Search - Josef Herrmann, Ludwig van Beethoven, Karl Böhm :: Beethoven: Symphony No. 9

Böhm's 1941 Dresden Beethoven Ninth in OK Sound

J Scott Morrison | Middlebury VT, USA | 09/07/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This 1941 performance of the Beethoven Ninth Symphony, with Karl Böhm conducting the Dresden Staatskapelle with soloists Margarete Teschemacher, Elisabeth Höngen, Torsten Ralf, and Josef Herrmann has been released before on an obscure label and I've not heard that one. This release has been reportedly remastered and the sound from this broadcast sounds pretty good for its time although no one wanting a modern-sound recording will be tempted.



Those who would be tempted to buy it would be fans of Böhm's way with Beethoven, a known and valued commodity, as well as admirers of the four singers involved. All of them were soloists at the Dresden State Opera at the old Semper Opera House before it was destroyed by Allied bombs. The singers are at the height of their careers, all of them in their late thirties and early forties and in good vocal estate. The performance itself is fairly mainline although there are some slow tempi in some of the transitions in the second and fourth movements and of course these are not streamlined HIP performances. Think early Klemperer or Karajan and you'll have some idea. The soloists are outstanding, as is the chorus. There is some minor pitch instability occasionally but not enough to interfere with this recording of what must have been an exciting event.



This is definitely for the historical recordings aficionados and you know who you are.



Scott Morrison"