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Shrink wrapped. First class UK postage.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
37 of 40 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Like Paul Callick I felt, noticing the strangely negative first review here, that I must likewise try to restore a better view of this wonderful set.
I have owned several complete sets of the cycle, from Klemperer to Abbado, and for what it's worth the shimmering Berlin sound would make Abbado still my favourite among more expensive sets. Frankly I ignored Harnoncourt's set when it first appeared, even though the BBC's CD Review said "This astonishing recording shall influence and alter out perception of Beethoven for years to come". Why? Because I had listened to some early Harnoncourt and thought him pedantic. Wrong! How prejudiced we can be.
When a friend eventually played the Fourth for me, my jaw dropped open. The familiar drama and majesty of the great opening Adagio and Allegro were there in force, with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe on pin-point accuracy, drop-dead form. (Mostly non-historic instruments, though the trumpets are natural ones.) But Beethoven, who can so often seem like a cosmic force or a wizard, so dramatic is his vision, was here also speaking to me, in a coherent single, wise but smiling voice. (Almost with a wink, too!)
Harnoncourt's long-term understanding of the rhetoric of music - that it is always somehow a person speaking to us - is in full flood throughout this whole cycle. Everything is singing, and dancing at the same time - the very Austrian qualities so dominant in Haydn and Mozart leading into Beethoven and Schubert. Whether a movement is a fiercely rhythmic one or divinely lyrical, this is the most fully human (still awesomely powerful because of the orchestra's playing, but powerfully human) presentation of Beethoven I have heard. I loved the man even more because of meeting him in the music.... Read more ›
I have owned several complete sets of the cycle, from Klemperer to Abbado, and for what it's worth the shimmering Berlin sound would make Abbado still my favourite among more expensive sets. Frankly I ignored Harnoncourt's set when it first appeared, even though the BBC's CD Review said "This astonishing recording shall influence and alter out perception of Beethoven for years to come". Why? Because I had listened to some early Harnoncourt and thought him pedantic. Wrong! How prejudiced we can be.
When a friend eventually played the Fourth for me, my jaw dropped open. The familiar drama and majesty of the great opening Adagio and Allegro were there in force, with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe on pin-point accuracy, drop-dead form. (Mostly non-historic instruments, though the trumpets are natural ones.) But Beethoven, who can so often seem like a cosmic force or a wizard, so dramatic is his vision, was here also speaking to me, in a coherent single, wise but smiling voice. (Almost with a wink, too!)
Harnoncourt's long-term understanding of the rhetoric of music - that it is always somehow a person speaking to us - is in full flood throughout this whole cycle. Everything is singing, and dancing at the same time - the very Austrian qualities so dominant in Haydn and Mozart leading into Beethoven and Schubert. Whether a movement is a fiercely rhythmic one or divinely lyrical, this is the most fully human (still awesomely powerful because of the orchestra's playing, but powerfully human) presentation of Beethoven I have heard. I loved the man even more because of meeting him in the music.... Read more ›
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Beethoven Symphonies 1 - 9. Chamber Orchestra of Europe and the Arnold Schoenberg Choir. With Charlotte Margiono, Rudolf Schasching, Birgit Remmert and Robert Holl. Recorded 1991. Teldec.
Harnoncourt's cycle starts off very impressively, aided by superb sound. It is hard to believe that this cycle was recorded live - it has the feel of a spacious studio acoustic. As with Karajan and Solti, Harnoncourt treats the First with just as much vitality and strength as the more mature symphonies: the tempi are solid not rushed and the instruments have a beautiful sheen to them, whilst never sacrificing body. The climaxes are just that - not the trashy bashing of a drum which so often disfigures Norrington's earlier period performances. I particularly liked the middle movements in this recording: the splendid playing is balanced with knife-edged drama and really spot-on tempos. The same is true of the Second: Harnoncourt really makes a dramatic statement about the piece and the result is really electrifying.
Undoubtedly any performance of the Eroica will have to bring out its harsh edges at times - especially in the first movement. Harnoncourt particularly excels in those moments - the characterisation of the first two movements is very powerful: dramatic and almost violent without being vulgar. Sometimes more repose is required in the marche funebre, but it all comes off quite nicely - the credit also due to the continued excellent playing of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe.
The Fourth does not quite equal the some of its parts. It starts out very beautifully and with a real sense of mystery, but much of it is a bit all over the place. I didn't really feel a cohesive vision. The slow movement was a particular movement - not as beautiful as it can be.... Read more ›
Harnoncourt's cycle starts off very impressively, aided by superb sound. It is hard to believe that this cycle was recorded live - it has the feel of a spacious studio acoustic. As with Karajan and Solti, Harnoncourt treats the First with just as much vitality and strength as the more mature symphonies: the tempi are solid not rushed and the instruments have a beautiful sheen to them, whilst never sacrificing body. The climaxes are just that - not the trashy bashing of a drum which so often disfigures Norrington's earlier period performances. I particularly liked the middle movements in this recording: the splendid playing is balanced with knife-edged drama and really spot-on tempos. The same is true of the Second: Harnoncourt really makes a dramatic statement about the piece and the result is really electrifying.
Undoubtedly any performance of the Eroica will have to bring out its harsh edges at times - especially in the first movement. Harnoncourt particularly excels in those moments - the characterisation of the first two movements is very powerful: dramatic and almost violent without being vulgar. Sometimes more repose is required in the marche funebre, but it all comes off quite nicely - the credit also due to the continued excellent playing of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe.
The Fourth does not quite equal the some of its parts. It starts out very beautifully and with a real sense of mystery, but much of it is a bit all over the place. I didn't really feel a cohesive vision. The slow movement was a particular movement - not as beautiful as it can be.... Read more ›
26 of 29 people found the following review helpful
By Paul Callick
Format:Audio CD
Reading the review above makes me want to write a review here for the first time. Who knows what that listener wanted...for me, this is simply a most wonderful series, with such clear, bold playing (especially in the unison passages). The dance figures are fresh and alive, and when the whole band gets going, the effect is like a landscape dancing. The detail and clarity of the playing is a marvel. For me, it was a conversion, after years of trying to love these pieces, but hearing them usually played, I guess, with either sententiousness or big-hair over-heightening of the romanticism. A lovely piece of playing which leaves the intelligence of the writing to speak for itself, and doesn't force anything.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
By Music Lover
Format:Audio CD
Brilliant as this is,there's a box with the Piano,violin,triple,overtures,ballet,and Missa Solemnis included--buy this,and never look back!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Viva Verdi
Format:Audio CD
I was brought up on Herbert Von Karajan as the top Beethoven conductor (Narrow-minded, I know) I later discovered that Klemperer, Furtwangler and Carlos Kleiber (to name a few) all had things to say. But in choosing Harnoncourt as my second complete set I have to say I have no regrets.
I'm not going to talk through the individual symphonies - I'm not that geeky, and the other favourable reviewers do that job - but Harnoncourt's rendition of the third symphony really got to me. Also, I loved the sense of an orchestra moving straight onto the next movement - you can feel those musicians working their bows and reeds off.
My one gripe is the fabulous andante moderato theme of the third movement of the 9th symphony. It's a little hasty, and held far less emotion for me than Karajan's or Abbado's interpretation.
It won't be the last full set I will buy (I'm intrigued by the Anima Eterna edition) but for the newcomer (or non-geek) I would not hesitate to recommend it.
I'm not going to talk through the individual symphonies - I'm not that geeky, and the other favourable reviewers do that job - but Harnoncourt's rendition of the third symphony really got to me. Also, I loved the sense of an orchestra moving straight onto the next movement - you can feel those musicians working their bows and reeds off.
My one gripe is the fabulous andante moderato theme of the third movement of the 9th symphony. It's a little hasty, and held far less emotion for me than Karajan's or Abbado's interpretation.
It won't be the last full set I will buy (I'm intrigued by the Anima Eterna edition) but for the newcomer (or non-geek) I would not hesitate to recommend it.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beethoven Bliss
Beethoven at his best, from Symphony 1 to 9, absolutely faultless, from the peaceful Pastoral to the rousing Choral. The ultimate and the best, all in one package. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Hurricane Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars
excellent Beethoven cycle
This Beethoven cycle is very rewarding. Performance, interpretation as well as recording are first class. The listener will discover new dimensions not noticed before.
Published 13 months ago by Martijn
4.0 out of 5 stars
Meticulous HIP reinterpretation that doesn't veer to any extreme
Paradoxically, Nikolaus Harnoncourt manages to bring forth a typically idiosyncratic reading of Beethoven's symphonies without sounding extreme in any direction. Read more
Published 22 months ago by Autonomeus
5.0 out of 5 stars
OUTSTANDING!!
After experiencing a rather dissapointing concert rendition of the 8th and 9th
symphonies, I decided to console myself in purchasing what I hoped might be a
decent... Read more
symphonies, I decided to console myself in purchasing what I hoped might be a
decent... Read more
Published on 16 Oct 2010 by Mr. A. D. Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars
Perfect Beethoven
Harnoncourt just GETS Beethoven. The speeds are right (Beethoven tended to favour quick tempi) and the hollow Romanticism some conductors inject these pieces with is strikingly not... Read more
Published on 29 Sep 2010 by Beethoven's brother
5.0 out of 5 stars
A very special performance
I'm not musician enough to know why it is, but this set really communicates with me. I thought that over the last seventy years or so I had heard all the Beethoven symphonies... Read more
Published on 17 Dec 2009 by RAMT
5.0 out of 5 stars
A wonderful set
I have recently returned to listen to all the various accounts that I have of the Beethovens in my collection after being so stimulated by Vanska's astonishing new series. Read more
Published on 16 Nov 2008 by enthusiast
1.0 out of 5 stars
Stone cold. I thought everybody was born with a soul.
Couldn't wait to spend last weekend playing through my new acquisition. Which is what it turned out to be - just that - a product. Read more
Published on 16 Sep 2008 by GeeStrod
5.0 out of 5 stars
simply the best recordings of 1 to 9
I have many box sets of these symphonies gathering dust on my shelf, yet when I feel I need my spirits raised it is this set I turn to. Read more
Published on 21 Aug 2007 by Mrs. Patricia Bark
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