Alexandre Bak - Classical Music Reference Recording

Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 9,7,5,3 by Ferenc Fricsay (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958-1962)

  • Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 9,7,5,3 by Ferenc Fricsay (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958-1962) - CMRR Music Publishing
  • Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 9,7,5,3 by Ferenc Fricsay (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958-1962) - CMRR Music Publishing
  • Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 9,7,5,3 by Ferenc Fricsay (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958-1962) - CMRR Music Publishing
  • Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 9,7,5,3 by Ferenc Fricsay (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958-1962) - CMRR Music Publishing
  • Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 9,7,5,3 by Ferenc Fricsay (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958-1962) - CMRR Music Publishing
  • Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 9,7,5,3 by Ferenc Fricsay (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958-1962) - CMRR Music Publishing
1 6
Support
€50,00 EUR
€50,00 EUR
Sale Sold out
Taxes included.

WAV Stereo 24-Bit/192 kHz
View full details

Product details

Editorial reviews

Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 9,7,5,3

Ferenc Fricsay (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958-1962)

3 disc(s) - 17 track(s)
Total length: 03:16:29

 

“My name is Ferenc Fricsay. I was born in Budapest in 1914, on the tragic day the war broke out…”

A charismatic conductor, full of fire and power, Ferenc Fricsay (1914–1963) faced illness at a young age, which claimed his life at 49. His premature death deprived music of the masterpieces his interpretations might have given us. “Had he lived, Fricsay would have been the first to challenge Karajan’s supremacy,” said Yehudi Menuhin, who can be seen performing Brahms’s Violin Concerto under the Hungarian conductor. “He had a brilliant mind, and no one—neither the audience nor the musicians—could resist the force of his conviction.”

From this nearly complete cycle, the Ninth Symphony (1958) stands as his absolute masterpiece, closely followed by the Third (1959) and Seventh (1960), both among the finest ever recorded. His latest recording, the Fifth (1962)—made a year before his death—is slower than what our ears are accustomed to, yet it fully deserves our attention. This gradual slowing of tempo is likely linked to the progression of his illness. The recordings themselves are very fine, but the results achieved through our remastering process are beyond comparison with the originals, which had aged poorly due to early digital transfers that lacked depth in the midrange and bass.

Enjoy your listening

Track listing

CD 1
1. Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, "Choral": I. Allegro ma non troppo, un poco maestoso (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958)
2. Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, "Choral": II. Molto vivace (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958)
3. Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, "Choral": III. Adagio molto e cantabile (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958)
4. Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, "Choral": IVa. Presto, Allegro assai, Allegro molto assai. Alla marcia (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958)
5. Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, "Choral": IVb. Presto, Recitativo: O Freunde, nicht diese Töne! Andante maestoso, adagio ma non troppo, ma divoto, allegro energico, sempre ben marcato, allegro ma non tanto, prestissimo (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1958)
 
CD 2
1. Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92: I. Poco sostenuto, vivace (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1960)
2. Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92: II. Allegretto (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1960)
3. Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92: III. Presto (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1960)
4. Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92: IV. Allegro con brio (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1960)
5. Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67: I. Allegro con brio (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1962)
6. Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67: II. Andante con moto (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1962)
7. Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67: III. Scherzo: Allegro, Trio (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1962)
8. Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67: IV. Final: Allegro (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1962)
 
CD 3
1. Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 55 "Eroica": I. Allegro con brio (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1959)
2. Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 55 "Eroica": II. Marcia Funebre. Adagio assai (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1959)
3. Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 55 "Eroica": III. Scherzo: Allegro vivace, Trio (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1959)
4. Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 55 "Eroica": IV. Final: Allegro molto (2022-25 Remastered, Berlin 1959)

  • 5 stars: 2 (100%)
  • 4 stars: 0 (0%)
  • 3 stars: 0 (0%)
  • 2 stars: 0 (0%)
  • 1 star: 0 (0%)
M
MrIDF

Redécouvrir les symphonies de Beethoven après qqs années d’infidélité.
Épique..

I
Ian Wilson

Vivid remastered audio streets ahead of the Furtwangler Lucerne recording, which is mono, yet only three years older. Second movement is faster than all the other recordings I've tried. There is a wider range of instrumental colour and the timpani is superb with the skin strikes and the deep body notes are all captured in the recording. Fricsay adjusts tempo to create interest and keeps it moving along. If I could characterise the Fricsay sound world I would say it is restless. Maybe he is a genius because for the first time I’ve forgiven Beethoven the looping repetition in this movement, which was hardly noticeable. Adagio shifts down dramatically, and at first he is ponderous and the strings oleaginous, it’s B-movie sentimental and I think I don’t like it, until halfway when the pizzicato signals a hardening of the string tone and a tightening before very realistic trumpets signal the build up toward the centrepiece. Fricsay brings exceptional soloist to the fray and the roster of voices and the interlocking of their parts is the best I’ve heard, the choir is fantastic too, big sounding and full throated but it can soar. It is educational to compare the finale with the various Furtwangler & Karajan recordings, as the soloist of Fricsay is in another league of clarity and articulation. DG has reissued this recording in FLAC and DSD, I bought the DSD recording but it is rather flat and "processed" compared to the much more involving remaster by these guys.

Thank you, Ian, for your comment, which provides an additional source of motivation for us to continue working with care and dedication to deliver uncompromising sound quality to our listeners. We are great admirers of Fricsay’s interpretations, and more of his recordings will be coming soon here.

Back to Collections

1 3