Great Recordings Of The Century - Beethoven; Mendelssohn: Violin Concertos / Furtwangler, Menuhin [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED]

Ludwig van Beethoven (Composer), Felix Mendelssohn (Composer), Wilhelm Furtwängler (Conductor), Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra, Performer), Philharmonia Orchestra of London (Orchestra), Yehudi Menuhin (Performer, Orchestra), Wilhelm Furtwangler (Artist), Yehudi Menuhin (Artist), Philharmonia Orchestra (Artist), Berlin Philharmonic (Artist)

Product Details

• Performer: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Yehudi Menuhin
• Orchestra: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra of London, Yehudi Menuhin
• Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
• Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven, Felix Mendelssohn
• Audio CD (May 4, 1999)
• SPARS Code: ADD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: EMI Classics
• ASIN: B00000IOBJ
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #137,561 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

• This item is part of The Great Recordings of the Century Series.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording
Yehudi Menuhin and Wilhelm Furtwängler, born a generation apart and separated by a world at war, were nonetheless musical and philosophical soulmates. Their recording of the Beethoven Violin Concerto, made seven years after they first met, is one of the treasures of the EMI archive, a testament to a bygone era of spontaneous and deeply subjective music-making. There is a nobility to the reading that has never been equaled, an unforced passion that would be difficult for any of today's musicians to duplicate. The monaural recording is remarkably fine, with satisfying depth and abundant detail. --Ted Libbey

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Glorious!, September 10, 1999

By A Customer

So far, I've heard the Beethoven Violin Concerto recordings of Heifetz/Toscanini, Milstein/Steinberg, Szeryng/Haitink, Heifetz/Munch, Sziegeti/Walter and Jamie Laredo. While I personally think that the Milstein is a remarkable asthetic jewel, the Menuhin/Furtwangler of the Beethoven Violin Concerto, Op. 61, is an incredible achievement. Truly, a monumental performance and collaboration. While Menuhin attacks and stretches his amazing virtuosity, together with Furtwangler and the Philarmonia Orchestra, they glorify Beethoven's concerto. And, their Mendelssohn with the Berliner Philharmoniker is equally beautiful.

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best recordings available, May 14, 2001

By	John Grabowski (USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

If you love this work you won't want this recording out of your collection, even though arguably both men have an even finer performance in the catalogue: a live performance from 1947 on Music & Arts. But that performance has inferior sound--the violin almost disappears at times--while this one sounds remarkably fine for 1953. WF is on an unmatched spiritual plane here, leading the Philharmonia (NOT the Berlin Philharmonic as some reviews mistakenly say) in a communion. While Menuhin is possibly a bit more "ruddy" than in the 1948 M&A performance, he's still in fine form overall, even if he drops a note here and there and has the occasional slight intonation problem. This is Beethoven with a life that so few performers give him today, as they're too busy fretting over whether they are rending the text exactly "as Beethoven intended," rather than just living the music. Along with Chung/Tennstedt, Schneiderhan/Jochum, the aforementioned 1948 M&A (which is my top-drawer recommendation, but the sound is poor), Stern/Bernstein (especially for the wonderful handling of the cadenzas), and Zehetmair, Bruggen (HIP) for the stunningly fresh take, this is one of the must-own LvB Violin Concerti on record. Notice I didn't mention Heifetz, because I always feel he's more concerned with his own virtuosity than with Beethoven's music. I know that's not the popular view, but I've never been convinced by his recordings. But the reader need have no fear with the present release, which is superb in every way.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply wonderful, July 21, 2004

By	Derek Lee (St. Paul, MN USA) - See all my reviews

Alright, Menuhin sometimes has trouble with intonation, and his technique is not nearly as flexible and seamless as Heifetz's. But who cares, when the interpretations are this insightful, and the playing almost uniformly beautiful? As always with the German romantics, Furtwangler is wonderful. He goes right to the spiritual heart of the Beethoven concerto, and the Mendelssohn is almost too passionate. Menuhin and Furtwangler were philosophical soul-mates, so it is to be expected that they mesh together well. Menuhin certainly doesn't dissapoint. The Philharmonia Orchestra does very well with the Beethoven, with great depth and weight of sonority, and the Berlin Philharmonic, Furtwangler's right hand as he said, is phenomenal in the Mendelssohn. The Beethoven has truly excellent mono sound, and although the sound is occasionally congested in the Mendelssohn, it is still more than tolerable.
To sum up, if you cannot stand even the slightest imperfections in performance, then this might not be for you; I suggest Heifetz's recording. But if you don't mind the occasional slip as long as it is worth the spiritual wisdom you gain, then this is unbeatable.