Kirill Petrenko's Shostakovich Symphonies Nos.8, 9, 10 on BP Recordings

[Oscar]

It has now dropped on AppleMusic and is streaming in an especial and absorbing Dolby Atmos mix. Looking forward to making my way through this set as the Atmos mix is just killer. Also available on CD + Blu-ray Disc set. Let's get this Shostakovich party started. Integrale!


From Berliner Philharmoniker Recordings:

<< Berliner Philharmoniker
Kirill Petrenko

Dmitri Shostakovich
Symphony No. 8 in C minor op. 65
Symphony No. 9 in E flat major op. 70
Symphony No. 10 E minor op. 93

Kirill Petrenko describes Dmitri Shostakovich’s Eighth Symphony as an “incredible psychological drama”. The composer wrote it while his life was in danger during the Second World War: between a perilous existence and Stalinist censorship. The Ninth and Tenth also bear vivid witness to Shostakovich’s confrontation with the regime – and his self-assertion. Berliner Philharmoniker Recordings now releases the recordings of Symphonies 8–10 as the orchestra’s second major hardcover edition with chief conductor Kirill Petrenko.

Musically, each of the three symphonies is a world of its own – what unites them is the desire for freedom: in one case whispered behind closed doors, in another ironically distorted, in another shouted out. Shostakovich’s Eighth delivered a forced-smile tragedy to the authority greedy for patriotic hymns. And despite all the camouflage, the work was banned after a few years. With his Ninth Symphony, the composer then made a surprising u-turn, so that he had to remain silent as a symphonist until after Stalin’s death – in order to survive himself. Not only the traditional significance of the numbering of the Ninth, but also the fact that the war had been won led the people and officials of the Soviet Union to hope for a grand heroic celebration. Instead of redemption at the end of the war, Shostakovich saw the countless victims – and the approach of the next catastrophe. In the detached tone of the First Viennese School and with grotesque gaiety, his Ninth depicts a circus world that held up a distorting mirror to the regime.

The Tenth burst out of Shostakovich – after an eight-year hiatus – immediately after Stalin’s death. Kirill Petrenko calls the work in which the composer makes himself the protagonist the “greatest liberation in his artistic work after the Fifth”: his monogram in tones – DSCH – triumphs in a fierce battle over the mighty machinery of the dictatorship. The hope for freedom that stands at the end of this symphony holds great topicality as a musical message.

The edition contains the recordings, made during the Corona pandemic, on two CDs and a Blu-ray. They are accompanied by an interview film with Kirill Petrenko and in-depth texts on Shostakovich’s works. In the foreword, the chief conductor of the Berliner Philharmoniker also explains his attachment to the composer’s work. The edition was designed by Thomas Demand. His photographs symbolise the tensions faced by Shostakovich in the creation of his works: on the outside, the oppressively uniform row of iron lockers; on the inside, photographs of flowers in Moscow’s Gorky Park. >>


https://www.berliner-philharmoniker-recordings.com/shostakovich.html?___store=rec_en

[raymond....@gmail.com]

Hi Oscar. Maybe you can deliver us a review of Kirill Petrenko's readings of 8, 9, and 10, with some comparisons, which would be much appreciated.

Ray

[Dan Koren]

On Friday, March 24, 2023 at 12:57:45 AM UTC-7, raymond....@gmail.com wrote:
>
> Hi Oscar. Maybe you can deliver us a
> review of Kirill Petrenko's readings of
> 8, 9, and 10, with some comparisons,
> which would be much appreciated.
>

Oscar is likely to find Bohm's readings
superior to all others.

dk

[raymond....@gmail.com]

On Friday, 24 March 2023 at 21:08:09 UTC+11, Dan Koren wrote:

> On Friday, March 24, 2023 at 12:57:45 AM UTC-7, raymond....gmail.com wrote:
> >
> > Hi Oscar. Maybe you can deliver us a
> > review of Kirill Petrenko's readings of
> > 8, 9, and 10, with some comparisons,
> > which would be much appreciated.
> >
> Oscar is likely to find Bohm's readings
> superior to all others.
>
> dk

I don't think Bohm ever heard of Shosty, let alone conduct him. Has the VPO ever played him. Maybe Fedoseyev did some with the VPO?

Ray Hall, Taree

[Bastian Kubis]

Bernstein recorded 6 & 9 with the VPO for DG. Don't know what else they
did.

Bastian

[Bastian Kubis]

Solti and Janssons also (both) did the 5th.

Bastian

[Frank Berger]

4th - Rozhdestvensky - 1978 - Cincin
5th - Silvestri - 1969 - EMI

[Bob Harper]

I wouldn't mind hearing these, but the non-standard box and the pricing
is discouraging.

Has en=yone else heard the Michael Sanderling set of all 15 with the
Dresden Philharmonic which was available (briefly) a few year ago? I was
lucky enough to strike while the iron was hot and found them really
excellent both as performances and as recordings.

Bob Harper

[Al Eisner]

On Fri, 24 Mar 2023, Bob Harper wrote:

> Has en=yone else heard the Michael Sanderling set of all 15 with the Dresden
> Philharmonic which was available (briefly) a few year ago? I was lucky enough
> to strike while the iron was hot and found them really excellent both as
> performances and as recordings.
>
> Bob Harper

I see the set is listed on ebay, new, from somewhere in Japan, at $130
including shipping, more than I would be in the mood to spend. Individua;
symphonies are available in MP3 from Amazon at about $4 or $5 each. Are
there any you would particulasry recommend trying out?

I'm sure you know his father's terrific partial set.
--
Al Eisner

[Andrew Clarke]

Live performances of all three conducted by Petrenko are available at the Digital Concert Hall. There is a strong possibility that these were the performances now available on CD.

Andrew Clarke
Canberra

[Dan Koren]

On Friday, March 24, 2023 at 7:17:10 AM UTC-7, raymond....@gmail.com wrote:
> On Friday, 24 March 2023 at 21:08:09 UTC+11, Dan Koren wrote:
> > On Friday, March 24, 2023 at 12:57:45 AM UTC-7, raymond....gmail.com wrote:
> > >
> > > Hi Oscar. Maybe you can deliver us a
> > > review of Kirill Petrenko's readings of
> > > 8, 9, and 10, with some comparisons,
> > > which would be much appreciated.
> > >
> > Oscar is likely to find Bohm's readings
> > superior to all others.
>

> I don't think Bohm ever heard of Shosty, let
> alone conduct him. Has the VPO ever played
> him. Maybe Fedoseyev did some with the VPO?

In December 1946 Celibidache conducted the
7th performed by the Berlin Philharmonic:

https://youtu.be/Uva14858qhQ

Quite possibly Bohm may have noticed this
event. I wish someone had interviewed the
members of the orchestra after the concert.

dk

[Gerard]

Op zondag 26 maart 2023 om 16:26:29 UTC+2 schreef Andrew Clarke:

They are available on CD.
https://www.musicwebinternational.com/2023/03/shostakovich-symphonies-8-10-berliner-philharmoniker-recordings/

[Andrew Clarke]

The point I was making, Gerard, is that if you subscribe to the Digital Concert Hall, as Al and I do, you do not need the CDs.

Andrew Clarke
Canberra

[Gerard]

Op zondag 26 maart 2023 om 23:37:55 UTC+2 schreef Andrew Clarke:

I misunderstood your remark "There is a strong possibility that these were the performances now available on CD. ". I did not see "were" and "now".

[Bob Harper]

On 3/25/23 3:37 PM, Al Eisner wrote:
> On Fri, 24 Mar 2023, Bob Harper wrote:
>

>> Has anyone else heard the Michael Sanderling set of all 15 with the

It's been a while since I listened to them, but 8, 10, and 15 I
particularly thought excellent. The sound is outstanding throughout.

Yes, I'm familiar with his father's recordings. Typically grim (not a
negative criticism). That said, I think his live 15th, coupled with the
Haydn 82nd on a Welt am Sonntag CD (part of a series called 'Im Takt Der
Zeit') the finest I've ever heard.

The series can be found here:
tinyurl.com/47t365x6
Don't remember how I happened to score this particular CD.

Bob Harper

[mswd...@gmail.com]

Bob, I thought the Michael Sanderling recordings had something good going for them in well-directed performances, excellent sound, and a playing manner from the Dresden orchestra that is clearly German and refined, yet still effective. Thing is, I can't remember which symphony impressed me most for this. 6? It is a shame these are so hard to come by at this point. I've had his disc of Shosty 1/Beethoven 1 on a list for a long time and it never dips below $30 for the single disc.

Michael

[mswd...@gmail.com]

On Sunday, March 26, 2023 at 6:46:17 PM UTC-5, Bob Harper wrote:

> tinyurl.com/47t365x6
> Don't remember how I happened to score this particular CD.

Link isn't working for me. Got a replacement? Thx

[Frank Berger]

The box of Sanderling's Shostakovich symphonies shows up now and then on Ebay. Last sold for $110. Interesting that his Beethoven symphonies (about which I know nothing) appear only to have been released on a set of disks each paired with a Shostakovich symphony.

[Al Eisner]

As noted above, still available there. But I think I'll try it out by
downloading one symphony from Amazon. Probably 8 or 10, which I can then
compare to the K. Petrenko.

> Interesting that his Beethoven symphonies (about
> which I know nothing) appear only to have been released on a set of disks
> each paired with a Shostakovich symphony.

--
Al Eisner

[Mr. Mike]

On Fri, 24 Mar 2023 17:06:57 -0700, Bob Harper
<bob.h...@comcast.net> wrote:

>Has en=yone else heard the Michael Sanderling set of all 15 with the
>Dresden Philharmonic which was available (briefly) a few year ago? I was
>lucky enough to strike while the iron was hot and found them really
>excellent both as performances and as recordings.

When Hurwitz was discussing "the best Shostakovich box" a while ago,
he mentioned the M. Sanderling one, which he had just received and
expressed some enthusiasm for it. Some time later, someone commented
to one of his YouTube videos, wondering what he finally thought of it,
but Hurwitz said words to the effect that "considering it went out of
print almost immediately, I didn't deal with it."

M. Sanderling did a sensational version of the Leningrad symphony on
01 Jun 2019 with the Berlin Philharmonic, available in the Digital
Concert Hall. At its conclusion, the audience went totally nuts
(favorably).

[Alex Brown]

The set is available to stream hi-res from Qobuz.

With the and the Wigglesworth cycle from BIS we're rather spoiled for
excellent 'modern' Shosti symphony recordings.

--
- Alex Brown

[Bob Harper]

Try this:

https://www.amazon.com/Berliner-Philharmoniker-Im-Takt-Zeit/dp/3898162478/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?keywords=Im+Takt+der+zeit+bpo+cds&qid=1680103749&sr=8-2-fkmr0

Just worked for me.

Bob Harper

[Bob Harper]

Yeah, that box is the new Szell box :)--or so it would seem.

Bob Harper