Sir Edward Elgar: Symphony No. 2 - Sir Colin Davis / London Symphony Orchestra

Track Listings

1. Allegro vivace e nobilimente

2. Larghetto

3. Rondo: Presto

4. Moderato e maestoso

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
This is a work that can all too often seem relentlessly grumpy, but Sir Colin Davis, leading a performance taped live in London in October 2001, manages to bring it to life. The first movement's opening is far more muscular than we're used to, and this makes the overall ethereal mood all the more noticeable. The very British Larghetto, while still heavy, has a forward propulsion that defines this performance's outlook in general. The third movement's huge, scary climax is particularly welcome after the gentle flute and harp interlude. And the finale, taken quickly, flows beautifully toward its sustained closing chord. This is a moody work, and Davis and the LSO catch all the changes, while somehow making the entire work seem more vital than many other performances. The sound is good, but the volume level needs to be turned up. And at mid-price, this is a very good buy. --Robert Levine

Sir Edward Elgar: Symphony No. 2 - Sir Colin Davis / London Symphony Orchestra, Music, Sir Edward Elgar, Sir Colin Davis, London Symphony Orchestra, Classical, Classical Composers, Classical Music, Orchestral & Symphonic, Romantic Symphony, Symphonic

Average customer rating:

A perfect Second, with non-obbligato solo voice...

Sir Edward Elgar: Symphony No. 2 - Sir Colin Davis / London Symphony Orchestra
Sir Edward Elgar , Sir Colin Davis , and London Symphony Orchestra
Manufacturer: Lso Live UK
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000063DQD
Release Date: 2002-05-14

Tracks:

Allegro vivace e nobilimente
Larghetto
Rondo: Presto
Moderato e maestoso

Amazon.com

This is a work that can all too often seem relentlessly grumpy, but Sir Colin Davis, leading a performance taped live in London in October 2001, manages to bring it to life. The first movement's opening is far more muscular than we're used to, and this makes the overall ethereal mood all the more noticeable. The very British Larghetto, while still heavy, has a forward propulsion that defines this performance's outlook in general. The third movement's huge, scary climax is particularly welcome after the gentle flute and harp interlude. And the finale, taken quickly, flows beautifully toward its sustained closing chord. This is a moody work, and Davis and the LSO catch all the changes, while somehow making the entire work seem more vital than many other performances. The sound is good, but the volume level needs to be turned up. And at mid-price, this is a very good buy. --Robert Levine

Customer Reviews:

A perfect Second, with non-obbligato solo voice..........2003-12-26

If you still think of Elgar as the epitome of staid Edwardian `Bürgertum', just listen to the horrifying middle part of this Symphony's Scherzo, and think again. Nor is there anything staid about the rest of the work, especially not in this top-of-the-bill recording. Its arguments are complex, and some of the themes somewhat heady, but the drama of it all is extremely gripping - less comfortable and easily digestible than the First, but in the end, to my ears, more rewarding. Highly original touches of instrumentation and harmonization enliven things further. Elgar has written some extraordinary string figuration in this symphony, and thankfully in this recording it registers clearly. The peculiar eerie moods he was able to conjure up in his late works are also in evidence - most of all when, as the composer himself phrased it, a malign influence wanders into the summer night in the garden of the first movement's second theme (it are these same haunting heaves and sighs that will return, with battering percussion, in the Scherzo). And Colin Davis knows how to gauge this atmosphere as hardly anybody before. He controls the constant ebb and flow of Elgar's (written in) rubati to perfection, and shades dynamics from the faintes pianissimo to the strongest forte. Rhythmic structure is kept in tight control however, so that the opening theme of the first Allegro immediately makes sense - it can easily sound garbled in lesser hands. Nor is he content to let the finale drift away on the pulse of its easy-going humming-tune: in this recording it is the dramatic peak of the work, its elegiac ending all the more touching for it. (Pity though that he did not include the organ pedal, as once suggested by Elgar, to underscore the final climax - Handley did, and to great effect). Articulation is equally precise: in the funeral march rhythm at the end of the slow movement, one can, for instance, actually hear that the quavers have a staccato dot and the semiquavers don't. As usual in this series the LSO plays with consummate skill and great musicality, and the recording is extremely dry but very clear and transparent.
All in all, I would rank this version of the Symphony above the much lauded readings by Handley, Solti, Downes and Andrew Davis, which I'm all familiar with. It is for that reason alone that I am willing to put up with its one extra-musical flaw: Sir Colin's very audible presence. I never was a fan of live recordings, because of intrusive audience noise. Ironically however, the audience, no doubt spell-bound, produces no more than one very timid cough. The conductor on the other hand seems determined to make up for such vocal reticence. The first two movements especially are accompanied by a near continuous 'solo' part of sighs, grunts and off-key head voice humming, not to mention a very loud "Paahhh!!" just before the first movement's end. You might of course argue that it is all part of the thrill of real music-making - but I have just a few too many discs with real-music making and non-audible conductors to buy that. Usually this kind of thing is enough for me to discard a recording after a few hearings, but in this case the music making itself is so good that I actually found myself able, if not quite to hear through it, at least to put up with it as a small price to pay.

Average customer rating:

Not all are live...
Get 3 Individual Ma CD's With the Money About To Be Spent!
Just Amazing

Great Cello Concertos

Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Tracks:

Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op. 101: I. Allegro moderato
Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op. 101: II. Adagio
Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op. 101: III. Allegro
Concerto No. 1 For Cello & Orchestra, Op. 33: Allegro non troppo; Allegro con moto; Allegro non troppo
Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op.129: Nicht zu schnell
Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op.129: Langsam
Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op.129: Sehr lebhaft

Tracks:

Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op. 104: I. Allegro
Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op. 104: II. Adagio ma non troppo
Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op. 104: III. Finale: Allegro moderato
Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op. 85: I. Adagio; Moderato
Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op. 85: II. Lento; Allegro molto
Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op. 85: III. Adagio
Concerto For Cello & Orchestra, Op. 85: IV. Allegro

Customer Reviews:

Not all are live..........2003-12-03

Amazon puts "Live" in the title of this disc, but a closer reading of the liner notes shows that some are live and some are not.... it's confusing and I wish the record companies would clearly label whether recordings are live or not on the OUTSIDE of the disc, so you can see it BEFORE you buy it, as many collectors prefer not to purchase live recordings.

In any event, I purchased this recording without knowing it was recorded live and I haven't been disappointed. The Haydn is played with that characteristic Ma reserve, but it works quite well for the piece, being from the Classic Era and all...

Saint-Saens and Schumann are surprisingly lively, although I generally prefer Rostropovich.

Of course, no one plays the Elgar better than Du Pre, so if you're looking for that, you should get the EMI recording of Du Pre/Barenboim b/w Janet Baker's Sea Songs instead of this.

And if you're looking for the Dvorak, the 1969 recording of Rostropovich/vonKarajan/BPO on DG takes the cake EVERY time. Don't waste your time on Ma's soulless, sanitized reading of this wonderfully romantic concerto. If you're up to it and you really want to hear someone pour their heart into Dvorak, try DuPre's late-60s recording on Angel (EMI) with Barenboim and Chicago. Tasty!

Get 3 Individual Ma CD's With the Money About To Be Spent!.......2001-10-18

Nothing to be said about super star Yo-Yo, but I have to confess that as far as concertos go, Yo-Yo Ma does incredulously better in live performances, and if you turn that sentence around, you will see the gist of what I have to say.
All cellists (or any performer on any instrument really) have their more forte genres; for certain romantic concertos, such as Elgar or Schumann particulalry, I frankly don't think Yo-Yo Ma gives MILESTONE performances on this CD set. But of course, his reading of Haydn concertos is one of the most delightfully beautiful ones out there, get it by all means. Also, they were made far back when Yo-Yo Ma was but a young cellist, so that is one obvious reason why there should be better recordings around now(i.e. If you want a Dvorak Concerto by Ma, you should definitely go for the new one with Kurt Masur and New York Philharmonic).

There are numerous other recordings that truly show all admirable, enjoyable aspects of Ma playing (e.g. the exuberant and refreshing Beethoven Sonatas, a little lagged but very beautiful Brahms Sonatas,..) and this is not the best Ma CD's you can get. Money to spend on this CD set? By three other CD's by Ma, there are a LOT of cheaper and greater ones out there!

Just Amazing.......2000-08-01

Yo Yo Ma never seems to dissapoint. His tone is incredibly clear and plays with poise and confidence that every musician should emulate. Yo Yo Ma's interpretation of all the concerti are first rate and some are even better. His Haydn in D leaves me speechless and his Dvorak is one of the best ever recorded. This is one of the best cd collections on the market. You should enjoy every moment of it.

Elgar: Symphonies Nos. 1& 2; Symphony No. 3 [elaborated by Anthony Payne]

Average customer rating:

Davis gives us deeply felt Elgar

Elgar: Symphonies Nos. 1& 2; Symphony No. 3 [elaborated by Anthony Payne]

Manufacturer: Lso Live UK
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

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Classical | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B000A6OC6W
Release Date: 2005-10-11

Tracks:

Andante. Nobilimente E Semplice - Allegro
Allegro Molto
Adagio
Lento - Allegro

Tracks:

Allegro Vivace E Nobilimente
Larghetto
Rondo: Presto
Moderato E Maestoso

Tracks:

Allegro Molto Maestoso
Scherzo: Allegretto
Adagio Solenne
Allegro

Customer Reviews:

Davis gives us deeply felt Elgar.......2006-05-20

It's good news and bad news to say that Colin Davis has become the perfect conductor for the music of Elgar. One expected much more from him long ago, but this once fiery Berlioz interpreter has morphed into a comfy keeper of the British flame, however low it flickers. Elgar's symphonies are bulwarks of empire in the memory of older Britons, and although they have never traveled well, either to America or Europe, one has to admire the composer's mastery of symphonic form, his gravely grand inspiration, and the undercurrent of civilized anxiety that provides mysterious shadings, particularly in the gnomic Sym. #2, which only the English can sit through with pleasure.

Davis feels this music and gets committed playing from the LSO under concert conditions. Also, for once his tempos don't drag. The First Sym. proceeds at the same pace as my favorite recording, Barbirolli's live reading with the Halle on BBC Legends. But the LSO plays far better and is captured in excellent sound. Anthony Payne's rendering of Elgar's unfinished Sym. #3 is beautifully done here, yet one has to wonder. How great is any composer if his sketches sound more vigorous and interesting than many of his finished works?

Track Listings: