Warning: Classical Music! Tchaikowsky symphony No. 5

[THEBERBSTER]

Hi Guys
This my all time favourite symphony that I first heard back in 1960 when I was 14 and staying with an Austrian family on an exchange scheme. It knocked me out so much I bought the LP and brought it back to the U.K. I have a number of this symphonies CD recordings. The version you are referring to I have on blu-ray with the 4th and 6th symphonies. Performance wise the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra under Mariss Jansons from 1984 I think is still the best CD recording.
Apologies for being an anorak
Best wishes Peter

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by THEBERBSTER

Performance wise the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra under Mariss Jansons from 1984 I think is still the best CD recording.

That is one of the four versions I knew from before. It ranks mediocre only on my scale, I find the tempi to be manged not too well - too rushing where he should take a bit more time and subtlety for the most, and the expression too shallow were more emotional nuances were needed while too expressive where a bit more restraint imo would have been the way to go. Not a bad recording, but also not an exceptionnel one, in one word I would say the artistic impression is a bit "dysbalanced". It seems it is in general very popular in North America, but less so in Europe, or am I wrong there?

Well, nuances of taste.

[THEBERBSTER]

Hi Skybird
I am not into the technicalities of the piece. This was a Chandos DDD recording from 1984 which was when CD recordings were still in their infancy. Very few performances are ever performed to the original scores as they were written by the composer. Conductors perogative. If I listen to a piece and it sounds good then to me that is ok. Do you have a favourite version?
Best Wishes Peter

[Herr-Berbunch]

Great piece, thanks for posting Sky.

@THEBERBSTER - you really from Dibden Purlieu? I spent every alternate summer holiday down there at my mum's cousin's in Butts Ash Gardens, and years later my best mate in the RAF was brought up in Grenville Gardens, just around the back - it's a small world. Seems to be a squillion more houses there now.

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by THEBERBSTER

Hi Skybird
I am not into the technicalities of the piece. This was a Chandos DDD recording from 1984 which was when CD recordings were still in their infancy. Very few performances are ever performed to the original scores as they were written by the composer. Conductors perogative. If I listen to a piece and it sounds good then to me that is ok. Do you have a favourite version?
Best Wishes Peter

Not really, but I have tended to slightly prefer the version by Mravinsky and the Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra, recorded in 1960. But he is quite fast, and sometimes too fast maybe. This version now I like slightly better. The Karajan recording (Vienna) was too monotonous, imo. The last version I know is by unknown, a radio recording I had ion cassette tape. My father (who was a classical musician) said it could have been Günther Wand and one of the German radio orchestras, but he is not certain.

If not comparing different music styles, but different interpretations of one and the same piece, then it pretty much boils down to questions of taste. I do not wish to say by that that all music comparisons between two different styles and traditions, are just about taste - there are objective differences and yes, there is a hierarchy of quality to some degree.

I do not care for digital sound quality if the performance of the orchestra/musician/performer justifies to ignore that. Disc or tape or vinyl record, that is just the medium. Sometimes the old recordings just are better in musical value.