The late Carlos Kleiber was one of the most esteemed and enigmatic conductors during the last quarter of the last century. He was an uncompromising perfectionist who demanded accuracy in even to the smallest details that might have passed unnoticed by others. Every one of his recordings bears witness to his preoccupation with perfection. He worked only when he needed money, demanded and was given extra rehearsal time and like his father, the illustrious Erich, was easily offended and would walk out of costly recording sessions. Not surprising then that he made comparatively few recordings. It was DG that issued more of his performances than any other label and the each and every one remains a top choice in a crowded market. To celebrate his 80th anniversary DG has issued two sets, a complete collection of CDs and a package of his complete Unitel videos. The CD set (4778826, 12 CDs) contains Beethoven’s Fifth and Seventh, Schubert’s Third and Eighth, and Brahms’ Fourth Symphony all with The Vienna Philharmonic. The remarkable perfection of these blazing performances has never been bettered. I recall listening with a colleague to the LP of the Brahms Fourth when it was first issued trying, unsuccessfully, to find one wrong note, one wrong entry. There are also four complete operas: Die Fledermaus, La Traviata, Tristan und Isolde, and Der Freischutz. Featured singers include Hermann Prey, Lucia Popp, Rene Kollo, Julia Varady and Ivan Rebroff (Fledermaus); Ilena Cotrubas, Domingo and Milnes (Traviata); Kollo, Kurt Moll, Margaret Price, Fischer-Dieskau, and Anton Dermota (Tristan); Peter Schreier, Gundula Janowitz, and Theo Adam (Freischutz). These classic versions, very well reviewed at the time, retain their freshness and each would be a prime choice.
The Kleiber videos (Unitel 0734605, 10 DVDs) have the memorable New Years Concerts from 1989 and 1992 with the Vienna Philharmonic playing in the Musikverein to an elegant audience and, in fact, to the world by satellite. Always a must see, these two were especially important as they had Kleiber on the podium. We next find him in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam in front of their orchestra in two Beethoven Symphonies, the Fourth and the Seventh, and then back to Vienna for the Mozart 36 and the Brahms Second with the Philharmonic. In Munich he leads the Bavarian State Orchestra in the Coriolan Overture, Mozart 33, and the Brahms Fourth. Moving into the National Theatre in Munich there is an outstanding production of Der Rosenkavalier staged and directed by Otto Schenk. Heard and seen are Gwyneth Jones, Manfred Jungwirth, Brigitte Fassbaender, Benno Kusche, Lucia Popp and others. This was 1979 and the voices were in their prime. A second production from March 1994 with The Vienna State Opera was based on Schenk’s Munich production. Here are Felicity Lott, Kurt Moll, Anne Sophie von Otter, Gottfried Hornik, Barbara Bonney and others. Same conductor, different orchestra and soloists. Aficionados will have a great time rating the singers. Finally back to Munich for Die Fledermaus in a sparkling, high spirited, irresistible production with sets by Günter Schneider-Siemssen. Perfectly cast with Eberhard Wächter, Pamela Coburn, Benno Kusche, Brigitte Fassbaender (Orlofsky), Wolfgang Brendel, and others. This is an irresistible Viennese pastry to close out the programme. I was somewhat familiar with some of these videos but I had not anticipated being so captivated by them to the extent that to start any one meant to watch it through. Time consuming but rewarding.
About 20 years ago I was in the audience in Massey Hall when violinist Ivry Gitlis played the Tchaikovsky with the Toronto Philharmonic. This was a special occasion, an opportunity to hear one of the very last survivors of the school, or era of creative, subjective performers whose performances were always a personal statement, revealing new aspects of the score. I have enjoyed Gitlis’ recordings since the 1950s, especially his Sibelius Concerto with Jascha Horenstein which remains a favourite version. At about the same time he played that concerto with the New York Philharmonic under George Szell and that performance has just been released by DOREMI on a rather impressive collection of live performances (DRH-7981-3, 2 CDs plus 1 DVD). The set features Gitlis in virtuoso works from the late romantics plus 20th century repertoire. There is a Brahms Double featuring the impeccable artistry of the highly esteemed French cellist Maurice Gendron. Also the Paganini #2, Hindemith’s concerto and the violin concerto by René Liebowitz. The DVD is a treasure chest of eclectic selections from the concerto and sonata repertoire. Each piece re-affirms his individuality and virtuosity effecting a silvery, sensuous sound with new insights into the scores. Drawn from French and German television the DVD is very fine in clean and clear 1966-1992 colour.
In the good old days of the late 1950s and 1960s when we were ravenous (well, some of us) for new Decca/London FFSS LPs the name of Julius Katchen emerged as one of the elite of the classical repertoire with a complete Beethoven Concertos, complete Brahms piano music, a multitude of works from Mozart to Bartok and Gershwin plus trios with Joseph Suk and Janos Starker. Had he lived beyond his 42 years we may have heard his Bach. DOREMI has released a live performance of Bach’s second Partita BWV826 (DHR-7936), a magical performance by virtue of transparency and a beautiful singing style, arguing an excellent case for Bach on piano. Also heard are the Beethoven 43 Variations in C minor and a newly discovered performance from 1960 of Beethoven’s Fifth cello sonata with Pablo Casals. Then in his eighties, Casals was not as technically perfect as before but offers a deeply moving performance, supported by Katchen as an equal partner.
