Klemperer: Bruckner Symphony No. 5 - Columbia SMC 91 663/64 (2LP box - ED1)

$

135

redgarnett Store ITEM DESCRIPTION:

This handsome 2LP box set – a fine collector’s copy – from German Columbia (SMC 91 663/64, German pressing, white/gold label – ED1, stereo, booklet included, cloth box) features conductor Otto Klemperer and the New Philharmonia Orchestra’s resplendent account of Bruckner’s Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major, sumptuoulsy recorded in the rich acoustics of Kingsway Hall, London during 9-15 March 1967.

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Of EMI’s CD re-issue of this performance, the erudite critic Terry Barfoot wrote for MusicWeb-International:

“At the end of his career, between 1954 and 1971, Otto Klemperer (1885-1973) made a series of celebrated recordings for EMI with the Philhamonia and its reconstituted equivalent the New Philharmonia. The repertoire ranged widely, and EMI is honouring these famous performances by reissuing them in a series of boxed sets. Thus far these have included Beethoven, 19th century symphonies and overtures from Schubert to Tchaikovsky and Mozart’s Don Giovanni. Now comes this 6-CD collection of Bruckner symphonies, from the Fourth through to the unfinished Ninth.
 
“Throughout his distinguished career Klemperer was associated with Bruckner, and during the 1920s the association enhanced his reputation. He made an interesting observation that while he thought Bruckner the greater composer, he always conducted Mahler more frequently ‘because like me he was a Jew and moreover he got me my first job’.

 
“These performances from 1963 to 1970 are captured in excellent sound, and though nearly fifty years has passed since the first of them – the Fourth – there is no need to be in the least apologetic about the sound quality. The producers were Walter Legge, Peter Andry, Walter Jelinek and Suvi Raj Grubb.

 
“By reputation Klemperer has always been associated with slow, even sluggish tempi, but that is not necessarily fair or even true. For example, each of his modern recordings of Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony, live with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and in the studio with the Philharmonia, fit comfortably on to a single CD, whereas Sir Simon Rattle’s CBSO recording requires two discs since the tempi are broader. This is just one example among many, and here in Bruckner Klemperer’s tempi are never less than appropriate.

 
“Perhaps it is the nature of the phrasing and shaping of the music that influence the listener’s experience of Klemperer’s Bruckner performances the most. He sculpts and moulds the music rather less than Eugen Jochum or Wilhelm Furtwängler, and his shadings of dynamic and phrasing are less pliable than those of Günter Wand. Not that one approach is right and the other wrong; there is always more than one way to interpret a great symphony.

 
“In the Fourth Symphony Klemperer’s live Munich performance with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (EMI CDM 5 66866 2 5; recorded 1966; reissued 1998) has a more spontaneous feel than the present Kingsway Hall version from three years earlier, though the recorded sound in the latter seems more secure. Here the famous Scherzo is craggy rather than virtuoso, while the architecture of the powerful finale has never been more surely controlled.

 
“The Fifth too is a particularly strong performance, at nearly eighty minutes taking slightly longer than he did with the Vienna Philharmonic the following year (Testament UCCN-1059) and a full ten minutes longer than his first recorded version, made with the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra in 1957 (Archiphon WU-091). The approach with the Philharmonia suits the music admirably. The finale’s reconciliation of chorale and fugue is uncompromisingly argued, the two aspects held in clear contrast at the same time as joint purpose. The string sound in the slow movement is also particularly impressive.

“Klemperer’s contribution to the legacy of Bruckner recordings is important and impressive, and as such this set deserves an enthusiastic welcome. Any collection of the symphonic output of this wonderful composer - the greatest symphonic composer? - will be enhanced by it. Even the collector who already possesses this repertoire in alternative performances will find this set rewarding and stimulating.”

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Included is an impressive, full-size 8-page booklet (printed on heavy art paper) with extensive notes in German (by Klaus Umbach) and in English (by Bryan Fairfax).

CONDITION – PLEASE READ CAREFULLY:

The gradations of condition I use are as follows: MINT, Near-Mint, Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor.

The condition of the sturdy cloth box is EXCELLENT. There is light edgewear and shelfwear, but that is all. However, there are no seamsplits, corner breaks, bends, owners' markings, or other defects, and the box remains perfectly solid, bright, and highly attractive. Overall, this is an excellent collector's copy.

The condition of the original 8-page booklet is near-MINT. Really no flaws to speak of – a very fine copy.

The condition of the 2 LPs is near-MINT. Although the surfaces are not perfectly silent (and thus I have rated it NM vs. MINT) these are fine copies and playback is superb. If you must have flawless surfaces, then please do not buy this set – these rate as NM collector's copies.

PLEASE NOTE:
This LP has been carefully cleaned using a VPI cleaning machine. All LPs are provided with a new Nagaoka (or Nagaoka-style) inner sleeve. The images I've provided are of the actual item you are potentially bidding on - these are not stock images or images I've taken from other sites. Bid with confidence!

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