Beethoven - The Symphonies / Augér, Robbin, Rolfe Johnson, Reinhart, AAM, Hogwood

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Stylistically, Hogwood is on firm ground, and there is much to be said for his insights into the music. He prefers not to "conduct" the symphonies in the conventional manner, but to "coordinate" their performance as a musician of the period might have done. His Eroica and Pastorale are outstanding, and his Ninth most impressive. The symphonies were recorded in the order of their composition, and the sound is consistently good throughout. --Ted Libbey

Tracks:

Symphony No. 1 In C Major, Op. 21: I. Adagio molto Allegro con brio
Symphony No. 1 In C Major, Op. 21: II. Adante canabile con molto
Symphony No. 1 In C Major, Op. 21: III. Menuetto & Trio: Allegro molto e vivace
Symphony No. 1 In C Major, Op. 21: IV. Adagio - Allegro molto e vivace
Symphony No.3 In E Flat Major, Op. 55 'Eroica': I. Allegro con brio
Symphony No.3 In E Flat Major, Op. 55 'Eroica': II. Marcia funebre: Adagio assai
Symphony No.3 In E Flat Major, Op. 55 'Eroica': III. Schertzo: Allegro vivace
Symphony No.3 In E Flat Major, Op. 55 'Eroica': IV. Finale: Allegro molto

Tracks:

Symphony No. 2 In D Major, Op. 36: I. Adagio molto - Allegro con brio
Symphony No. 2 In D Major, Op. 36: II. Larghetto
Symphony No. 2 In D Major, Op. 36: III. Scherzo: Allegro
Symphony No. 2 In D Major, Op. 36: IV. Allegro molto
Symphony No. 6 In F Major, Op. 68 'Pastoral': I. Allegro ma non troppo
Symphony No. 6 In F Major, Op. 68 'Pastoral': II. Adante molto messo
Symphony No. 6 In F Major, Op. 68 'Pastoral': III. Allegro -
Symphony No. 6 In F Major, Op. 68 'Pastoral': IV. Allegro -
Symphony No. 6 In F Major, Op. 68 'Pastoral': V. Allegretto

Tracks:

Symphony No. 4 In B Flat Major, Op. 60: I. Adagio - Allegro vivace - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Symphony No. 4 In B Flat Major, Op. 60: II. Adagio - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Symphony No. 4 In B Flat Major, Op. 60: III. Allegro vivace - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Symphony No. 4 In B Flat Major, Op. 60: IV. Allegro ma non troppo - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Symphony No. 5 In C Minor, Op. 67: I. Allegro con brio - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Symphony No. 5 In C Minor, Op. 67: II. Andante con moto - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Symphony No. 5 In C Minor, Op. 67: III. Allegro - - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Symphony No. 5 In C Minor, Op. 67: IV. Allegro - Ludwig Van Beethoven

Tracks:

Overture 'Coriolan', Op. 62
Symphony No. 7 In A Major, Op. 92: I. Poco sostenuto - Vivace
Symphony No. 7 In A Major, Op. 92: II. Allegreto
Symphony No. 7 In A Major, Op. 92: III. Presto
Symphony No. 7 In A Major, Op. 92: IV. Allegro con brio
Symphony No. 8 In F Major, Op. 93: I. Allegro vivace e con brio
Symphony No. 8 In F Major, Op. 93: II. Allegreto scherzando
Symphony No. 8 In F Major, Op. 93: III. Tempo di menuetto
Symphony No. 8 In F Major, Op. 93: IV. Allegro vivace

Tracks:

Overture 'Egmont', Op. 84
Symphony No. 9 In D Minor, Op. 125 'Choral': I. Allegro ma non troppo, un poco maestoso
Symphony No. 9 In D Minor, Op. 125 'Choral': II. Molto vivace - Presto
Symphony No. 9 In D Minor, Op. 125 'Choral': III. Adagio molto e cantabile - Andante moderato
Symphony No. 9 In D Minor, Op. 125 'Choral': IV. Presto - Allegro assai - Andante maestoso - Allegro energico, sempre be marcato - Allegro ma non tanto - Prestissimo

Amazon.com

Stylistically, Hogwood is on firm ground, and there is much to be said for his insights into the music. He prefers not to "conduct" the symphonies in the conventional manner, but to "coordinate" their performance as a musician of the period might have done. His Eroica and Pastorale are outstanding, and his Ninth most impressive. The symphonies were recorded in the order of their composition, and the sound is consistently good throughout. --Ted Libbey

Customer Reviews:

Warm feelings towards this much loved set.......2007-03-05

In the early 1980s I was indifferent to the use of period instruments in the music of Beethoven. I was very enthusiastic, to be sure, about the use of period instruments in Baroque and Renaissance music and I was rather partial to the sound of the Fortepiano in Mozart and Beethoven. I owned many of Collegium Aureum recordings of Mozart, J. C. Bach and Beethoven recorded in the 1970s and I enjoyed them a lot. I have a soft spot for the Collegium Aureum recording of the Triple Concerto of Beethoven, it is a favourite of mine and I've really never heard a recording I prefer over it. Strange, isn't it that Gardiner, Hogwood, Immerseel, Levin, Brüggen, Norrington, Herreweghe and the other HIP conductors and performers haven't recorded it?

I digress. Whilst walking down Chapel Street in Prahran in Melbourne one sunny Sunday afternoon with a girlfriend I walked into a music shop. I'd recently bought a CD player and I was on the look out for some good Classical recordings. I noticed the Hogwood recording of the Eroica and I had a listen to this recording on the headphones. I was astonished. In the slow movement it was as if I could hear the orchestra actually breathing. The use of fortepiano basso continuo also impressed me with the subtle colours it gave to the orchestra. Yep! I bought the disc on the spot and the rest, as they say, is history.

I love the Hogwood set because he does as little standing in the way between you and me, the listeners, and Ludwig van Beethoven, the composer, as possible. Does this make any sense? Perhaps not. However, Hogwood seemed to entrust Beethoven's written music with his players and he lets this music be itself.

The performances are exciting and moving. I like every moment in this set except the tempo of the March section of the 4th movement of the 9th Symphony, which uses the erroneous metronome mark (the tactus should be halved).

This recordings stands up incredibly well against the more recent recordings by Gardiner and Brüggen, for instance, although I think many may prefer Gardiner these days (and Brüggen's recordings are very, very good, too).

The best HIP/period Beethoven symphonies? Hard to say, but I do like the sets by Norrington, Hogwood, Gardiner, Goodman and Brüggen. As I said, I have some very warm feelings of affection for Christopher Hogwood's pioneering recordings of the Beethoven Symphonies. I bought this repackaged set a few years ago and I return to it often.

Excellent value for money.......2007-01-04

This album is a reissue of the recording done in the eighties and, I believe, is still among the best interpretations of Beethoven's symphonies. The performance is amzingly crisp and clear. You will not regret if you buy this set.

Hogwood Good.......2007-01-01

I'm one of those Beethoven fanatics who has all the period recordings of Beethoven's nine symphonies, or most of them anyway. I've got Norrington, Gardiner, Bruggen, the Hanover Band and Hogwood. Between the five, I could assemble a definitive "period" set. They all have strengths and weaknesses, but Hogwood and his forces could hold their own over the course of the nine. I enjoyed symphonies 1, 2, 4, 5 & 7.

If you are looking for one good set, with solid sound at a great price, this is it. Nevertheless, the Hanover Band recordings on Nimbus, originally won me over. Before them, the modern orchestra frankly bored me with their Beethoven, and I hadn`t heard the other period specialists yet.

My favorites ~
*The Hanover Band
*Franz Bruggen and the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century
*Christopher Hogwood and the Academy of Ancient Music
*John Elliot Gardiner and the Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique
*Roger Norrington and the London Classical Players

I absolutely love this set !!!.......2006-09-05

This set is excellent. I love Hogwood and his approach to these symphonies. Instead of playing Beethoven according to contemporary orchestral practices, Hogwood brings us back to the correct size and sound of Beethoven's day, and in doing so delivers one of the most interesting and lively recordings of these immortal symphonies. The Beethoven one hears on these discs is an exciting one, the music is vibrant, alive and...yes, even fun at times! Hogwood plays Beethoven the way he should be played, with an authentic orchestra and authentic timings. The instruments sound fresh and alive, and the quality of the recording is excellent, the music sounds clean and direct. I highly recommend this incredible set, and I want to say thank you to Mr. Hogwood for creating my favorite set of Beethoven's symphonies!

A bold, fresh winner.......2006-02-19

There is a growing consensus among professional musicians, musicologists, and aficionados that the use of "period" instruments in performances of the Classical repertoire yields an authenticity that is not realized when modern instruments are used. This sparkling cycle is more grist for the mill. Clarity, balance, and rationality - the hallmarks of the Classical style - shine through here.

Perhaps listeners raised on Karajan and Klemperer will be a bit jolted by the sound here. There are no theatrics, no fussy bombast, no histrionics. But for admirers of texture, the luxury of being able to hear the subtleties of orchestration will have a narcotic effect. To take but one example from this cycle, the fugal development of the final movement of Eroica is the most clear and balanced version I've yet heard.

Even so, the war between the "purists" and the "revisionists" will rage on, but thanks to this outstanding recording the former have gained yet another battle victory over the latter.

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