Customer Reviews

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphonie No. 41 "Jupiter"; No. 40

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There is some fine playing by the Vienna led by Bohm here, but two glaring differences here just leave a bad taste in this listener`s mouth.

The 1st movement in No. 40 is done waaay too slow. Just under 9 minutes?! This is Mozart, not a dirge. This movement is my favorite of Mozart`s music, but here, it`s almost unrecognizable.
The 1st movement in No. 41 ends just after 8 minutes, and does not repeat the music like many other conductors do. Just feels like there`s something missing here.

Check out Karajan`s 1977 DG Galleria performance or Levine`s digital DG Vienna
one for excellent performances.

Too inconsistent for the 2 greatest symphonies of the greatest composer.
Too bad.

It is said that Böhm was always one of the best conductors for Mozart.
Both performances are very well done and if you are a collector you will want to come back to this performances with some regularity.
I would have liked Böhm including the repetitions in both first and fourth movements of No 41, but that might be a minor issue for most people.

Still, Bernstein's coupling of this two same symphonies and actually with the same orchestra, but recorded in the digital era and with all repetitions included, is my first choice. Never the less, Bohm's are worth to own.