Beethoven- Symphony No. 4; Symphony No. 7 [Hybrid SACD]

Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 3 & 8 [Hybrid SACD]	Brahms: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 3 [Hybrid SACD] PentaTone's second installment of the Brahlms symphony cycle featuring the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Marek Janowski.	Beethoven Symphonies Nos. 1 & 6 [Hybrid SACD]	Schoenberg Violin Concerto Op.36/Sibelius Violin Concerto Op.47 In another original pairing violinist Hilary Hahn brings together the familiar, highly commercial and long-awaited recording of the famous Sibelius Violin Concerto with the rarely performed Violin Concerto by Arnold Schoenberg. Hahn brings out the romantic qualities of Schoenberg...	Mozart Symphonies 38 Through 41
Mahler: The Song of the Earth [Hybrid SACD]	Mahler: Symphony No. 4 [Hybrid SACD]	Schumann - The Complete Symphonies (Mahler Edition) Riccardo Chailly and the Gewandhaus Orchestracomplete their cycle of Schumann s four symphonies,presented together in a specially-priced 2-CD set.The Gewandhaus Orchestra under it s Music DirectorRiccardo Chailly brings generations of authentic romantic style to performances of a...	Tchaikovsky: Symphony 6 Pathetique The Philadelphia Orchestra and Music Director Christoph Eschenbach continue a celebrated series of hybrid SACD recordings with their third Tchaikovsky release to combine well-known symphonic works and rarely encountered piano music. One of Tchaikovsky's most important and best-se...	Brahms: Symphony No. 1 in C minor; Haydn Variations [Hybrid SACD]

Looks like I'll be acquiring another Beethoven cycle
Frankly, I had been avoiding Pavo Jarvi's new Beethoven cycle. Having acquired Haitink in SACD and the ongoing BIS SACD cycle with Vanska and the Minnesota Orchestra, I questioned just how much I needed more Beethoven symphonies in SACD in addition to the numerous older recordings on my shelves. I was also quite disappointed in the conductor's recent coupling of the Tchaikovksy Pathetique and Romeo and Juliet on Telarc - two pallid and emotionally inhibited performances that are simply not to my taste at all. It was a comment posted on my remarks about the recent Vanska coupling of Nos. 1 and 6 that convinced me to give Jarvi a try. I've listened to both the Jarvi and Vanska performances of the Fourth for comparison. Both are excellent. Robert Schumann referred to the symphony as "a slender Greek maiden". Jarvi's vision is more Dionysian while that of Vanska is more Apollonian. Take for example, the introduction to the first movement. Vanska creates a mysterious atmosphere with a blended sonority and pianissimos on the verge of inaudability. Jarvi is more tragicomic/mock heroic with a prominent bassoon and more pungent accents. The interpretive stance carries over into the body of the movement and the rest of the symphony as well for both conductors - Jarvi more straightforward and punchy (the term high jinks kept coming to mind) and Vanska more restrained. Both approaches are valid, but I must say that Beethoven's earthy humor is more evident with Jarvi. The bassoon flourishes add to the fun. It recalls Haydn's wrecking decorum in Symphony No. 93 with the bassoon raspberry. Some of the differences may be attributed to the difference in the forces employed. Vanska's Beethoven is more traditionally "big band" while Jarvi employs an excellent chamber ensemble to very good effect. Jarvi's string players limit the use of vibrato, achieving some interesting color in the process. The recorded sound is excellent and well matched to the performances in both cases. BIS gives us a big hall sound while Sony/BMG is more in your face. For the Fourth, I can't decide which of these excellent performances I prefer. They both make me want to listen repeatedly - no minor feat in music as familiar as this. Jarvi's disc includes a rollicking performance of the wonderful Seventh Symphony. The chamber forces display their mettle in the complex rhythms of the score. This is a wonderful, fleet-footed performance. The limited vibrato in the strings makes for some interesting, wiry effects in the introduction. Woodwinds and brass are nicely balanced. The growling basses near the end of the first movement are nicely prominent. The Allegretto "funeral march" follows after the briefest of pauses, a very interesting interpretive choice. Tempo choice in this enigmatic movement strikes me as just right - neither ponderous or rushed. The Scherzo is ebullient and the Presto finale is both whirlwind in tempo and well articulated. Time will tell whether Jarvi (and Vanska) join the select group of gold standard cycles that stretch back to the early years of sound recording. In any event, I'll be acquiring Jarvi as well as completing the Vanska with the anticipated coupling of Nos. 2 and 7. They are both very, very good, though different, and well recorded.

More Boundless Energy
Similar to the 3/8 recording, this has crisp, big sound, and assertive approaches in both works. I liked the sound quality of these better then the 3/8 which exhibited a bit of high-register shrillness when played on my high-end home system. Played on my car's really good sound system, the ordinary CD version sounded great. On first listening, I was blown away by both performances. Less so on second hearing, but that's because it was a second hearing and I had already accepted Jarvi's interpretations, enhanced underpinnings, and flow from one theme to the next. These performances, as the 3/8 disc, add to one's ability to listen to these symphonies with new ears and I hope will convert those more enamored of the stodgy declamations of some of the better-known conductors of the past.

The Beethoven cycle, rekindled.
Living in Cincinnati, I have been fortunate enough to see Mr. Jarvi conduct quite a few times with the CSO. I've come away for the most part heartily impressed and occasionally a little disappointed. Such it is with artists and live performance. His strengths, I've learned, generally tend to lie in the realm of "newer" music (i.e. Prokofiev, Stravinsky, Part, Lutoslawski, etc.) than that of the romantic warhorses. However, it is also important to note that he has had huge periodic successes with some of the biggest pieces in the romantic repertoire- and for this reason must be seen as one of the more dynamic and capable conductors around today. I am enormously pleased to say that Mr. Jarvi has proven to me more than once in recent memory (his Beethoven 9th and violin concerto live in concert both come to mind) that his Beethoven is among the best there is to be had anywhere. This Beethoven cycle by Mr. Jarvi and the Kammerphilharmonie Bremen is (so far) stunningly well executed. This group is having a tremendous amount of fun, and every bit of it is coming across. The dynamics are as near to perfect as I've ever heard in Beethoven, and the recording quality bears this out. Both this disc as well as the prior release of the 3rd and 8th can be characterized by that moment when you pop the CD in, and within a couple minutes you're smiling and turning it up. It has rekindled my interest in the Beethoven symphony cycle, and I look forward to the upcoming releases.

A real treat!!
WOW, I have to say I am beyond impressed with this SACD. I hate to admit that I have sort of become disenchanted with Paavo Jarvi in the past year or two with the sometimes killer/sometimes dull recordings he has done with Cincinnati for Telarc. However, right from the start this recording grabbed me by the ears and never let go. Sheer excitement, passion, intensity...it is all there...in droves. Very impressive and best of all, the band from Bremen sounds like they are having quite a bit of fun!! The sound also blew me away, and I quickly learned why when I saw that the fabulous gang from Polyhymnia (think Pentatone and Caro Mitis) was the team in the control room...way to go guys!!! Heartily recommended!!

More fabulous Beethoven from Jaavi
Superb performances that bring out all the power, grandure, and rhythmic intensity of two great Beethoven symphonies. This RCA CD, along with the previous CD of symphonies 3 and 8, are just fantastic and have rekindled my interest in the Beethoven symphony cycle. Note that these same forces joined with Japanese pianist Ikuyo Nakishima for fine performances of concertos 3 and 5 on Japanese RCA (try Japan CD or HMV Japan for purchase). I should also mention that the sound on all these CDs is fabulous.