Born in Geneva on July 24, 1880, Ernest Bloch left his native Switzerland in 1917 and emigrated to the United States. He left an impressive amount of high-quality works. Among his many symphonic pieces, however, only the cello rhapsody Schelomo (1915/16) has acquired a permanent place in the concert repertoire. He had apparently been inspired to write it when he saw a statue of King Solomon made by the wife of a fellow cellist in Switzerland. He wrote that “it is the Jewish soul that interests me, the complex, glowing, agitated soul that I feel vibrating throughout the Bible; the freshness and naiveté of the Patriarchs; the violence that is evident in the prophetic books; the Jew’s savage love of justice; the despair of the preacher of Jerusalem; the sorrow and the immensity of the Book of Job; the sensuality of the Song of Songs.” Although Bloch did not use any authentic Hebrew material in his “Hebrew Rhapsody”, the listener is immediately ushered into an exotic, archaic world in which the ancient prophets, the Scriptures and the construction of the Temple are virtually palpable. There is a sense of timelessness that is the expression of true art. The recording of Bloch’s Schelomo features the great Mstislav Rostropovich as the soloist, with the Orchestre National de France led by Leonard Bernstein.
Beethoven, Piano Concerto No.4 in G major, op.58
It was to have been the culmination of Leonard Bernstein’s Beethoven cycle: the recording of all five piano concertos with a leading pianist of the younger generation. What it became is an example of enlightened music- making, the document of an incredible empathy between conductor, soloist and orchestra – an empathy so strong that it overrode even the maestro’s death. In Krystian Zimerman, Bernstein had found a congenial partner. But the full extent of Zimerman’s congeniality emerged only after the maestro’s death on 14 October 1990. Concertos Nos. 3, 4 and 5 had been recorded. A decision had to be taken with regard to concertos Nos. 1 and 2: either a new conductor had to be found or, following the practice of the 18th and early 19th centuries, the orchestra would be entrusted to the soloist. The latter alternative was chosen – a decision applauded throughout the music world. Born in Zabrze, Poland, on 7 December 1956, Krystian Zimerman won the first prize in the Chopin Competition in Warsaw in 1975. After expanding his repertoire and studying in London in 1980, he made a name for himself in numerous concerts and recordings as one of the most talented pianists of his generation.
Chopin, Scherzo in B flat minor, op.31
Beethoven, Symphony No.4 in B flat major, op.60
The Fourth Symphony was first performed in Vienna in 1807 at the home of one of Beethoven’s patrons, Prince Franz Joseph Lobkowitz. Compared with the Third Symphony, the Fourth is more modest and traditional; its style and structure are closer to the Second. The Fourth Symphony is not a monumental work; on the contrary, the orchestra is the smallest for any Beethoven symphony. The gentle harmony and placidity of this symphony prompted the French composer Hector Berlioz to comment about the second movement: “…the being who wrote such a marvel of inspiration… was not human.” This recording is part of Bernstein’s complete cycle of Beethoven symphonies recorded with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra live in Vienna. The series won the Ace Award, the U.S. Cable TV Association’s top award for outstanding quality and entertainment value. Bernstein’s impassioned renderings of Beethoven move audiences in a unique way. “Beethoven has always meant universality to me, ever since my early adolescence, when I first heard that unforgettable cry of ‘Brüder!’. From that moment on, every… symphony came to mean heart-to-heart communication, travelling satellite-fashion via the cosmos itself. I offer [this cycle] to all music- loving ears as a testament of faith and of my most profound reactions to this greatest of all composers.” (Leonard Bernstein, 1980)
Mozart, Symphony No.25 in G minor, K. 183
The “little” G minor Symphony K. 183 (as opposed to the “Great” G minor K. 550) of 1773 is regarded as Mozart’s first symphonic masterpiece. New is the minor mode. New are also the passionate spirit, the abrupt changes of mood, the depth of the drama and the strong dynamic contrasts. Even the idyllic wind episode in the Trio of the Menuett cannot weaken the impression of implacability. The symphony is the brilliant stroke of a 17-year-old genius who is in the act of developing his own symphonic idiom and discovering new expressive domains in so doing. Leonard Bernstein leads the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in this performance recorded in 1988, two years before the maestro’s death.
Beethoven, Piano Concerto No.3 in C minor, op.37
It was to have been the culmination of Leonard Bernstein’s Beethoven cycle: the recording of all five piano concertos with a leading pianist of the younger generation. What it became is an example of enlightened music- making, the document of an incredible empathy between conductor, soloist and orchestra – an empathy so strong that it overrode even the maestro’s death. In Krystian Zimerman, Bernstein had found a congenial partner. But the full extent of Zimerman’s congeniality emerged only after the maestro’s death on 14 October 1990. Concertos Nos. 3, 4 and 5 had been recorded. A decision had to be taken with regard to concertos Nos. 1 and 2: either a new conductor had to be found or, following the practice of the 18th and early 19th centuries, the orchestra would be entrusted to the soloist. The latter alternative was chosen – a decision applauded throughout the music world. Born in Zabrze, Poland, on 7 December 1956, Krystian Zimerman won the first prize in the Chopin Competition in Warsaw in 1975. After expanding his repertoire and studying in London in 1980, he made a name for himself in numerous concerts and recordings as one of the most talented pianists of his generation.
Mendelssohn, Symphony No.3 in A minor, Op.56 “Scottish”
“The last of the great international orchestral and operatic maestri” (The Times), Sir Georg Solti is a living testament to the elegance and impeccable tastefulness of Central European music-making. Solti’s remarkable partnership with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra began in 1954, when he first led the orchestra at the Ravinia Festival. After returning to conduct the ensemble several times during the following years, he was named Music Director in 1969 and held this post for a phenomenal 22 years. He is credited with greatly extending and enhancing the orchestra’s worldwide reputation. His recordings of Mendelssohn’s works with the Chicago Symphony date from the late 1970s and represent a mellower, more lyrically accented phase in the partnership between Solti and his orchestra.
Beethoven, Symphony No.6 in F major, op.68 “Pastorale”
Nature was often Beethoven’s companion during his long solitary walks in the countryside near Vienna. His communion with nature brought forth the “Pastoral” Symphony, composed between in 1807/1808. Its first performance took place in Vienna on 22 December 1808. Each of the “Pastoral”‘s five movements (it is Beethoven’s only five-movement symphony) bears a descriptive title, suggesting a scene from country life. In the second movement, woodwinds imitate bird calls: flute (nightingale), oboe (quail) and clarinet (cuckoo). Beethoven’s joy is expressed throughout the work: “How glad I am to be able to roam in woods and thickets, among the trees, flowers and rocks”, he said. “No one can love the country as I do… my bad hearing does not trouble me here.” This recording is part of Bernstein’s complete cycle of Beethoven symphonies recorded with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra live in Vienna. The series won the Ace Award, the U.S. Cable TV Association’s top award for outstanding quality and entertainment value. Bernstein’s impassioned renderings of Beethoven move audiences in a unique way. “Beethoven has always meant universality to me, ever since my early adolescence, when I first heard that unforgettable cry of ‘Brüder!’. From that moment on, every… symphony came to mean heart- to-heart communication, travelling satellite-fashion via the cosmos itself. I offer [this cycle] to all music-loving ears as a testament of faith and of my most profound reactions to this greatest of all composers.” (Leonard Bernstein, 1980)
Brahms, Piano Concerto No.1 in D minor, op.15
Between 1981 and 1984, Leonard Bernstein recorded nearly all of Brahms’s orchestral works with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra to honor the 150th anniversary of the composer’s birth in 1983. Today, the cycle is considered as a landmark in the interpretation of Brahms’ music. For Bernstein, Brahms was “a true Romantic, containing his passions in classical garb”, but also a “North-German classicist swept away to Vienna, and fired by Danubian, Carpathian and gypsy passions”. Bearing this dualism in mind, Bernstein and the Vienna Philharmonic have underscored both the classicism and romanticism, the dramatic intensity and the sober restraint of Brahms’s music. The venue was Vienna’s Musikvereinssaal, where two of Brahms’s symphonies were premiered and where Brahms himself conducted. The soloist in Brahms’s concerto is the Polish pianist Krystian Zimerman, who launched his meteoric career when he won the Chopin Competition in Warsaw in 1975. An important influence in his youth was his friendship with Arthur Rubinstein, and other landmarks in his career arose through his work with conductors such as Bernstein, Giulini and Karajan.
Beethoven, Symphony No.1 in C major, op.21
First performed at the Hofburg Theater in Vienna in 1800, the First Symphony is sometimes labeled a “fitting farewell to the 18th century”. Composed when Beethoven was 29 and already a well-known pianist and gifted composer of keyboard and chamber works, this symphony is still very much in the classical style of Haydn and Mozart, following the structure of 18th-century symphonic music. Yet its classical form is little more than a disguise; for beneath the surface, one perceives the strength and drive of a revolutionary artistic spirit. Sir Georg Solti (1912-1997), one of the greatest conductors of the 20th century, was a testament to the elegance and impeccable tastefulness of Central European music-making. Born in Budapest in 1912, he studied with Béla Bartók, Ernö von Dohnányi, Zoltán Kodály and Leo Weiner. In 1937, Toscanini chose him to be his assistant at the Salzburg Festival. After the war, Solti was appointed Music Director of the Bavarian State Opera. Further stations in his career were the Frankfurt Opera, the Royal Opera House Covent Garden and the London Philharmonic. His remarkable partnership with the Chicago Symphony began in 1954; he was named Music Director in 1969 and held this post for a phenomenal 22 years. He is credited with greatly extending and enhancing the orchestra’s worldwide reputation. Solti died in September 1997, just before his 85th birthday. This recording with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra was made at London’s Royal Albert Hall in 1978.