Amazon.com Brahms and Beethoven were the center of Furtwängler's universe, the composers whose music he most closely identified with and whose art gave him the greatest sense of fulfillment and renewal. While they are perhaps not the finest of the conductor's outings ever captured, the postwar realizations collected here--of the four Brahms symphonies, the Variations on a Theme by Haydn, and the three Hungarian Dances that Brahms himself orchestrated, as well as two Beethoven overtures--show Furtwängler in an exemplary light, as an insightful interpreter and a compelling, spontaneous musical presence. Those qualities come across with particular point in the Brahms symphonies, which are all taken from live performances (No. 1 is played by the Vienna Philharmonic, Nos. 2 through 4 by the Berlin Philharmonic), with noticeable audience noise and such problems as the occasional piquant tuning of chords, but also with plenty of the excitable, impassioned, and highly profiled musicmaking for which Furtwängler was famous. These are turbulent and expressive readings, not autumnal and reserved, and certainly not understated. In fact, the Third (from 1949) emerges, if anything, somewhat overstated in this, the earliest of Furtwängler's four recordings of the piece: one can feel the orchestra straining at the bit at the beginning of the first movement, and again at the exposition repeat, and the performance as a whole seems too episodic, too hurried, and lacking in grip. It's a different story with the rest of the canon. The Fourth (recorded in 1948) receives a powerful reading, very firm in conception, while the Second (from 1952) is quite intense and appealing, notable for the soaring lyricism Furtwängler imparts to the Adagio and the giddiness he brings to the finale. Furtwängler performed and recorded the First more than any other Brahms symphony, and he excited a particularly strong response in the Vienna Philharmonic when he led this performance in 1952. Listening to it, or any of the others in this set, one realizes rather quickly what's so remarkable about this conductor: he gave performances that were experiences of the music, not mere reconstructions of it. Nobody makes music like this any more. --Ted Libbey Product description Brahms:Sinfonien/Symphonies, 3 Ungarische Tänze, Haydn-Variatonen; Beethoven: Coriolan, Leonore II / Wiener Philharmoniker, Berliner Philharmoniker, Wilhelm Furtwängler / Références / EMI Classics 3x Audio CD 1995 Mono UPC 724356551329 /// Johannes Brahms (* 7. Mai 1833 in Hamburg; 3. April 1897 in Wien) war ein deutscher Komponist, Pianist und Dirigent. Seine Kompositionen werden vorwiegend der Hochromantik zugeordnet; durch die Einbeziehung barocker und klassischer Formen gehen sie aber über diese hinaus. Brahms gilt als einer der bedeutendsten Komponisten der Musikgeschichte. /// Label: EMI Classics – 7243 5 65513 2 9 Series: Références Format: 3 x CD, Compilation, Mono Country: Europe Released: 1995 Genre: Classical Style: Classical, Romantic /// Tracklist: Johannes Brahms 1833-1897 Wilhelm Furtwängler, Wiener Philharmoniker– Ungarische Tänze / Danses Hongroises / Hungarian Dances Composed By – Johannes Brahms Engineer [Balance Engineer] – Anthony Griffith, Douglas Larter Orchestra – Wiener Philharmoniker Producer – Walter Legge 1-1 – Nr.1 G-moll / En Sol Mineur / In G Minor (Allegro Molto) 3:05 1-2 – Nr.3 F-dur / En Fa Majeur / In F Major (Allegretto) 2:28 1-3 – Nr.10 F-dur / En Fa Majeur / In F-Major (Presto) 1:44 Wilhelm Furtwängler, Wiener Philharmoniker– Haydn-Variationen / Variations Sur Un Thème De Haydn / Variations on a theme by Haydn, Op.56a "St. Antoni Chorale" (19:30) Composed By – Johannes Brahms Engineer [Balance Engineer] – Anthony Griffith Orchestra – Wiener Philharmoniker Producer – Walter Legge 1-4 – Thema: Chorale St. Antoni (Andante) 2:09 1-5 – Variation I (Poco Più Animato) 1:17 1-6 – Variation II (Più Vivace) 1:01 1-7 – Variation III (Con Moto) 2:07 1-8 – Variation IV (Andante Con Moto) 2:46 1-9 – Variation V (Vivace) 0:53 1-10 – Variation VI (Vivace) 1:22 1-11 – Variation VII (Grazioso) 3:13 1-12 – Variation VIII (Presto Non Troppo) 0:57 1-13 – Finale (Andante) 3:47 Wilhelm Furtwängler, Wiener Philharmoniker– Symphonie Nr.1 C-Moll / En Ut Mineur / In C Minor, Op.68 (46:48) Composed By – Johannes Brahms Orchestra – Wiener Philharmoniker 1-14 – I: Un Poco Sostenuto - Allegro 14:29 1-15 – II: Andante Sostenuto 10:22 1-16 – III: Un Poco Allegretto E Grazioso 5:07 1-17 – IV: Adagio - Più Andante - Allegro Non Troppo Ma Con Brio 16:51 Wilhelm Furtwängler, Berliner Philharmoniker– Sinfonie Nr.2 D-dur / En Ré Majeur / In D Major, Op.73 (41:00) Composed By – Johannes Brahms Engineer [Balance Engineer] – Otto Petzak Orchestra – Berliner Philharmoniker Producer – Bayerischer Rundfunk 2-1 – I: Allegro Non Troppo 15:34 2-2 – II: Adagio Non Troppo 10:35 2-3 – III: Allegretto Grazioso (Quasi Andantino) - Presto, Ma Non Assai 5:54 2-4 – IV: Allegro Con Spirito 8:57 Wilhel