From Newsgroup: rec.music.classical

n the last year or so, I bought six Bruckner boxes (each containing
recordings on CD of all or most of Bruckner's symphonies).

I already had six or seven! (Plus a number of individual recordings.)

Frankly, I think they're all great, with perhaps one exception (*).

So, as far as buying Bruckner boxes is concerned, the question is not
which are good ('good' being the default; I mean: almost all Bruckner
boxes are 'good' in some sense), or how to rank them (the good ones all
have their particular merits; ranking them makes no sense) but which are
bad!

So: which Bruckner boxes should be avoided, do you think?

(*) At this stage, I have my doubts about one particular conductor, now
dead, who, although famous and 'competent' or even 'perfectionist', is notorious for his dull studio recordings and may be vastly overrated.
--
Roland van Gaalen
The Netherlands
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From Newsgroup: rec.music.classical

If all Bruckner boxes are good by default, there wouldn't be any bad
Bruckner boxes to avoid.

Is the dead, recently deceased conductor a former Concertgebouw icon?

I don't have any complete Bruckner collections. I have the Tahra box
with Jochum conducting 5 thru 7 with the RCO. I like Haitink's later
live recordings, particularly the 6th in Dresden on Profil. I used to
like Wand, but got a little tired of his style, esp. by the time he got
to redo everything again in Berlin.

I like conductors who get the best out of those lovely string tuttis in Bruckner.
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From Newsgroup: rec.music.classical

On 04/07/2024 20:28, Herman wrote:

If all Bruckner boxes are good by default, there wouldn't be any bad Bruckner boxes to avoid.

Is the dead, recently deceased conductor a former Concertgebouw icon?

I am reluctant to identify the box that may be 'bad' (in my perception!)
for the same reason that you don't cull your collection: the risk of regretting it later.

I don't have any complete Bruckner collections. I have the Tahra box
with Jochum conducting 5 thru 7 with the RCO. I like Haitink's later
live recordings, particularly the 6th in Dresden on Profil. I used to
like Wand, but got a little tired of his style, esp. by the time he got
to redo everything again in Berlin.

I like conductors who get the best out of those lovely string tuttis in Bruckner.

Same here, although I may prick up my ears and think 'wow, this is
great' for other reasons, or because of other aspects, too.

In my mind, the 'bad' conductor's Bruckner is obviously not really bad,
at least not obviously bad, of course -- on the contrary, if anything
seems obvious it is that it must actually be quite good! It's _nice_,
but something is missing, the music doesn't flow, the orchestra is not
on fire, or whatever (je ne sais quoi), so that I don't get into a state
of flow myself and I prick up my ears less often (if the recording has
its moments) or not at all.

But who am I to criticize a celebrated conductor, highly regarded by
several world-famous orchestras?
--
Roland van Gaalen
The Netherlands
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From Newsgroup: rec.music.classical

Roland van Gaalen wrote:

So: which Bruckner boxes
should be avoided, do you
think?

All of them. Download what
you like from YouTube or
from whatever sources you
prefer.

None of the finest Bruckner
performances come from "boxes"
or from complete cycles.

Cheers!
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From Newsgroup: rec.music.classical

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIaoAuUSiYM&t=152s

There is a bunch of live performances by the Concertgebouw on youtube,
with an eighty plus Eugen Jochum. Usually I'm not that hot about very
old sit-down conductors doing Bruckner, but these performances have an
amazing vitality and energy, such as in this Seventh. And it's from a
concert on an Asian tour!

The story was Jochum said: "Tomorrow night we'll go slower yet!" But A
it isn't that slow end B it's not 'tired' slow.

It's also fun to see all those familiar faces, from before the CO became
R. Viktor Libermann and Johan Kracht at the first desk violins. Across
the stage Peter Masseurs on trumpet. Matthias Maurer on alto.
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From Newsgroup: rec.music.classical

More renowned old time mermbers: Werner Herbers on oboe; a very young
Jacob Slagter on Wagner horn; behind him, on first horn the beautiful
Julia Studebaker, the first female horn soloist in any European
orchestra in the Seventies. Labordus on timps.
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