Beethoven Symphonies 1 9 Abbado, Berlin Philharmonic

Recordings of all the Beethoven symphonies with their chief conductor are always a milestone in the artistic work of the Berliner Philharmoniker. So it was with Herbert von Karajan and Claudio Abbado, and expectations are correspondingly high for this cycle conducted by Sir Simon Rattle. Where does the special status of these symphonies come from? Simon Rattle has an explanation: “One of the things Beethoven does is to give you a mirror into yourself – where you are now as a musician.” In fact, this music contains such a wealth of extreme emotions and brilliant compositional ideas that reveal the qualities of the orchestra and its conductor as if under a magnifying glass.

Spanish maestro Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos (1933-2014) concluded his acclaimed international conducting career of almost six decades with two memorable years as the venerated Principal Conductor of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra. Recorded live in concert at the new DR Koncerthuset in Copenhagen, this exclusive release combines Fruhbeck de Burgos’ powerful interpretation of the complete symphonies by Ludwig van Beethoven with his spectacular renderings of Symphonie fantastique by Hector Berlioz and Richard Strauss’ Eine Alpensinfonie as well as Joaquin Rodrigo’s popular concierto de Aranjuez, featuring the world-renowned Spanish guitarist Pepe Romero.

EuroArts has released a special edition of all nine Beethoven Symphonies played by the Berlin Philharmonic under former chief conductor Claudio Abbado. Each of the symphonies is a masterpiece in itself - they are all quite different, each representing the composer's musical idiom at a particular stage in his development. This DVD includes symphonies Nos. 2 and 5 and offers a 'Conductor Camera' in the famous Fifth Symphony showing the maestro from the perspective of the musician. The recordings feature interpretations that are the fruit of decades of Claudio Abbado's involvement with Beethoven.

In February 2001 Abbado and the BPO were guests at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome to perform the Beethoven symphonies. For these, Abbado chose to use a new edition by Jonathan del Mar, which consists of existing manuscripts, and "corrections by Beethoven," which gave the conductor the opportunty to "throw new light on his reading, which takes a consistent and lucid approach to articulation, phrasing and dynamics." The conductor elected to use fewer strings, reducing the bass group in symphonies 1, 2, 4 and 8 to only three double basses and four cellos. He also uses only two horns in symphony 5, three in symphony 3. The result is an uncommonly transparent listening experience. And the performances are spirited to say the least, no dawdling here whatever. There always is a forward impetus to these dynamic performances which are magnificently executed by the orchestra.

It's increasingly common to hear the symphonies of Ludwig van Beethoven played on original instruments and according to authentic period practices, which have become de rigueur for many contemporary conductors and orchestras. But Martin Haselböck and the Vienna Academy Orchestra go one step further by playing them in their original Viennese venues, thus creating something close to the sound and impact of the first performances.