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Brahms: Symphony No 1, Etc / Sawallisch, London Po


Release Date: 08/10/1999 
Label:  Emi Seraphim Catalog #: 73555   Spars Code: DDD 
Composer:  Johannes Brahms
Conductor:  Wolfgang Sawallisch
Orchestra/Ensemble:  London Philharmonic Orchestra
Number of Discs: 1 
Recorded in: Stereo 
Length: 1 Hours 16 Mins. 

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Notes and Editorial Reviews

This CD duplicates the original 1991 release of these performances on a full-priced EMI disc. They were also reissued in 2003 as part of an eight-CD set devoted to all Brahms’s symphonies and concertos featuring Sawallisch. Offered here at what is presumably midprice, these readings are well worth the cost and provide strong competition to the midprice RCA Gold disc devoted to Günter Wand’s 1982 account of the symphony. Both conductors give that work a strong, middle-of-the road interpretation, but some may prefer the leaner slightly more forward-pressing Wand account. However, as that release offers only the symphony, this reissue may prove more attractive in its inclusion of two additional works that add up to half an hour more of Read more music. The Tragic Overture is particularly impressive in its grim assertion and powerful accents, but the Variations, though well played, may seem a bit too expansive for some tastes. Nevertheless, everything here reveals Sawallisch as a conductor of taste and temperament, and the engineering remains thoroughly contemporary.

-- Mortimer H. Frank, Fanfare [7/2005]
Reviewing EMI 86092
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Works on This Recording

1.
Symphony no 1 in C minor, Op. 68 by Johannes Brahms
Conductor:  Wolfgang Sawallisch
Orchestra/Ensemble:  London Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic 
Written: 1855-1876; Austria 
2.
Tragic Overture, Op. 81 by Johannes Brahms
Conductor:  Wolfgang Sawallisch
Orchestra/Ensemble:  London Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic 
Written: 1880; Austria 
3.
Variations in B flat major on a theme by Haydn, Op. 56a "St. Anthony" by Johannes Brahms
Conductor:  Wolfgang Sawallisch
Orchestra/Ensemble:  London Philharmonic Orchestra
Period: Romantic 
Written: 1873; Austria 

Sound Samples

Symphony No. 1 in C minor Op. 68: I. Un poco sostenuto - Allegro
Symphony No. 1 in C minor Op. 68: II. Andante sostenuto
Symphony No. 1 in C minor Op. 68: III. Un poco allegretto e grazioso
Symphony No. 1 in C minor Op. 68: IV. Adagio - Allegro non troppo ma con brio
Variations on a Theme by Haydn, 'St Antoni Chorale' Op. 56a
Tragic Overture Op. 81

Customer Reviews

Average Customer Review:  ( 1 Customer Review )
 A Reserved Reading of Brahms First Symphony August 21, 2015 By owen r. (lakewood, CA) See All My Reviews "Sawallisch was an old school German conductor known for somewhat conservative or restrained performances. In his autobiography (For Clarity's Sake) he asserted the conductor's role was '' to make clear what the composer has written,'' further stating that ''as a conductor I have no right to alter the original document.'' Like Sawallisch's Brahms Fourth (reviewed July 21) this is a straight forward performance of some merit. It may not be as exciting as some of the other Firsts I've commented on but taken on its own merits is certainly worth the low $3- sale price featured by Arkiv. The audio is fairly typical EMI fare: slightly veiled at times and not all instrumental groups equally well recorded but still a pretty good recording. In any case, a worthwhile acquisition. With the included Haydn Variations and the Tragic Overture you get 76 minutes of satisfying music." Report Abuse
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