Search - Antonin Dvorak, Bedrich Smetana, Herbert von Karajan :: Dvorák: Symphonie No. 9; Smetana: Moldau

Dvorák: Symphonie No. 9; Smetana: Moldau
Antonin Dvorak, Bedrich Smetana, Herbert von Karajan
Dvorák: Symphonie No. 9; Smetana: Moldau
Genre: Classical
 
  •  Track Listings (5) - Disc #1


     
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CD Reviews

Five stars for the sound
Tim Hitchner | Vancouver, British Columbia | 11/17/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)

"In his final days Herbert von Karajan was just crankin' 'em out, sometimes his third or fourth reading of a certain piece, just to try and get as much of his repertoire recorded digitally as possible. This recording - which was also used for one of his Telemondial video productions - is one of those. The Vienna Philharmonic the ensemble used this time after his fallout with the Berliners shortly before. I've had older renditions of this work on vinyl recorded with the Berlin Phil that were quite exceptional. I've always thought, why not just digitally re-master a 20 or 30-year-old recording from the late 50's through the early 70's when he was really in his prime, as opposed to issuing another rendition just to make a digital version of it? Nonetheless, these are still very fine readings of The Dvorak and the Smetana, and after reviewing a library copy, I would still be tempted to buy myself one of this 1985 issue just for the sound quality alone. The Deutsche Grammophon Original-Image Bit-Processing digital sound on this recording will blow you away."
Top notch
G. Metcalf | United States | 10/21/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Smetana on this CD was the highpoint for me. The Dvorak is a great work and I have heard many excellent productions of it. This one is very enjoyable and the sound is fabulous. All soloists are clearly heard and the stereo image is great. The surprise for me was the Smetana which it turns out is a lovely piece of music played and recorded beautifully here. The beginning in which he tries to reproduce the movement of water in a stream is captivating. That is followed by one of the more hummable tunes I have encountered in music. Recommended highly."
Excellent recording and a fine effort by old man Karajan
Joey Joe Joe Jr. Shabadoo | Boston, MA USA | 09/23/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)

"I don't need to tell you anything about the music, you'd have to have lived in a cave for your entire life to have never heard this. A few points on the performance - excellent pacing, great sound and the brass in the final movement is room-shaking. A great version for sure, with the added bonus of Smetana's Die Moldau from his symphonic poem, Ma Vlast. Kubelik's and Kertesz's readings of the 9th are probably better and more individualistic, but in terms of sonics this recording blows those out of the water. Expensive but worth every penny."