Search - Schubert, Walter, Columbia Symphony :: Symphony 9 / Rosamunde Excerpts

Music from an Indian summer

Rick Darby | Tucson, AZ United States | 03/07/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Bruno Walter casts Schubert's last and greatest symphony in the heroic mold, somewhat as though it had been written by middle-period Beethoven. Orchestral climaxes reach for the stars, and forward momentum is ever present. Walter creates a structural framework that is almost Otto Klemperer-like in giving a firm sense of the musical skyline.Although I prefer this approach to one based on Viennese schmaltz of a later era, there is a price to be paid. The scherzo, especially its contrasting central section, could do with a bit more tenderness. The brass spikes are occasionally over the top. On the positive side, there are a number of heady, spine-tingling thrills. And one is never in doubt that every detail has been thought out, no doubt from Walter's long experience, and that nothing accidental is going on.The playing is excellent. In the late 1950s, the Columbia record company (since bought out by Sony) gave Walter, then based in Los Angeles, carte blanche to put together his own hand-picked orchestra. (Can you imagine one of today's conglomerate-owned labels doing such a thing?) The conducter was able to attract top talent, including a number of Hollywood studio musicians, to his group. The result was a series of glorious recordings, including this, made in the Indian summer of Walter's artistic career.Columbia's recording engineers knew a thing or two, and the digital remastering has been successful. Most of the time you would hardly guess that you are listening to a 40-plus-year-old recording. I thought I detected a wee bit of tape saturation in the loudest moments, and there is not the depth and body you hear in high-quality modern recordings, but otherwise the sound is vivid.So this may not be a performance for every taste, and it certainly will not please the period-instrument, "authentic performance" Puritans, but for a great conductor's final thoughts on a masterpiece I believe that most listeners will find it well worth the modest price."

Epic performance!

niveditahr | CHENNAI,INDIA | 10/11/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Schubert's ninth symphony is heroic and yet lyrical,wistful yet assertive!truly a many sided gem!no other performance comes anywhere nearer to all these aspects than this magnificient performance by the columbia symphony orchestra under Bruno Walter.i have recordings of this work by george szell as well as Karl Bohm but the Walter's is the one that goes to the heart!what is described as lack of guts by the reviewer is perhaps due to walter's slowing of tempo to linger over something extraordinarily beautiful which is truly a boon to us!walter seems to pointing -just listen to this!
After listening to this i cannot followup with anyother piece.it is bound to be insipid!
ofcourse if you just want this great symphony to sound like the opening movement of Mendelssohn's Italian symphony you may listen to Szell,breezy and sprightly.but where is the glorious effusion of Schubert?Listen to Walter!"

Walter at low energy in Schubert

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 12/17/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Enthusists call it warm and affectionate, but this is one time I side with the Amazon reviewer. Walter's 1959 Schubert Ninth with the Columbia Sym. is a disappointment, though not a severe one. The opening Andante lumbers along, managing to get slower as the Allegro approaches. Once it arrives Walter's energy picks up, but there's no special spirit. The middle two movements are done at a nice pace, though Walter makes no special effort to phrase or shape the music. The blaring trombones don't start the finale off well, and Walter's slow pacing frees the orchestra from any demands in the fast string passages, but it also fades the excitement quite a bit. At 52 min. the whole performance is the same as Klemperer's, but the latter is much better played and interpreted. Having made these criticisms, if your criteria are warmth and affection, Walter certainly supplies both. My three stars may be a bit stingy (at 72 min. the disc isn't).



The three Rosamunde excerpts are in good, full mono from 1955 with the NY Phil. One notes immediately how much better the solo winds are than those in the Columbia Sym. This helps a performance that is again in a warm, affectionate mode but with more alertness and detail. The Zauberharfe Over. that Schubert recycled for Rosamunde is the highlight of the whole CD. Four stars for this part."