Search - Franz [Vienna] Schubert, Frans Brüggen, Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century :: Schubert: The Complete Symphonies

Forceful up tempo Schubert using period instruments

Larry VanDeSande | Mason, Michigan United States | 08/15/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Franz Bruggen and his period band recorded the Schubert symphonies in the 1990s to some acclaim; they are replicated in this new box of all the Schubert symphonies.



What makes Bruggen attractive in this repertoire are the same qualities taht made his various boxes of Haydn symphonies attractive -- excellent playing, virile & somewhat willful interpretations often at heightened speeds, a certain element of bravado unusual in Schubert, and altogether winning execution by the Dutch forces. The combination of Bruggen and his band make some of the earlier symphonies seem more important than they are and they present all of them in sound and performance style Schubert may have known in his time.



However, conservatives that think of Schubert as the friendly & singing symphonist, or those that believe his music -- especially in the earlier symphonies -- should reflect Germanic gemutlikeit and charm will be very disappointed, and perhaps devastated, by these readings. While not as seriously flawed as Harnoncourt's charmless, driven and hard bitten recordings, these are similar and are miles distant from the jolly, beer drinking, knee-slapping, guffawing Schubert of Bruno Walter or Josef Krips.



As long as you know what you want, this set should achieve that in spades. Philipa' 1990s-era digital sound is wonderfully robust, detailed, lively and brilliant and projects depth in the sound stage. It is better than many Schubert recordings being made today. I find Bruggen's way with Schubert bracing and highly engaging but not very warm, sentimental or fuzzy. Pick your poison on this one, then."

Fine Schubert Symphony Cycle From Bruggen & His Period Instr

John Kwok | New York, NY USA | 05/16/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Period instrument performance classical music fans will definitely want to add this box set to their collection, which is a rather belated attempt by Philips to offer Bruggen's Schubert symphony cycle and reap some financial rewards from the fact that his period instrument band still remains one of the most popular ensembles of its kind world-wide. Having heard only a few of the recordings (These date from the early to mid 1990s), and not the entire cycle itself, I have to confine my remarks to them only. However, I was quite surprised to hear extremely well-played, intriguing performances of Schubert's 6th, 8th and 9th symphonies. Of these performances, the great 9th symphony in C major is in a class unto itself, as one of the best recordings I have heard of this symphony. Here Bruggen has opted for slightly slower tempi, but both his pacing and the elegant phrasing he obtains from the Orchestra of the 18th Century - especially its winds and strings - makes much sense. There are no sudden shifts in tempi, but instead, a regal, inspiring account of this work. However, as much as I am impressed by the quality of the recordings I've heard, I can recommend this set only as an alternative. Musically, both Abbado and especially, Harnoncourt, have some interesting things to say about Schubert's symphonic scores in their respective cycles with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe (Deutsche Grammophon) and Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (Teldec/Warner Classics). Either one I'd regard as more desirable for someone searching for a definitive cycle of Schubert's symphonies."

Two and a Half Masterpieces!

Giordano Bruno | Wherever I am, I am. | 07/26/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"That's what Franz Schubert (1797-1828) produced in his scant 31 years. I'm speaking only of his symphonies; his masterpieces in other genres number in the dozens. The GREAT Schubert symphonies are #6 and #9, plus the two ineffable movements of the Unfinished #8; I'm sure there are dyed-in-the-wool Schubert fans who will clamor for the greatness of one or another of the others, but to my ears they are all essentially efforts to 'catch up' with Joseph Haydn, which he achieved in #4. Then, in #6 Schubert changed his sites and caught up with Beethoven but couldn't trust his own accomplishment, while in #9 he caught up with God.



Franz Bruggen gives us a Haydnesque reading of symphonies 1-5 - with quick-pulsed galante tempi and lots of fresh air in the instrumental textures, just the sort of effects that can only be captured on period instruments played with historical sensibilities. Played any other way, especially 'milked' for romantic agonies, they can and usually do sound quite awkward. But making the minor works enjoyable isn't the main thrust of Bruggen's interpretation. His goal is, as it should be, to 'realize' the full genius of the great two-and-a-half. And that's what he does, by the most direct route of letting the music sing for itself. Schubert's symphonies sag when overinterpreted. Bruggen conducts for clarity of colors and for thematic momentum. I don't feel any compulsion to justify the use of historical instruments for this performance; I strongly suspect that most listeners who come to these recordings with a stubborn bias against 'original' instruments wouldn't have the ears to recognize what they were hearing if they hadn't read the label first. Strangely enough, what they might notice would be the crispness of timpani, which is mostly just a matter of different mallets. More experienced listeners will be pleased by the special timbres of the winds, especially the flutes which sound sweeter and less strident, and the unmuffled horns. One thing no one will really hear: any faulty tuning! In fact, audible tuning is the prime advantage of the "historically informed" orchestra, once the forces are restricted to appropriate numbers and the strings learn to tune by ear, without smudgy vibrato, rather than by committee consensus.



I have a whole raft of Schubert #9s, but Bruggen's is the one I usually choose when I long to hear The Great."