Composer: Joseph Hellmesberger, Hans Christian Lumbye, Eduard Strauss, Johann Strauss, Josef Strauss, Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky, Carl Michael Ziehrer
Orchestra: Wiener Philharmoniker
Conductor: Mariss Jansons
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Sony
Catalogue: 88697927102
Release: 2012
Size: 1.04 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
01. Strauss: Vaterländischer-Marsch
02. Strauss J II: Rathhausball Tänze, Walzer, Op. 438
03. Strauss J II: Entweder – oder!, Polka schnell, Op. 403
04. Strauss J II: Tritsch-Tratsch Polka, Op. 214
05. Ziehrer: Wiener Bürger
06. Strauss J II: Albion Polka, Op. 102
07. Strauss Josef: Jockey Polka, Op. 278
08. Hellmesberger: Danse Diabolique
09. Strauss Josef: Künstlergruß Polka-mazurka, Op. 274
10. Strauss J II: Freut euch des Lebens Waltz, Op. 340
11. Strauss J I: Sperl-Galopp, Op. 42
12. Lumbye: Kopenhagener Eisenbahn-Dampf-Galopp
13. Strauss Josef: Feuerfest (Fireproof), Op. 269
14. Strauss E: Carmen-Quadrille, Op. 134
15. Tchaikovsky: Dornröschen, Ballet-Suite, Op. 66, Act II: No. 17 Panorama
16. Tchaikovsky: Dornröschen, Op. 66, Act I: No. 6 Walzer
17. Strauss: Pizzicato-Polka
18. Strauss J II: Persischer Marsch, Op. 289
19. Strauss Josef: Brennende Liebe – Polka mazur, Op. 129
20. Strauss Josef: Delirien Waltz, Op. 212
21. Strauss J II: Unter Donner und Blitz, Op. 324
22. Strauss J II: Tik-Tak Polka, Op. 365
23. New Year’s Address
24. Strauss J II: An der schönen, blauen Donau, Op. 314
25. Strauss J I: Radetzky March, Op. 228
The annual New Year’s Day Concert in the stunning Vienna Musikverein has been an exalted tradition for more than seven decades, and the resulting recordings with works from the Strauss dynasty and their contemporaries are among the classical market’s most important releases. The concert will be broadcast on TV and radio to over 70 countries around the world with an estimate of more than 40 million viewers.
The programme traditionally revolves around waltzes and polkas by the Strauss family (Johann father and son as well as Josef and Eduard Strauss) whose music has enjoyed a recent resurgence due to the success of André Rieu and his Johann Strauss Orchestra. In 2012 the programme is once again a skilful blend of well-known classics and six New Year’s Concert premieres. As always the concert is bound to end with two traditional encores – the famous waltz The Blue Danube and the Radetzky March.
“It is something quite special: a wonderful opportunity to listen to this music and get to know it. This atmosphere, the Vienna Philharmonic, the Golden Hall of the Musikverein – all that adds up to a long and wonderful tradition resulting in fantastic, very specific music.” Mariss Jansons
This two-CD album of favorites by a number of Strausses (Johann I, Johann II, Josef, and Eduard) and other European composers performed by the Vienna Philharmonic under the direction of Mariss Jansons is enjoyable, but not extraordinary or inspired. The album begins with a medley of well-known pieces in “Vaterländischer Marsch,” and it reveals another flaw: the sound is flattened without much reverb or ring. This is of course unrelated to the high quality of the musicians, but the recorded sound contributes to the somewhat lackluster character of the album. This is a live concert recording and the orchestra improves as the concert progresses, as the players get more into the material. Highlights on the first CD include the Tritsch-Tratsch Polka, with the Vienna Boys’ Choir, which adds a sweetness to the piece. The fact that the boys’ lovely high voices do not ring confirms the problem of the album’s sound quality. Other highlights include the bouncing, gliding tenderness of the waltz Wiener Bürger, the high drama and passion of Danse diabolique, and the grace of Delirien.
The second CD has more to offer, and as above, the orchestra is more connected to the music, more warmed up. The clever train created by the Copenhagener Eisenbahn-Dampf Galopp is sure to delight as it chugs along, complete with whistles, with perfect orchestral synchronicity. Opera lovers will recognize the famous themes in the Carmen-Quadrille, which is quite an ingenious arrangement of the original work. Another great work that is arranged for the orchestra is the Panorama aus Dornröschen (Panorama from Sleeping Beauty) by Tchaikovsky, and it is a nice contrast to the waltzes and polkas. Certainly no album of Viennese favorites would be complete without An der schönen, blauen Donau (Beautiful Blue Danube), and the orchestra creates smooth legato lines with the right amount of rubato for tension. The audience cannot resist clapping along to Radetzky-Marsch, which is certainly inviting with its sense of fun. In sum, this is a world-class orchestra that has not been given a world-class recording quality, and it is repeating old material. Like many repeated occasions, sometimes they are more trustworthy and familiar than sparkling and exciting.