The Symphony

Thought i'd start a thread for specifically The Symphony, those by any composer, from any period, and interpreted by any orchestra or conductor.
      I have over 1,000 recordings of symphonies, ranging from Haydn to Shostakovitch. Symphonies are something that i devote a lot of my listening time to, and are for me, the pinnacle of musical expression.
          My favorites are the towering edifices of composer Anton Bruckner, especially his last three ones, with his 8th Symphony being the greatest one ever written by anybody, imho.
      Bruckner's 8th expresses for me the inexpressible, and it is hard for me to put into words what it signifies for me.
           As far as interpreters of symphonies go, i am almost exclusively an Historical recordings collector (before 1960) with my focus mainly on the 1930s and 40s, with a whole host of conductors like Furtwangler, Walter, Koussevitzky, Beecham, Barbirolli, Abendroth, Schuricht, Stokowski, Monteux, Knappertsbusch, Mengelberg, van Beinum, etc.
        Other favorite symphony composers of mine besides Bruckner include Mahler, Beethoven, Sibelius, Elgar, Brahms, Haydn, Berlioz, Tchaikovsky and Richard Strauss.
        I would love to hear from other members who love symphonies!

Historical recordings often give performances that have way more emotion, spirit and depth than what is more current. Conductors like Furtwangler, Toscanini and Bruno Walter brought out so much more "soul" in their recordings than anybody from a more modern position. There are several reasons for this being so.
      Conductors from, let's say, 75 or more years ago, had much more time to rehearse with a given orchestra than is the practice today, therefore they were more able to stamp their individuality in their performances. Therefore, you had "the Stokowski sound", or the "the Toscanini sound". Too many conductors and orchestras of today sound like each other.
        Also, in some cases, these conductors and orchestra members from decades ago had the benefit of knowing how a great composer would approach his own music in interpretive method, thus knowing the music of a composer more directly. Seeing and hearing Mahler or Bruckner or Wagner or Elgar conduct and direct an orchestra that they could hear and be a part of directly. Or even just knowing people who did was a great learning experience for an emergent conductor, musician or singer.
     There are, of course, modern symphony composers who teach to today's orchestras, but they do not hold a candle to the past masters of the 19th or early to mid 20th Centuries.
           
       I do sometimes listen to a bit of non-historical recordings, but not much.
       

Edited by presdoug - August 17 2013 at 15:13

The.Crimson.King wrote: I have a small collection of Haydn, Mozart, & Beethoven symphonies.  Also had a vinyl Herbert Von Karajan conducted performance of Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition" and "Night on Bald Mountain".

Hey, that sounds cool. Never heard Karajan do Mussorgsky, that would be interesting.

Thanks for the explanation presdoug, been curious about that point of view for a while. As for myself, I own plenty of Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn, Shostakovich, and Mahler (from various box sets) as well as some Bruckner and others on individual discs. The praise Brahms has been getting around here lately has me curious about him.

Polymorphia wrote: I can't call myself an expert, but I do really appreciate the Symphony as a form. My favorite is probably (cue troll face) Messiaen's "Turangalila Symphonie" which I didn't necessarily discover on the "symphony" train of thought. In terms of traditional symphonies, however, none of them do it for me like Brahms 3. Shostakovich 8 is also one of my favorites. I recently bought a 10 CD Set of Brahms Symphonies and other works. I don't remember all of the conductors on it, but Herbert Von Karajan was one of them. I also recently bought scores for all of Brahms' symphs, as well as Shostakovich 8, and Messiaen's "Poemes Pour Mi." There really isn't anything like reading along with your favorite pieces. If you can read music at all, I would recommend it. I plan to do some heavy analysis on the scores, too, once they arrive.

Hey, that sounds like something! I don't know how to read music, but i think i will learn, and it would be fascinating to read along with a score. Thanks for the suggestion.

BrufordFreak wrote: Thanks for starting a great thread, Doug! Boy do I have a lot to learn (and experience)! With no musical training but a lot of interest and innate curiosity, Mozart and the "Baroque" composers before him were the easiest for me to get into. I was able to evolve my ear and brain into the Classical Period (Beethoven is great), then the Romantics and Impressionists. Chopin then Brahms. Brahms' 3rd (and 4th) have spoken to me like no other(s).  As for modern composers, I've listened with fascination if little comprehension and enjoyment--except for the "Minimalist" composers. Those I get, appreciate and enjoy. For some reason, the 12-note chromatic scale is hard on my ear; I do much better with keys. Plus, I know in my heart and soul that major seventh chords and harmonic overtones sing to me with the greatest joy and meaning.  I love learning. I'm also just getting into the joy and appreciation of hearing the differences between various conductors' and orchestras' interpretations of composers' works. Von Karajan v. Bernstein v. Toscanini v. Fürtwangler v. Szell v. Walter v. Barbiroli--it's fascinating.  I read so much praise for Leonard Bernstein (as a conductor) but whenever I hear his compositions I can only hear West Side Story! Is that weird?! It has definitely biased me against him. (0ne can only take so much West Side Story!) And I always thought Von Karajan a god because he was so prolific, had an orchestra with such great reputation, and published on the amazing Deutsche Gramophon label. Now it turns out I may have been wrong on all accounts!

Your very welcome. I admire Karajan, but mainly for his early recordings from the 1930s to early 50s,and i feel Bernstein is over rated, imo. His symphonies are hard for me to appreciate, and some of his interpretations of other composers leave something to be desired.
     I took to the Late Romantic period right away, and later developed an appreciation for earlier music. I find classical music appreciation is like anything else, the more time and effort one puts into it, the greater the reward. Yay!
     

Edited by presdoug - August 17 2013 at 21:14

thellama73 wrote: ^Symphonie Fantasique is my favorite ever symphony. Pure genius! I also really like Haydn, Sibelius, Bruckner, Mendelssohn and of course Beethoven.

Hey, right on. I love the recordings of the Fantastique with Beecham, Walter, Munch, and Monteux especially. I never mentioned that i like Mendelssohn, too, especially Sym. 3 and 4.

presdoug wrote: Polymorphia wrote: I can't call myself an expert, but I do really appreciate the Symphony as a form. My favorite is probably (cue troll face) Messiaen's "Turangalila Symphonie" which I didn't necessarily discover on the "symphony" train of thought. In terms of traditional symphonies, however, none of them do it for me like Brahms 3. Shostakovich 8 is also one of my favorites. I recently bought a 10 CD Set of Brahms Symphonies and other works. I don't remember all of the conductors on it, but Herbert Von Karajan was one of them. I also recently bought scores for all of Brahms' symphs, as well as Shostakovich 8, and Messiaen's "Poemes Pour Mi." There really isn't anything like reading along with your favorite pieces. If you can read music at all, I would recommend it. I plan to do some heavy analysis on the scores, too, once they arrive. Hey, that sounds like something! I don't know how to read music, but i think i will learn, and it would be fascinating to read along with a score. Thanks for the suggestion.

Tchaikovsky's 4th and 6th, Dvorak's 9th, and of course Beethoven's 3rd, 5th, and 9th are my favorites. Not really a fan of classical symphonies, though some of Mozart's late stuff (40, 41) is good. As far as conductors, a very large proportion of my recordings are done by Karajan, so I lack knowledge about a lot of others.

Polymorphia wrote:  Speaking of Mozart scores: My brother just moved out and I have inherited his room. In the closet, on the floor, I found study scores of Mozart's 40th and 41st symphonies. I've been trying to figure out what the hype about Mozart is all about, and maybe this is my opportunity. It struck me as humorous that, in my house, you can find symphonic scores lying around in the strangest of places.