Furtwängler – The Complete RIAS Recordings (13 CD box set, APE)

Audio CD
Number of Discs: 13 CD box set
Format: APE (image+cue)
Label: Audite
Size: 2.74 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes

1 Symphony no 6 in F major, Op. 68 “Pastoral” by Ludwig van Beethoven
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1808; Vienna, Austria

2. Symphony no 5 in C minor, Op. 67 by Ludwig van Beethoven
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1807-1808; Vienna, Austria

3. Midsummer Night’s Dream Overture, in E major Op. 21 by Felix Mendelssohn
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1826; Germany

4. Concerto for Violin in D major, Op. 61 by Ludwig van Beethoven
Performer: Yehudi Menuhin (Violin)
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1806; Vienna, Austria

5. Suite for Orchestra no 3 in D major, BWV 1068 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1729-1731; Leipzig, Germany

6. Symphony no 8 in B minor, D 759 “Unfinished” by Franz Schubert
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1822; Vienna, Austria

7. Symphony no 4 in E minor, Op. 98 by Johannes Brahms
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1884-1885; Austria

8. Symphony no 8 in C minor, WAB 108 by Anton Bruckner
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: Vienna, Austria
Notes: Version: Robert Haas edition.

9. Manfred, Op. 115: Overture in E flat minor by Robert Schumann
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1848-1849; Germany

10. Symphony no 3 in F major, Op. 90 by Johannes Brahms
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1883; Austria

11. Concerto for Violin by Wolfgang Fortner
Performer: Gerhard Taschner (Violin)
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1946; Germany

12. Götterdämmerung: Siegfried’s Funeral Music by Richard Wagner
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1874; Germany

13. Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg: Act 1 Prelude by Richard Wagner
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1867; Germany

14. Concerti grossi (12), Op. 6: no 10 in D minor, HWV 328 by George Frideric Handel
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Baroque
Written: 1739; London, England

15. Variations in B flat major on a theme by Haydn, Op. 56a “St. Anthony” by Johannes Brahms
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1873; Austria

16. Concerto for Orchestra, Op. 38 by Paul Hindemith
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1925; Germany

17. Symphony no 3 in E flat major, Op. 55 “Eroica” by Ludwig van Beethoven
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1803; Vienna, Austria

18. Alceste: Overture by Christoph W. Gluck
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1767; Germany

19. Concerti grossi (12), Op. 6: no 5 in D major, HWV 323 by George Frideric Handel
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Baroque
Written: 1739; London, England

20. Der Freischütz, J 277: Overture by Carl Maria von Weber
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1817-1821; Dresden, Germany

21. Symphony “Die Harmonie der Welt” by Paul Hindemith
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1951; USA

22. Symphony no 3 in E flat major, Op. 55 “Eroica” by Ludwig van Beethoven
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1803; Vienna, Austria

23. Rosamunde, D 797/Op. 26: no 1, Overture (D 644) by Franz Schubert
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1823; Vienna, Austria

24. Concertante Music, Op. 10 by Boris Blacher
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1937; Germany

25. Symphony no 8 in B minor, D 759 “Unfinished” by Franz Schubert
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1822; Vienna, Austria

26. Symphony no 9 in C major, D 944 “Great” by Franz Schubert
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: ?1825-28; Vienna, Austria

27. Symphony no 3 in F major, Op. 90 by Johannes Brahms
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1883; Austria

28. Don Juan, Op. 20 by Richard Strauss
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1888-1889; Germany

29. Tristan und Isolde: Prelude and Liebestod by Richard Wagner
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1859; Germany

30. Symphony no 6 in F major, Op. 68 “Pastoral” by Ludwig van Beethoven
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1808; Vienna, Austria

31. Symphony no 5 in C minor, Op. 67 by Ludwig van Beethoven
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1807-1808; Vienna, Austria

A splendid addition to your collection

There are three reasons why you should purchase this set of 12 CDs of Wilhelm Furtwängler conducting the Berlin Philharmonic, prepared by Audite from the archival tapes of broadcasts by RIAS (Radio in the American Sector of Germany) between 1947 and 1954. (1) Wilhelm Furtwängler (1886-1954) was one of the greatest conductors of the past 100 years, the era of recorded music – in the opinion of many, the greatest. “Furtwängler possessed the great secret of proportion…He understood how to interpret [the smallest] phrases, themes, sections, movements, and entire symphonies as artistic unities.” [Paul Hindemith] “It is safe to say that never in his life did Furtwängler give a routine performance.” [Harold Schonberg] (2) Good recorded sound is essential for revealing those details of phrasing and intonation that distinguish a Furtwängler performance and leave you saying, “Of course! Now I finally understand what the composer intended.” (3) These 12 CDs, thanks to the quality of the original tapes and whatever magic the Audite engineers applied, have the best sound I have ever heard in Furtwängler recordings; although they date back to 1947-1954, they are comparable to modern recordings, except for not being stereo. The 12 CDs concentrate on Beethoven, Schubert, and Brahms, plus a glorious Bruckner 8th, plus three living (in 1954) German composers. The CDs present the actual broadcasts over those 7 years; thus, there are two performances each of Beethoven’s 3rd, 5th, and 6th, Schubert’s 8th, and Brahms’ 3rd symphonies, but none, for example, of Beethoven’s 7th or 9th or Brahms’ 1st or 2nd. The “EMI Classics References” sets of Furtwängler conducting the complete Beethoven and Brahms symphonies will round out your collection and the Music & Arts CD of Furtwängler’s 1954 Lucerne performance of Beethoven’s 9th is also a gem. Finally, three personal reasons why I treasure this set: (1) The Schubert 9th, taking into account the composition itself and this performance, is possibly the most beautiful music I have ever heard – from the hymn-like introduction; to the heartbreak of the 2nd movement (17:04 here yet not a second too long because Furtwängler will have you concentrating on every note); to the crisp, volatile scherzo; to the explosive, life-affirming exultation of the finale that will make you swing your arms. (2) Mendelssohn’s Overture to a Midsummer Night’s Dream is Mendelssohn as you may perhaps have never heard him before: mysterious…creative…daring. It may also remind you that Furtwängler courageously programmed this overture in Berlin in 1934. (3) A 13th CD is a Q&A session (in German) of Furtwängler with music students in Berlin. He discusses various compositions with them in a down-to-earth way; interesting and useful information.