharp precision. Szell brilliantly allows every note of each symphony to be heard, revealing the inner-workings of these Mozart symphonies. Over 40 years later these recordings are still tough to beat. The finale of the Haffner is worth the price of admission alone - no one else takes it quite as fast Szell and Cleveland.

New comers to these recording will probably be taken back by the lack of repeats. Szell omits them for two reason. First, Szell thought that when taken, they hurt the overall balance between movements in each symphony. The other reason which he never admitted to, was that he (and Columbia Records) wanted to keep each symphony on one side of an LP. In concert he was known to observe some repeats, such as in symphony no.41.

For those who already own these symphonies on CD, Sony has merely repackaged them. *The sound has not been remastered in any way*. I'm not sure what's the deal with this. Based on the recordings Sony has released on Essential Classics, MasterWorks Heritage, and now SACD, it would appear that they realize Szell's recordings are the best in their catalogue. However, by simply repackaging these symphonies, they've passed over an excellent opportunity to use the latest technology to remaster these recordings (the last time any remastering was done was over 12 years ago) and to bring back in print more Szell conducting Mozart, such as Symphony no.39 (which as been released on SACD).

In the 1950s and 60s, CBS/Columbia (now Sony Classical) had the great fortune to have three of America's best orchestras and their conductors on their recording roster -- Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic, Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra, and George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra. Nearly a half-century later, only Leonard Bernstein remains a name that even the non-classical music world knows well. But in the world of the compact disc, this is a wonderful thing, because while Leonard Bernstein analog stereo recordings sell at mid-price, classic performances by Ormandy and Szell are regulated to the budget line. Well, my friends there is justice in the world because the vast majority of these "budget line" recordings are not only amazing, but some are still considered definitive more than 40 years later! One such definitive performance is this Szell recording of Mozart's 35th, 40th and 41st Symphonies. Never did something of such high quality come at such a small price. Enjoy!

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.

I've heard people say Szell's recordings are lame and uninteresting. I don't see how anyone could believe that, but if you need someone to say it ain't so, here I am. Although these interpretations of these symphonies don't blast out of your speakers the way von Karajan or Bernstein Mozart would, that doesn't mean they're not full-blooded, irresistible recordings nonetheless. What Szell and Cleveland bring to the foray that many of their counterparts lack is their trademark pinpoint precision. You truly can "hear every note"--and in music as transparently structured as Mozart's, where every note is necessary and important, that precision makes the difference between a nice recording and a compelling one. However, there's a surprising amount of passion in these interpretations as well. Given that Szell himself defended his allegedly unemotional Mozart recordings with the sardonic comment "I cannot pour chocolate sauce on asparagus," I find these recordings to be some of the most ardent I've heard; in fact, for as much of a Dohnanyi fan as I am, I daresay this recording of the 40th trumps even that maestro's recording with this same orchestra. The "Haffner" symphony in particular is a real potboiler on this album; I don't think I've ever heard it performed with more gusto--but check out the stentorian minuet of the 40th, or the exhilarating trumpet work throughout the 41st. The bottom line is, you get three of Mozart's finest symphonies packed into one CD at a budget price, which is a bargain on its own--but when the quality of the interpretation is as good as it is here, that bargain becomes an unbelievable value. Even if you already own other recordings of all of these symphonies, this CD should be a necessary addition to your collection. It sure was for me.

Straight up, this is the best recording of Mozart's #40 and #41 that I have ever heard. There is so much energy and intensity and it is so refined and beautiful. I particularly like the way they do the last movement of #41--it's amazing. And it's like...#35 on the CD too...bonus!

Szell in general is always good, and...well...this is one of my favorite among all his performances. This is definitely my favorite mozart CD and it is among the most cherished of any CD's in my collection.

Always beautiful music from Mozart. I love the fact that there are 3 symphonies on it. I originally bought it for symphony 40, that I listened to as a child. All the works are absolutely fantastic.

At present, I have listened to Mozart recordings by Walter, Szell, Bohm and Karajan, and Szell is by far the best of these great conductors.

Szell's precision oriented approach works wonders in all three symphonies, especially the famous symphony No. 40 and his rendition of the "Jupiter" Symphony remains a classic as well. Its a shame that Szell only recorded a handful of the Mozart symphonies, but the ones he did record are all top of the line recordings. Any Mozart fan should have these recordings, even if they prefer different styles or techniques for conducting.

Given that these legendary performances were originally made for Columbia records, they are in stereo and repeats have been skipped in places, but even without all the repeats, the quality of this CD is still excellent.

That's what happens when Szell conducts Mozart (or most anything else in his repertoire). Simply put, these are among the very best versions of these great symphonies ever recorded. George Szell was a grand maestro that doesn't seem to ever get the respect or credit he so richly deserved. This is likely due to a bunch of high brow intellectual type reviewers who have the misguided notion that his recordings sound "cold". Well if precision, virtuosity and panache equal coldness, I'm all for it. Highest recommendation.

I recently purchased this recording and Maestro Szell's recording of the Haydn Symphs. 92, 94, and 96.

I have owned many of the Maestro's recordings from all periods, but his Mozart and Haydn are non-pariel! Why there was never a complete set of Mozart or Haydn symphonies creates a mystery in my mind that will never be solved. Is it the simple cost over what is left for humanity that important? Neville Mariner could come close sometimes but not all of the time, and I mean not really that close.

I am still amazed that there are over two thousand titles for the Berlin and Vienna Philharmonic Orchestras alone, while we have, at least, the top five orchestras in the world still and a paultry discography remains or is being produced. What is wrong with this picture?

One of the former reviewers said something about this disc being a for-runner of 'authentic' period recordings. This may be so, but I haven't heard one yet that even comes close and all of that tinny scratchy noise from these 'experts' sure drives me away. Performance was meant to grow and not be caught up in stasis. Why can't there be 'authenticity' with beautiful string sound and virtuoso brass and winds?

I even love to hear the Maestro hum along or hear him grunt when he starts a hefty section of music. You can imagine how much of this is going on when he and Rudolph Serkin get together. I love it. Total passionate involvement.

The 'Haffner' is absolutely sublime. The first movement of the Fortieth is beyond description and don't I hear the first inkling of cyclical form here in the remaining movements? And the 'Jupiter'--no words can supply what is conveyed. Maybe if Mahler had been alive in Mozart's time this is what he might have composed. That is the closest I can get,

I remember when these recordings came out on 33's. The musical world was absolutely stunned. There had never been Mozart recordings played in such sumptuous, yet crisp and virtuosic manner as this. They still remain the standard, and being recorded in Severance Hall, the sound is still crisp and sumptuous at the same time.

Get this recording and the Haydn recording also. These two cds could be the foundation pieces of a classical library.

What is there left to say? I truly had forgotten how great these performances were. Yes, I have a few quibbles with some of the tempos, especially in the Jupiter, where Szell takes the andante a little too slowly, and the finale a little too fast. Still, as all the other reviewers have stated this is playing at the absolutely highest level. And I, for one, am glad they didn't remaster this recording, as it's sound, while lacking some clarity, is tonally on the spot and sounds warm and analogue LP-ish. Having just commented - five stars - on Dohnanyi's famous Webern CD, and having heard the Cleveland in Carnegie Hall the past two seasons, it is remarkable how they have maintained their sound through many changes of personnel and leaders. At their best, no orchestra can rival them.