sign in sign up
<<
Home , Arturo Toscanini, Carlos Kleiber, Charles Mackerras, Colin Davis, Georg Solti, Herbert von Karajan

Recordings of the Schubert

Certain Schubert symphonies have been repertory staples for years. Others are played or recorded rarely by themselves, but typically only as part of a complete set of the symphonies. But many fine recordings have been made over the years. I don’t pretend to be familiar with all of them, but I can offer some suggestions and recommendations.

Complete Sets of the Schubert Symphonies

Sir conducts the Dresden Staatskapelle (RCA) This is my all-purpose desert island set, immaculately played by one of the world’s most luminous , conducted by a non-invasive and sensitive leader, and recorded beautifully in Dresden’s resonant Lucaskirche.

Herbert Blomstedt conducts the Dresden Staatskapelle (Brilliant Classics) Same as above, same recording venue. Different recording engineers and a different conductor, but the recording is excellent and Blomstedt, like Davis, is a sensitive and non-invasive musician.

Franz Brüggen conducts the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century () If you’re interested in early style, hearing Schubert on a period ensemble, then this might be worth having or hearing. But I can’t say I like it very much.

Individual Symphonies

Symphony No. 3 in D Major, D 200

Carlos Kleiber conducts the Philharmonic () If only he had left us more permanent examples of his art! Kleiber is always interesting, always thoughtful, always original. Perhaps he takes the Andante movement faster than I like, but no matter. Throughout he gives this insouciant early Schubert the same meticulous care he devoted to his landmark recordings of Beethoven. Recorded along with the “Unfinished,” surely this ranks amongst the most memorable Schubert discs of all time.

Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major, D 485

Herbert Blomstedt conducts the (Decca) Using a chamber-sized orchestra, Blomstedt brings the same delicacy and nuance to his San Francisco recording as to his earlier Dresden outing. The SFS is a clearer, more transparent orchestra than Dresden, but offers just as lovely sound in its own way.

Georg Solti conducts the (Decca) Solti didn’t conduct Schubert all that often, but when he did the results could be marvelous. Here he shepherds the Vienna Philharmonic in a fine, radiant performance that to me exemplifies everything I love about the Vienna Phil and its unique sound.

Arturo Toscanini conducts the NBC Symphony (RCA and reprints) This one is for special tastes but it has its strong points. Toscanini was modernist in that he reminds me of some of today’s historically-informed conductors such as with their rapid tempi, light textures, and overall avoidance of sentimentality. But he was also interventionist, and here Schubert sometimes winds up as a distant second to Toscanini. Made late in Toscanini’s career, this performance displays all of the classic Toscanini tics, including those sudden lunges towards faster tempi and razor-sharp rhythmic contours. I’ll say this: boredom will not be a problem.

Symphony No. 8 in B Minor “Unfinished”, D 759

Carlos Kleiber conducts the Vienna Philharmonic (Deutsche Grammophon) I list the album’s companion piece—Symphony No. 3—above. Kleiber’s “Unfinished” will remain forever, to my mind, one of the great ones. Nobody caught the brooding Romanticism of the opening better, or the sweetness of the second theme. And the recording itself, made in 1978, displays the Deutsche Grammophon tonmeisters at their all-time best.

Herbert Blomstedt conducts the San Francisco Symphony (Decca) Herbert Blomstedt’s three Schubert recordings with San Francisco (5, 8, and 9) are all superb. The San Francisco Symphony is capable of rare elegance, and in these beautifully engineered recordings from around 1990, the SFS has never sounded better.

Charles Munch conducts the Boston Symphony Orchestra (RCA) A grand old RCA Living Stereo recording from 1958—made at a time when most people didn’t have stereo record players—this captures one of America’s greatest orchestras during one of its all-time peaks. The album includes the Ninth as its companion piece, equally outstanding.

Georg Solti conducts the Vienna Philharmonic (Decca) If you get the Solti/Vienna recording of the Fifth, you get this one as well. Absolutely first-rate Unfinished.

Herbert von Karajan conducts the (EMI) Karajan’s recordings with ’s Philharmonia Orchestra—his primary ensemble before he succeeded Furtwängler at the Philharmonic—can be a revelation to those who associate him only with a plushly cushioned orchestral sound that tends to obliterate all the detail in a big wash of strings. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that—I rather enjoy all that upholstery sometimes.) In this fine stereo performance everybody gives their considerable all in a reserved but exquisite rendition of the work.

Symphony No. 9 in C Major “Great”, D 944

In addition to renditions from Solti/Vienna, Blomstedt/SFS, and Munch/Boston—all highly recommended—I can offer some comments on a few more recordings.

István Kertész conducts the Vienna Philharmonic (Decca) Thanks to those good folks at ArkivMusic.com, this out-of-print box of the complete Schubert symphonies is now once again available as an ArkivCD reprint (available only through ArkivMusic.com). It’s good throughout, but to my ears the Ninth is among the finest ever committed to disc. Kertész takes a brilliant, high-heat approach to the work, and those wizards in Vienna sizzle right along with him.

Herbert von Karajan conducts the Vienna Philharmonic (Deutsche Grammophon) I refer here to Karajan’s 1946 traversal—a time when he was still under a deep shadow from his Nazi associations and when the Vienna Philharmonic was still rebuilding itself in the chaos of the post-war era. The performance served as an affirmation of faith on the part of orchestra and conductor alike, and the dedication shows. And the young Karajan is simply amazing, as he cooks up a Schubert Ninth so vital that it bursts free of the limitations of 1946 audio. You can find this in the first of the two gigantic box sets of Karajan’s recordings for EMI, or on a single CD available as an ArkivCD (another of those reprints from ArkivMusic.com).

Symphony No. 10 and Fragments

Sir conducts the Scottish Chamber Orchestra (Hyperion) The indefatiguable Mackerras gave us a fine disc that combines all of the known Schubert symphonic fragments with an excellent reconstruction of the Tenth. Not just for Schubert completists—it’s a very interesting CD on its own merits.