Filmed mainly in Vienna’s splendid “Musikvereinssaal,” the Mozart symphonies conducted by Karl Böhm are all interpreted by one of the world’s foremost orchestras, the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, whose principal conductors have included Wilhelm Furtwängler, Bruno Walter, Herbert von Karajan, Claudio Abbado and, of course, Karl Böhm. “Thanks to Bruno Walter’s exemplary performances, particularly of Mozart’s works, I grabbed on to Mozart and fell in love with him so much that I had only one wish: to conduct Mozart, Mozart, Mozart.” (Karl Böhm) Unhappy with his situation in Salzburg, Mozart undertook a journey to Mannheim and Paris with his mother in 1778. The trip was overshadowed by tragedy – Mozart’s mother died in Paris – and was almost a complete failure. Almost, for it did give birth to a masterpiece like the “Paris Symphony,” written for the illustrious “Concerts Spirituels.” Knowing of the Parisians’ taste for brilliance and splendor, Mozart wrote a grand symphony for large orchestra, glowing with mellow woodwinds and ablaze with brass. Karl Böhm was universally acclaimed for his Mozart interpretations. Though Wagner was one of Böhm’s first loves, his friendship with Richard Strauss led to a deep knowledge and appreciation of Mozart. In his autobiography, Böhm wrote that “Richard Strauss revealed to me the ultimate secrets of this, in my opinion, greatest of all musical geniuses, Mozart.” Filmed in Vienna’s splendid “Musikvereinssaal”, this work is interpreted by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, the orchestra with which Böhm made many of his finest recordings.
Beethoven, Symphony No.1 in C major, op. 21
The symphonies are part of the complete cycle of Beethoven symphonic and choral works featuring the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam conducted by Leonard Bernstein. All the works were recorded live in Vienna: Unitel produced the video recordings and Deutsche Grammophon released the
soundtracks in a special edition. The series won the Ace Award, the National (U.S.) Cable TV Association’s top award for outstanding quality and entertainment value.
Beethoven, String Quartet No.14 in C sharp minor, op.123
The introverted and personal quality of Beethoven’s late style is evident in this string quartet, written the year before the composer’s death. At this stage in Beethoven’s life, he was composing more for himself than for an audience, for he no longer felt it necessary to prove himself to his public. Despite the popular belief that Beethoven (at that time) was indifferent to the sound of his music because of his deafness, his sketchbooks show that he rewrote the last four bars of the variations of the quartet 12 times. It is the music of a man who has experienced life. The composer thought that this was his greatest string quartet. A traditional string quartet consists of two violins, one viola and one cello, and is usually in four movements; the String Quartet in C sharp minor contains seven movements, played without a pause. Leonard Bernstein said: “The C sharp minor Quartet seems to cry out for the whole string section.” In this performance, the work is played by an orchestra of 60 strings. This recording is part of Leonard Bernstein’s Beethoven cycle, recorded primarily with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in the early 1980s. Writing in The New York Times, critic John J. O’Connor stated: “As Mr. Bernstein says, there is ‘no single body of work in the universe of orchestral music that is in any way comparable to this one.’ Conducted with intense dedication and soaring spirits by Mr. Bernstein, these recordings are superb, both visually and aurally.”
Bartók, The Miraculous Mandarin, Suite, op. 19
A versatile and highly respected conductor, Christoph von Dohnányi has pursued a remarkable career both in Europe and the United States. After completing a long tenure as musical director and manager of the Frankfurt Opera, he was appointed to the same posts at the Hamburg State Opera. In 1984 he succeeded Lorin Maazel as principal conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra. He became first guest conductor of the London Philharmonic in 1994 as well. His commitment to new music is evident both in concert and in recordings. He led the premieres of Henze’s “Der junge Lord” and “Die Bassariden”. The “Miraculous Mandarin” was recorded in 1977 at Vienna’s Musikvereinssaal in a concert also featuring Richard Strauss’s “Burleske” and Mendelssohn’s “Scottish” Symphony.
Mendelssohn, Symphony No.3 in A minor, op.56 “Scottish”
One of the leading conductors of our time, Christoph von Dohnanyi was born in Berlin in 1929 and studied law in Munich after the war, later deciding to devote himself exclusively to music. His most important teacher was his grandfather, the composer Ernst von Dohnanyi, with whom he studied at the University of Florida. Dohnanyi also took conducting courses in Tanglewood. His career began when Georg Solti called him to the Frankfurt Opera in 1953, where he was choral conductor and later orchestral conductor. He then took posts in various German cities before serving as principal conductor and general manager of the Hamburg State Opera from 1978 to 1984. In 1984 he succeeded Lorin Maazel as permanent conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra. It is rare to find a conductor of Dohnanyi’s eminence who devotes such a great deal of time and energy to contemporary music. He has led the world premieres of Hans Werner Henze’s operas “Der junge Lord” and “Die Bassariden,” Gottfried von Einem’s “Kabale und Liebe” and Friedrich Cerha’s “Baal,” along with a number of orchestral works. One of the highlights of Unitel’s recordings of 20th-century works is Gustav Rudolf Sellner’s Berlin production of Henze’s “Der junge Lord” with several members of the world premiere, including Edith Mathis, Donald Grobe and Loren Driscoll. Also available are recordings of Richard Strauss’s “Burleske,” Béla Bartók’s “The Miraculous Mandarin” and Mendelssohn’s “Symphony No. 3,” the “Scottish” – all three of which were recorded with the Vienna Philharmonic in 1977 at Vienna’s Musikvereinssaal.
Strauss, Burleske for Piano and Orchestra in D minor
A versatile and highly respected conductor, Christoph von Dohnányi has pursued a remarkable career both in Europe and the United States. After completing a long tenure as musical director and manager of the Frankfurt Opera, he was appointed to the same posts at the Hamburg State Opera. In 1984 he succeeded Lorin Maazel as principal conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra. He became first guest conductor of the London Philharmonic in 1994 as well. His commitment to new music is evident both in concert and in recordings. He led the premieres of Henze’s “Der junge Lord” and “Die Bassariden”. The Austrian pianist Rudolf Buchbinder launched his international career as a soloist after winning the Lipatti Medal in 1962 and, particularly, the Special Prize in the Van Cliburn Competition in 1966. The “Burleske” was recorded in 1977 at Vienna’s Musikvereinssaal in a concert also featuring Bartók’s “The Miraculous Mandarin” Suite and Mendelssohn’s “Scottish” Symphony.
Mozart, Piano Concerto No.19 in F major, K. 459
The soloist in this concerto conducted by Karl Böhm and played by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra is Maurizio Pollini, one of the most enigmatic figures in today’s musical world. Although he approaches the repertoire in a profoundly spiritual manner, Pollini does not ban brilliance and dazzling virtuosity from his playing. His lyrical and intense art makes him predestined for Mozart, whose works he has been interpreting in a completely new light for many years now. Mozart wrote his concerto K. 459 in 1784 as one of the six concertos written in that year for a series of subscription concerts in which he regularly played a new work of his own creation. Its first movement begins with a jaunty rhythm reminiscent of that used in the Symphonies K. 550 and 551. The orchestra claims equal partnership right away, the masterful interplay of the winds, strings and solo instrument revealing the full extent of Mozart’s innovative treatment of the concerto form. Maurizio Pollini first drew widespread attention when he won the first prize at the Chopin Competition in Warsaw in 1960 and was expressly praised by Arthur Rubinstein, the president of the jury. Surprisingly, he turned down the many offers of performances he then received in order to “listen” and meditate. It was only after working with Michelangeli that he launched his international career. A socially committed artist, he rejected all forms of elitism. He has played for workers in factories and given concerts to support political causes. In addition to the romantic repertoire, which he masters superbly, he has always shown a predilection for contemporary works, especially those of Stockhausen and Nono. He recorded this concerto at Vienna’s Musikvereinssaal in April 1976. Karl Böhm conducts the Vienna Philharmonic.
Mozart, Piano Concerto No.23 in A major, K. 488
The soloist in this concerto conducted by Karl Böhm and played by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra is Maurizio Pollini, one of the most enigmatic figures in today’s musical world. Although he approaches the repertoire in a profoundly spiritual manner, Pollini does not ban brilliance and dazzling virtuosity from his playing. His lyrical and intense art makes him predestined for Mozart, whose works he has been interpreting in a completely new light for many years now. Mozart composed this work during a particularly fruitful period in Vienna in 1786, while he was working on “Figaro,” the Masonic Funeral Music and the concertos K. 482 and 491. The A major concerto is one of Mozart’s most beloved, perhaps because of its highly contrasting moods, which nevertheless produce an overal impression of Classical unity: the elegant and polished first movement, the poignantly beautiful “siciliano” slow movement and the exuberant Allegro assai finale. The Mozart interpretations of Karl Böhm (1894-1981) perfectly echo the naturalness and clarity of the maestro’s conducting. Although Wagner was one of his first loves, Böhm soon discovered Mozart’s operas thanks to Bruno Walter, who let him conduct “Die Entführung aus dem Serail” in Munich in the early 1920s. Later, Böhm’s friendship with Richard Strauss led to a still deeper knowledge and appreciation of Mozart. In his autobiography, Böhm wrote that “Richard Strauss revealed to me the ultimate secrets of this – in my opinion – greatest musical genius.” Böhm’s discovery of these secrets turned his Mozart interpretations, such as this one with the celebrated pianist Maurizio Pollini, into unforgettable events.
Brahms, Piano Concerto No.2 in B flat major, op.83
Brahms himself played the solo part at the world premiere of his Piano Concerto No. 2 in Budapest’s Redoutensaal on 9 November 1881. The work opens with a beautiful horn call which is like a magical summons to the other instruments. The Scherzo is of symphonic proportions and richness. The nocturne-like mood of the slow movement is based on the song of a solo cello, a simple eight-measure phrase. The finale has a bright, skipping figure for the piano as the principal rondo refrain. Maurizio Pollini was born in Milan to a family of artists in 1942. In 1960 he won the first prize at the Chopin Competition in Warsaw. Since then, he has been a leading protagonist at all major concert venues in Europe, as well as in America and Japan.
Mahler, Symphony No.1 in D major
Leonard Bernstein was the first conductor ever to record all of Mahler’s symphonies not only on disk, but also on video. The Mahler cycle was the first project in the more than 20-year-long association between Leonard Bernstein and Unitel. The leading Mahler interpreter of our time, Bernstein recorded all of Mahler’s symphonies between 1971 and 1985, chiefly with the Vienna Philharmonic, producing a unique musical document and triggering a major reappreciation of Mahler’s works. “All Mahler symphonies, all Mahler works for that matter, deal in extremes, extremes of dynamic, of tempo, of emotional meaning. When it is bare, it’s extremely bare, when it is thick and rich, it’s thicker and richer than anything in ‘Götterdämmerung’, and when it is suffering it suffers to a point that no music has ever suffered before.” (Leonard Bernstein)