Search - Cesar Franck, Kurt Masur, New York Philharmonic Orchestra :: Franck: Symphony In D Minor, Les Eolides

Horrible recording

Zachary S. Jackson | Las Vegas, Nevada United States | 07/28/2003

(1 out of 5 stars)

"I talked with some of the musicians that performed on this recording because the balance is horrible. I was informed that the engineers tweeked the balance to not include the brass on most of the loud sections. If you are a string enthusiest and hate brass buy this otherwise ... this recording stinks"

Not an alternative at any price

Mark McCue | Denver, CO USA | 07/27/2000

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Here we have yet another sludgy, dark, Teutonic Franck traversal, almost as unremittingly terrible as the Mehta/Berlin that's out there wasting our ears. I've never known Masur to have anything much to say anywhere. He has even less here.I can't say I wax enthusiastic about any of the Amazon reviewer's suggested alternatives. The Oterloo is a pretty good stab at it, open and airy, well-planned and thoughtful, but a great work deserves better. The Monteux is dark, undiomatic, a little scrappy, heavy, overpraised (it's fashionable to call this a classic, yet it's full of sound gimmicks and some audible edits--sheez). Flor isn't bad, more like the Oterloo, but it lacks any personality and the great originality of the work is obfuscated when the orchestra slides into playing in patterns. How many takes were involved in it?Try Paul Paray on Mercury. Here you have the great Gallican maestro and his superb Detroit Symphony giving us all the power, drama, sincerity and confidence that Franck put on the page. If you're used to the Papa Franck from bad Music Appreciation classes, it will startle you. Your jaw will really drop when it dawns on you that all this excitement came from an old man of 80 and that each movement is a single take. On top of it, you get the Rachmaninoff Second in the issue. It's not appropriate to discuss it here, but you'll be just as amazed.Eolides has gotten much better "advocacy" than this perfunctory Masur sessiontoo. Try Ansermet or Cluytens to get full measure of the work."

Poor recording

Prescott Cunningham Moore | 03/28/2004

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Buying Masur (for me at least) has always been hit or miss. Take, for example, his recording of the Dvorak 8th and the Janácek Sinfonietta - an amazing performance of both of these works. Large brass sounds, responsive playing, interesting, well thought-out interpretations. His recordings of the Beethoven overtures for Phillips are equally thrilling. On the other hand, take his recording of the Beethoven 5th. It seems like a different conductor and orchestra than in the Dvorak/Janácek performance. Here we find a bored orchestra playing a concert staple with no energy, no emotion, no nothing. That is what you will find here in this recording of Frank's only symphony. The energy of the piece is totally destroyed and we are left with a mediocre performance of this great romantic work. Look elsewhere."