WHL 006/7

Price: £13.99

Wilhelm Furtwängler, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra * with Edwin Fischer (pno)

Beethoven: Symphony No.5
Wagner: Excerpts from Tristan and Parsifal
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No.6
Furtwängler: Adagio solemne from Symphonic Concerto

“Mark Obert-Thorn’s transfers amount to truthful reportage of the original 78s, and Furtwangler’s legendary 1938 Pathetique is a real performance – a tragic comedy on difficult times with searing climaxes and a mastery of musical transition that no other conductor could surpass…..
Furtwangler’s artful handling of the first movement’s main melody is as breathtaking as his panic-stricken through the, finale’s last climax, but both gestures seem wholly to Tchaikovsky’s.structure. The Wagner excerpts with broad arched lines are typically compelling “. (Gramophone)
As to the Brucknerian Solemne, it may not be ‘great’music, but I find it both endearing and peculiarly moving.

Track list:

1-4 Beethoven: Symphony No.5
5-6 Wagner: Excerpts from Tristan und Isolde
7-8 Wagner: Excerpts from Parsifal
9 Furtwängler: Adagio Solemne (from Symphonic  Concerto*)
10-13 Tchaikovsky Symphony No.6 ‘Pathetique’

Barcode: 744718300723