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Beethoven Symphonies - Page 60

post #886 of 944
6/24/08 at 7:54am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nick63 View Post
A quote from the info there says: "This season they will record Beethoven Symphony no. 9, the culmination of their Beethoven season for Simax."
Great news! Hopefully Simax will offer the 9 symphonies as a set.
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post #887 of 944
7/1/08 at 12:24am
OK anyone else get thier Mackerras/SCO set?
Are you impressed?
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post #888 of 944
7/2/08 at 11:14am
Sorry, but I've been out of the country and have had no time at all! As I leave again early next week, I doubt I'll have time to listen to anything not already on the ipod.

I do have the first cycle and imo the first MacKerras set was well done, if not one of my favorite cycles. It didn't break any ground and I wasn't overly impressed with sound quality. So far, from what I've read the new set seems very similar to his first cycle, also not great sq. MacKerras never puts a foot wrong, so his Beethoven is of a uniformly high quality. It would be nice to have it in top rate sound.
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post #889 of 944
7/2/08 at 2:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkAngel View Post
OK anyone else get thier Mackerras/SCO set?
Are you impressed?
I am enjoying it a great deal. I've listened through 1-6 a couple times so far. Very spontaneous and lively sounding. Even when the playing of the orchestra isn't exactly as precise as it would be in studio (here and there minor intonation issues too, as well perhaps in places the balance maybe not perfect -- I'll have to listen more to decide on this) it just for me adds to the excitement. It comes across as if they are playing right to the vigorous edge. I am used to big band slower tempo in Beethoven, and I am finding this a lot of fun. The sound quality is rather good to my ears. I am unable to listen through a good system right now, though; still sounds excellent overall to me.

Yes, put me down as impressed.
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post #890 of 944
7/2/08 at 4:31pm
I think bunny is a bit off in her assessment here - the early Mackerras is OK, but certainly not up to the level of the latest set, either in sound or in performance quality.

One thing I will add about my own impressions is that the 5th from the Immerseel set is very, very good, better than the rest, and IMO one of the best performances I've heard of that piece. Great stuff!
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post #891 of 944
7/2/08 at 5:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkAngel View Post
Here is a general comparison between Mackerras & Immerseel:
1,2,3,9 - prefer MacKerras
7,8 - slightly prefer MacKerras
4,5,6 - draw

So Mackerras/SCO is first choice if you can only have one of these sets, it is a really great set!
Tyson this set is your style...............
Tyson
Good to hear you like the Immerseel 5th also, but aren't his 4,6 also very good?
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post #892 of 944
7/2/08 at 6:49pm
Yes they are, but still like Mackerras better in 4/6. Immerseel's 5th is the only one I feel clearly beats Mackerras (and everyone else I've heard).
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post #893 of 944
7/3/08 at 12:05pm
I've waded through the first 32 pgs looking for suggestions on a great 3rd; I think I'll just ask,

What's your favorite?
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post #894 of 944
7/3/08 at 1:04pm
If it's ONLY the 3rd you're after, here's my take:

For conducting:
1) Erich Kleiber on Decca (mono)
2) Klemperer on Testament (mono) with Royal Danish orchestra

For smaller ensemble:
3) Harnoncourt, Teldec
4) Zinman, Arte Nova

But for modern sound, great playing, great conducting all at once:
5) Mackerras on Classics for Pleasure (EMI). Thrilling performance.
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post #895 of 944
7/4/08 at 12:10pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tyson View Post
I think bunny is a bit off in her assessment here - the early Mackerras is OK, but certainly not up to the level of the latest set, either in sound or in performance quality.

One thing I will add about my own impressions is that the 5th from the Immerseel set is very, very good, better than the rest, and IMO one of the best performances I've heard of that piece. Great stuff!
I said, "imo the first MacKerras set was well done, if not one of my favorite cycles. It didn't break any ground and I wasn't overly impressed with sound quality."

I think that agrees with your assessment! Perhaps I should have written although instead of if to be clearer. Sorry if you misunderstood. As for the sq, Hyperion doesn't seem to set any records for sq lately, and generally unless the engineering is extremely controlled, live performances don't have the best sq possible.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hadden View Post
I am enjoying it a great deal. I've listened through 1-6 a couple times so far. Very spontaneous and lively sounding. Even when the playing of the orchestra isn't exactly as precise as it would be in studio (here and there minor intonation issues too, as well perhaps in places the balance maybe not perfect -- I'll have to listen more to decide on this) it just for me adds to the excitement. It comes across as if they are playing right to the vigorous edge. I am used to big band slower tempo in Beethoven, and I am finding this a lot of fun. The sound quality is rather good to my ears. I am unable to listen through a good system right now, though; still sounds excellent overall to me.

Yes, put me down as impressed.
As they are live recordings, one has to expect the possibility of biffs, etc. but intonation problems from the Edinburgh Festival Orchestra are surprising.

Everytime I'm on the edge of buying this set, something makes me hesitate. I still don't believe from what I have read or heard of samples that MacKerras is breaking any new ground interpretatively from his earlier cycle.
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post #896 of 944
7/4/08 at 12:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkAngel View Post
Tyson
Good to hear you like the Immerseel 5th also, but aren't his 4,6 also very good?
I also like the Immerseel 4th and 6th. His 7th was better than the Dausgaard, but that's still not saying much.
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post #897 of 944
7/4/08 at 12:49pm
As they are live recordings, one has to expect the possibility of biffs, etc. but intonation problems from the Edinburgh Festival Orchestra are surprising.

Everytime I'm on the edge of buying this set, something makes me hesitate. I still don't believe from what I have read or heard of samples that MacKerras is breaking any new ground interpretatively from his earlier cycle.[/QUOTE]

Oh, the intonation issues are Very minor. Just in a couple of places I noticed. I think I am oversensitive this way, and I exaggerate here. It's really not a problem in any way. Adds to the exitement/edge of the performance, really. BTW, I don't care for the 9th here as much as the other performances. It's at a lower level for me -- and I do hear balance issues in it with too forward winds and brass. In the other syms the brass are promanent in a good way. My only reservaton with the 1-8 so far is the dissonances in the first movement of the 3rd should grind out heavier, and it skips along a touch fast for me. Still very good though! I also notice more audience noise, occasional coughs in the later symphonies. They are mostly unnoticeable through the first few.
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post #898 of 944
7/4/08 at 1:08pm
Hadden,

thanks for the input. Intonation problems, even if minor, tend to really annoy me unless a performance is very extraordinary or special for another reason (cf Lisa Della Casa's slight problems in Mahler's 4th are easy for me to overlook because I was such a fan while she was singing at the Met). I have so many, many Beethoven cycles that I have become very cautious about big band Beethoven. It really has to be very special for some reason and so far the MacKerras set doesn't seem extraordinary for reasons of sound quality (such as the Vänskä or new Jarvi), and while the performances are interpretively solid, I haven't heard that they are breaking any new ground. The fact that they are live recordings and "exciting" also doesn't get my trigger finger itchy either. With the 9th not on the same level (and the 9th from his original cycle isn't the greatest either) and the 3rd pretty much the way I remember the 3rd from the original cycle, I now may be backing off these. Still, I may change my mind if I find the cycle for the right price. What I don't need is a second Mackerras cycle that I will listen to once or twice and then put away.
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post #899 of 944
7/4/08 at 2:04pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bunnyears View Post
Hadden,

thanks for the input. Intonation problems, even if minor, tend to really annoy me unless a performance is very extraordinary or special for another reason (cf Lisa Della Casa's slight problems in Mahler's 4th are easy for me to overlook because I was such a fan while she was singing at the Met). I have so many, many Beethoven cycles that I have become very cautious about big band Beethoven. It really has to be very special for some reason and so far the MacKerras set doesn't seem extraordinary for reasons of sound quality (such as the Vänskä or new Jarvi), and while the performances are interpretively solid, I haven't heard that they are breaking any new ground. The fact that they are live recordings and "exciting" also doesn't get my trigger finger itchy either. With the 9th not on the same level (and the 9th from his original cycle isn't the greatest either) and the 3rd pretty much the way I remember the 3rd from the original cycle, I now may be backing off these. Still, I may change my mind if I find the cycle for the right price. What I don't need is a second Mackerras cycle that I will listen to once or twice and then put away.
The set is $36.99 at Amazon.ca at the moment. Cheapest I've seen. One thing, I am listening through a cheap digital player at the moment and I have had the experience before of Jitter distortion issues creating a sourness to sound. Massed violins for instance sounding off as if the replay can't handle complexity of overtones, or whatever. I don't have another way of checking for the time being.
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post #900 of 944
7/4/08 at 3:07pm
Although I grew up listening to Von Karajan, I have been listening lately to John Elliot Gardiner with the Orchestra Revolutionaire. Finally with my DT880 and LD III, the 5th sounds so wonderful! I can now wholeheartedly recommend his version.
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