Ozawa: Prokofiev – 7 Symphonies, Lieutenant Kijé (4 CD, APE)

Performer: Andreas Schmidt
Orchestra: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor: Seiji Ozawa
Composer: Sergey Prokofiev
Audio CD
SPARS Code: DDD
Number of Discs: 4 CD box set
Format: APE (image+cue)
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Size: 1.11 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes

# Symphony No. 1 in D major (“Classical”), Op. 25
Composed by Sergey Prokofiev
Performed by Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Conducted by Seiji Ozawa

# Symphony No. 6 in E flat minor, Op. 111
Composed by Sergey Prokofiev
Performed by Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Conducted by Seiji Ozawa

# Symphony No. 2 in D minor, Op. 40
Composed by Sergey Prokofiev
Performed by Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Conducted by Seiji Ozawa

# Symphony No. 7 in C sharp minor, Op. 131
Composed by Sergey Prokofiev
Performed by Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Conducted by Seiji Ozawa

# Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 44
Composed by Sergey Prokofiev
Performed by Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Conducted by Seiji Ozawa

# Symphony No. 4 in C major, Op. 112 (second version)
Composed by Sergey Prokofiev
Performed by Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Conducted by Seiji Ozawa

# Symphony No. 5 in B flat major, Op. 100
Composed by Sergey Prokofiev
Performed by Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Conducted by Seiji Ozawa

# Lieutenant Kijé, film score and suite for orchestra, Op. 60
Composed by Sergey Prokofiev
Performed by Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
with Andreas Schmidt
Conducted by Seiji Ozawa

An epic disk set.

This is a fantastic set of the Prokofiev Symphonies. My first exposure to Ozawa was listening as a kid to my father’s Beethoven 9 done by Ozawa and the Boston Symphony. I saw this name and made a gut call over the Karajan recording and I was not disappointed. The 7 symphonies are all what I expected, but I think the Lieutenant Kije is the real hero of this set. The first time I listened to it in full I found myself crying several times. A true tear jerker when the trumpet line from the birth movement played at the start of the funeral movement. I would pay over and over for that experience. I have shown it to several of my friends who don’t listen to classical and they experienced the same thing. It was fantastically moving and great to listen to. I am not usually a fan of opera singing, but this was special. I felt a special empathy for Kije that I couldn’t even explain. I highly recommend this set for anybody, whether new or experienced to classical music.