CD-Charts Position 1
Average Rating:

Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 / Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra

from: Deutsche Grammophon

Release Date January 23, 1996
Previously, a reviewer wrote:

"Karajan in 1962 wanted to perform Beethoven in a modern way compared to the overtly spiritual, often very slow, heavy, and rubato-laden style of the past in Germany. ... in the last movement Karajan takes the vocal line faster...

"By comparison, Karajan wasn't as hectically fast or intense as Toscanini,..."

I don't wish to take anything away from Karajan's technical mastery, his orchestra's wonderful sound, or his "smoothness." It's all good.

But folks should understand the real reason Karajan's original recorded version of this work, at least in terms of its tempos, comes out as the previous reviewer accurately observed. He kept to his version in subsequent ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 2
Average Rating:

Ludwig van Beethoven: 9 Symphonien

by: Gundula Janowitz, Waldemar Kmentt, Hilde Rossel-Majdan

Release Date June 05, 2007
I have enjoyed listening to Karajan's 1963 set ever since I bought it on sale at the Record Hunter in New York in the late 1980's. I don't find the renditions unemotional as some do. The performances are fast and dramatic. To some the sixth is too fast, but the slower tempos we have become accustomed to are only received tradition just as phlegmatic renditions of Bruckner's symphonies were once the norm. The performances often have the drive more typical of early music versions of classic works, except the pieces are being played by a larger orchestra than would have been common before the twentieth century. They are powerful renditions but not heavy-handed or turgid.
As in his recordings for DG of the Brahms and Schumann symphonies, Karajan ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 3
Average Rating:

Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 [Hybrid SACD]

from: Deutsche Grammophon

Release Date August 10, 2004
Just a quick note to warn buyers that this is a 2-channel stereo recording, not a 5.1 surround sound recording. I had presumed that all SACD recordings were surround sound, and I bought this disc based on that presumption, looking forward to being totally immersed in Beethoven's Ninth. I was very disappointed to discover that this SACD is not surround sound. I can find no indication anywhere on the product page that this is a 2 channel SACD, so I thought I'd post a warning for others expecting a 5.1 mix.

CD-Charts Position 4
Average Rating:

Beethoven: The Symphonies [Hybrid SACD] [Box Set]

from: Deutsche Grammophon

Release Date November 25, 2003
.....maybe.
SACD layer sounds better than CD layer; more spatial information, tighter bass and sweeter strings.

You will experience more sonic improvements, if you own audiophile High-End stereo system.
This set is especially suitable for the people who avoided DG Karajan recordings because of overly bright tonal qualities(Karajan glare).
With this set, you can enjoy Karajan/Berlin PO with decent sound (you still hear thin lower-mid range and upper-mid range harshness
with screechy first violin though).

Is his interpretation of Beethoven's music as profound and convincing as Furtwangler's?

My suggestion to you:
If you want to listen to the best Beethoven cycle, do yourself a favor,
Obtain the 9 ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 5
Average Rating:

Mahler: Symphony No. 2 / Klemperer, Philharmonia Orchestra

by: Gustav Mahler, Otto Klemperer, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Hilde Rossl-Majdan, Philharmonia Orchestra & Chorus

Release Date March 14, 2000
I have four recordings of this symphony: this one, Bernstein (NY Phil); Solti (LSO); and Slatkin (St. Louis). This performance conducted by Klemperer is by far the worst. Tempi and dynamics regularly ignore Mahler's instructions, ensemble is sloppy, ugly instrumental tone quality abounds, and intonation is horrendous, especially in the all-important final measures, with everyone apparently playing as loudly as they can without regard to balance or tone quality. The Slatkin recording with the St. Louis Symphony (who would have guessed!) is the best: superb in all of these categories. I also highly recommend the Bernstein, not for its accuracy, but for the special excitement he brings to the score. However, be aware that it is more Bernstein than Mahler.

CD-Charts Position 6
Average Rating:

Mozart: Le Nozze di Figaro

from: Decca

Release Date August 10, 1999
This set is quite phenonmenal: nearly all the protagonists turned up with exceptional vocal performances.
Cesare Siepi is a hearty Figaro. His opening duet with Gueden's Susanna could not be termed otherwise than 'singing like gods'. I don't care if he is a bass or a bass-baritone, or a baritone. Siepi is well-known to have owned such vibrant high notes that put baritones to shame.
His Figaro sounds warm, lusty and spirited. I have yet to find another one to sing a better version of 'Non piu andrai'. Under no circumstances would one mix up his portrayal of Figaro with that of Don Giovanni. Siepi is too-well seasoned an artist to mix up these two roles. They sounded so distinctively different on record that no one would ever think of taking one for the other.
Hilde Gueden's ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 7
Average Rating:

Janácek: Missa Glagolitica; Tagebuch eines Verschollenen

from: Deutsche Grammophon

Release Date July 16, 2002
Take every other recording of the Mssa Glagolskaja and melt them down into something more useful: This is the ONLY one you'll ever need. How can you even speak of another recording after listening to this version. Kubelik is some sort of magus. There is not one flaw to this reading. And the work itself? Janacek is a genius. From start to finish the Mssa is the physical manifestation of an odyssey. Buy, unwrap it, put it in your stereo and listen to it. Feel the power! God gave you ears for a reason.

CD-Charts Position 8
Average Rating:

Verdi: Falstaff

by: Giuseppe Verdi, Leonard Bernstein, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Ilva Ligabue, Wiener Philharmoniker, Regina Resnik, Graziella Sciutti, Juan Oncina, Rolando Panerai, Murray Dickie, Hilde Rossel-Majdan, Erich Kunz

Release Date October 25, 1990
This performance dates from Lenny's honeymoon with the Vienna State Opera, and it shows in the buoyant, often hyper playing--the musicians never had a conductor like this before! But Fischer-Dieskau couldn't be more wrong for the role, with his dry timbre, barking staccato delivery, overacting, and lack of range. This is a buffo role but also a wise one, the closest Italian opera ever got to Hans Sachs, but here the longings of an aging man are seen as farce. Eveyr other role is sung well enough, but even if I didn't love the classic EMi Karajan performance with Tito Gobbi, I owuldn't be able to like this one.

CD-Charts Position 9
Average Rating:

Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen

from: Gebhardt Records

Release Date November 29, 2005
Furtwangler's Italian ring cycles are the stuff of legend. This 1953 cycle was recorded in Rome for radio broadcast. Featuring a superior cast to his 1950 Milan cycle, the Rome RAI ring has stood as arguably the best record of Furtwangler's art. First released on compact disc in 1990, EMI's engineers had gone back to the original master tapes in an attempt to reconstruct this historic recording for the (relatively new) high fidelity medium... with mixed results. Now Gebhardt Records has delivered this new 24-bit remastering using the latest in digital processing. The result is sound quality that's not merely acceptable a'la the EMI set, but one that actually engages the listener by opening a new window on this historic recording. Never before has the RAI ring sounded so clear and open, with orchestral details ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 10
Average Rating:

Wagner: Parsifal

from: Opera D'oro

Release Date October 20, 1998
This recording has a magnificent cast under the direction of von Karajan. It's too bad the sound quality isn't better. Nonetheless, for the very reasonable price this is worth the money. It's a very enjoyable performance.