Justly acclaimed recording of Bruckner's mighty Eighth
Kenji Fujishima | East Brunswick, NJ USA | 07/14/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Having heard Giulini's fantastic DG recording of Bruckner's Ninth Symphony, I looked forward to hearing his similarly majestic way with what is arguably Bruckner's greatest finished symphony, the mighty Eighth.Other than Bruckner's Fifth, his Eighth is perhaps his most completely successful symphonic utterance. If the Adagio is not necessarily his best slow movement, it certainly comes very close (that powerful Adagio of his Ninth is pretty hard to beat). But there can be no doubt that, for his Eighth Symphony, Bruckner never wrote a greater Finale---episodic, maybe, but still one of his most thrilling, with a towering coda that counts as one of Bruckner's mightiest symphonic moments.In short, I find Bruckner's Eighth to be one of the great works of the symphonic literature, and Carlo Maria Giulini and the Vienna Philharmonic on this two-disc recording come near doing it full justice. It is a performance of truly epic proportions, with the VPO playing with their usual technical brilliance and creating some grand and glorious sounds, particularly the brass. Despite the slow tempos of the first two movements, they never drag (the Scherzo always feels like a true scherzo in its outer sections); the Adagio is second to none, marvelously played and conducted, with Giulini once again choosing a very slow tempo but sustaining it near-miraculously (it truly sounds as spiritual as Bruckner must have intended); and the Finale is a truly grand summation of all that has come before, with a coda that is truly majestic in this performance.Overall, I think this oft-acclaimed Giulini Eighth is worth the hype as one of the great recorded accounts of this symphony. For those, though, who only want to have one recording of this work for their shelves---well, that is quite a decision to make. For me, it comes down to this Giulini recording and Herbert von Karajan's equally powerful DG recording with the same orchestra released about five years later. I dunno...both have their really good points, making choice difficult. I like Giulini's first and second movements slightly better than Karajan's, who is, I think, a little too heavy-handed in both movements. (Giulini's reading of the Scherzo, for instance, seems much more like an actual scherzo than Karajan's does.) Both have equally moving readings of the Adagio, Karajan's just as moving as Giulini's even with a quicker tempo. It is with the Finale, though, that I rather prefer Karajan's reading over Giulini's---the former conductor effortlessly binds the whole big structure together into a fiery symphonic whole, whereas Giulini sometimes comes off as slightly more disjointed and episodic by comparison.So, for those who are looking only for one version of this symphony to own, it's a tough call between Giulini and Karajan. Ideally, though, you should own both: both conductors may use different editions of the score (I will not get into discussion about the whole argument about various extant editions regarding this symphony), but both will convince you of this music's greatness. Any recording of this mighty piece that accomplishes that must be counted as a success, and Giulini's performance, like Karajan's, is surely that. Recommended."
A GREAT TESTAMENT BY A GREAT CONDUCTOR
Tony L. Engleton CNMT | COLVILLE, WA USA | 01/31/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I REMEMBER A COLD WINTERY NIGHT BACK IN 1975 WHEN MY WIFE AND I BRAVED THE LATEST CHICAGO SNOWSTORM TO DRIVE TO ORCHESTRA HALL. IT WOULD BE WORTH IT, I THOUGHT. GIULINI WAS CONDUCTING--THE BRUCKNER 8TH. AFTER A HARRIED BUT SAFE ARRIVAL, WE DISCOVERED THAT THE PROGRAM HAD BEEN CHANGED. APPARENTLY, THE MAESTRO'S COPY OF THE SCORE WAS MISPLACED, SO HE WOULD SUBSTITUE ANOTHER WORK. A NOTE OF APOLOGY BY THIS ELEGANT MASTER WAS ENCLOSED IN THE PROGRAM.
I THINK OF THAT NIGHT EVERYTIME I LISTEN TO THIS LANDMARK RECORDING BY ONE THE GREATEST OF ALL MUSICAL COMBINATIONS--CARLO MARIA GIULINI AND THE VIENNA PHILHARMONIC. THE SECRET TO A REALLY GREAT SYMPHONY ISN'T THE OPENING MOVEMENT OR THE GRAND FINALE, BUT THE ADAGIO. BRUCKNER'S ADAGIOS ARE AMONGST THE FINEST EVER WRITTEN. THEY ARE PERFECT IN EVERY WAY, NOTE FOR NOTE. GIULINI AND THE VPO BUILD THE MAJESTY OF THIS LONG MOVEMENT WITH SUCH DEVOTION AND AFFECTION THAT ONE IS ALMOST AFRAID TO BLINK, LET ALONE BREATHE. BUY THIS DISC WITHOUT DELAY! SHUT OFF THE PHONE, CLOSE THE WINDOWS, GIVE THE DOG A BONE AND SPEND ABOUT 80 MINUTES WITH THE OTHERWORLDINESS OF THIS GLORIOUS AND MOVING WORK. THIS IS NO ORDINARY RECORDING--THIS IS SPECIAL. INCIDENTALY, THE WORK THAT WE HEARD ON THAT JANUARY NIGHT WAS MAHLER'S 9TH."
Greatest Stereo/Digital Performance
L. E Johnson | Raleigh, NC United States | 05/27/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This would be the greatest stereo/digital recording of this symphony if for no other reason than that you can hear the harp in the adagio clearly and beautifully, unlike in too many other recordings. However, this performance is the greatest in digital/stereo as well. It's hard to beat Furtwangler, and his may be the best 8ths ever, but his sound is obviously not this good. That this CD is out of print is scandalous."
Track Listings (2) - Disc #1
