Recording: Saal 1, Funkhaus, Cologne, 6 January 1958
Maria Stader, Grace Hoffman, Walter Kmentt & Hans Hotter
Chor des Norddeutschen, Rundfunks Kolner Rundfunk Chor & KRSO, Otto Klemperer
CD
$11.50
Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days.
BONUS: Klemperer rehearses Beethoven: Symphony No.9 – Finale
Klemperer conducting Beethoven's Symphony No.9 is a major event and comes from his golden period in Germany at WDR during the 1950's.
This recording has never been issued before using the original WDR master tapes.
This live performance from 6th January 1958 came two months after the EMI studio recording made in November 1957. In terms of timing, Klemperer's live performance is 2 minutes faster than the studio version and has all the hallmarks of his Beethoven interpretations, very powerful and rock solid.
Both Walter Kmentt (tenor) and Hans Hotter (bass) are present on the WDR performance as they are in the EMI version. The distinguished Hungarian soprano Maria Stader and the equally celebrated American mezzo-soprano Grace Hoffman make up the quartet. These two singers are different to the EMI studio version.
The WDR recording is typical of the other Klemperer tapings in the Medici series - wonderful clarity with warmth and immediacy.
A short bonus has been added with Klemperer conducting a piano rehearsal and singing!
August 2009
“…the Cologne orchestra's sound… rises to quite terrifying heights at the climax of the first movement, mercifully undistorted and with plenty of timbral colour preserved in the remastering.”
Click here for alternative recordings of this work.
