Furtwängler's Eroicas

[Carey]

I have not yet heard one, and would like to find a recording that has the most
involving sound available, as well as one of the 'best' performances.
Would this disc be one, and what readily available others should be considered?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007NM8DGG/ref=ox_sc_sfl_image_51?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=AKE45AMGN8SYA

[wkasimer]

I don't know that particular CD. My favorite Furtwangler Eroica is the December 1944 one. The best sounding version is a Tahra SACD, but it's long OOP and looks rather pricey on the used market.

You might consider this set, though, which contains the 1944 Eroica and lots of other great Beethoven:

https://www.amazon.com/Furtwangler-Conducts-Beethoven-Symphonies-Overtures/dp/B00001W09Z

[Carey]

Thanks for this info and the set recommendation. Still hope to find a good single-disc choice, though.

[mswd...@gmail.com]

The question of "involving sound" is a matter of taste. Some Tahras of the '52 performance had effects applied to them that made them sound fuller and similar to late-50's mono recordings. They may have been dishonest, but I liked them, especially the NDR Hamburg Brahms 1. I can't fathom what the gain is in buying such a recording as SACD, though.

So if sound is your thing, the '52 performance may be your ticket. But I've never warmed to that particular performance. It doesn't have half the fire of the wartime recording that Bill pointed you to. I haven't heard that particular M&A box, but I have other M&A CDs, and I would trust them to manage the sound issues in an acceptable way. So if it was me, I'd grab it. If you don't like the sound, then Furtwangler may always be outside your reach. And that's perfectly fine. You may find it takes time to adjust- I know it did for me.

[chax...@williams.edu]

On Tuesday, October 31, 2017 at 11:07:37 AM UTC-4, Carey wrote:

I have the 1944 performance, the 11/30/52 VPO performance, and the 12/8/52 performance. The 1944 is justly famous, but the 12/8/52 is in my opinion at least as good if not better, and in much better sound. The Tahra disc of it is available again at Berkshire, and is also in the excellent Audite box of Furthwängler's RIAS broadcasts.

[Carey]

Thanks for all the info! Seems like this 12/8/52 Tahra disc is a good place to
start, and maybe I'll try the 1944 later.

[MiNe109]

Can't comment on the performance but I wonder if the Tahra symphony box
is the same transfer, especially since the set is cheaper than the sacd.

Stephen

[chax...@williams.edu]

If you're referring to $56 for the 11/30/52 that's Amazon seller trying to rip someone one off. That's no where near the list price. That same SACD, which I own, is available from Berkshire for $7.99

[Alex Brown]

The December 1952 one in the Audite box ("The Complete RIAS Recordings
between 1947 and 1954 from Berlin") sounds absolutely fantastic. These
apparently are the first use of the original RIAS master tapes for
transfers. Where I have other transfers of the same recording, these
Audite ones are always head-and-shoulders better.

--
- Alex Brown

[Carey]

Hearing that and reading a bit more, this set seems essential. I might have to
spring for it. Thanks for posting this.

[cphillip...@yahoo.com]

On Tuesday, October 31, 2017 at 11:07:37 AM UTC-4, Carey wrote:

Apparently Audite has pulled off another coup by discovering the original tapes of Furtwangler's 1953 Lucerne Festival Concert including a performance of Beethoven's Eroica with the Swiss Festival Orchestra. The concert has been available in the past in substandard sound from an amateur air-check but from the samples available on Amazon.de, this is an overwhelming improvement.

https://www.amazon.de/Lucerne-Festival-Vol-12-W-Furtw%C3%A4ngler-Archivfund-Schw-Festspielorch/dp/B075YKPFHK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1509556290&sr=8-1&keywords=furtwangler

If only they can rediscover with a few more "lost" Furtwangler tapes like the 1949 Haydn Creation, which according to records was e-broadcast several times in the years following the concert by Swiss Radio and the SWR.

[Juan I. Cahis]

See all of them in www.pristineclassical.com. Their transfers are superb.

--
Enviado desde mi iPad usando NewsTap, Juan I. Cahis, Santiago de Chile.

[robert...@outlook.com]

At 7digital's US site, the audite Furtwangler RIAS box is available as a CD-quality download including documentation for $14.49. I have had some trouble with 7digital downloads (missing tracks, CD extraction errors) but I listened carefully to this set and I found no issues. A steal at the price (that 1949 Brahms 3 is worth your fifteen bucks on its own!)

https://goo.gl/bWtZhc

[phlmaes...@yahoo.com]

On Tuesday, October 31, 2017 at 1:21:38 PM UTC-4, chax...@williams.edu wrote:
> >
> I have the 1944 performance, the 11/30/52 VPO performance, and the 12/8/52 performance. The 1944 is justly famous, but the 12/8/52 is in my opinion at least as good if not better, and in much better sound. The Tahra disc of it is available again at Berkshire, and is also in the excellent Audite box of Furthwängler's RIAS broadcasts.>>>

I agree that the 12/8/52 Eroica with the Berlin Philharmonic is the best by Furtwangler. It's not as aggressive as the 1944 VPO performance in spots, but taken as a whole, it's a performance with a more unified vision of the work. And Tahra is a reliably good label for Furtwangler.
Another performance that I love and that is pretty similar to the above-mentioned '52 Eroica is the live VPO performance from 1953 that is part of the EMI Great Conductors Furtwangler set. That performance includes my favorite second movement from any of the Furtwangler-led Eroicas I've heard. But I don't see that available for a decent price anywhere at this point. I'd take all three ('44 VPO, 12/8/52, '53 live VPO) over the one from 11/30/52 with the VPO.