This morning, my office is Spyro’s restaurant, which bills itself as “Fort Wayne’s Breakfast Eggsperts!”
The coffee is good. The Irish Skillet is wonderful. And the biscuits and gravy were better than I expected.
The only downside is I’m using my iPhone’s Personal Hotspot setting as my WiFi connection.
This restaurant doesn’t offer WiFi to customers.
Oh, well.
At least Leonard “Lenny” Bernstein is keeping me entertained and fully engaged, which is surprising given my lackluster response to Beethoven’s Symphony No. 2 in D Major at the hands of Claudio Abbado on Day 19.
I first encountered Leonard Bernstein on Day 3 of this project. I was electrified. That was the first time I heard Bernstein conduct. Then, when I watched a clip on YouTube of him conducting, I was immediately caught up in his energy, his remarkable charisma.
I’m no less so today, as Maestro Bernstein again conducts the Wiener Philharmoniker, this time with Beethoven’s Second as the score.
Beethoven wrote his symphonies in four parts (except for the Sixth, which is in five). The time breakdown of this one (Symphony No. 2 in D Major), from this particular conductor (Bernstein, at age 60) and this particular orchestra (Wiener Philharmoniker), at this particular time in history (February 1978) on this particular record label (Deutsche Grammophon) is as follows:
I. Adagio molto – Allegro con brio………………………………………………………………13:27
II. Larghetto………………………………………………………………………………………………….12:28
III. Scherezo. Allegro – Trio……………………………………………………………………………3:35
IV. Allegro molto…………………………………………………………………………………………….6:19
Total running time: 35:49
My Rating:
Recording quality: 5 (occasional, but forgivable tape hiss)
Overall musicianship: 5
CD liner notes: 4 (intro by Bernstein, only one English essay – but a darn good one)
How does this make me feel: 5 (“Huzzah!”)
As I mentioned earlier, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 2 in D Major bored me to tears when Abbado performed it (Day 19). But this is night and day. There’s something truly magical about the pairing of Leonard Bernstein with the Wiener Philharmoniker.
I think it’s the energy of this recording that grabs me. There are many dynamics here – bursts of energy that appear out of nowhere. Bernstein understands them and coaxes them out of the musicians in the Wiener Philharominiker.
I especially enjoy the Third Movement (Scherzo). It’s a corker. Lots of wonderful dynamic explosions. But even the First Movement (Adagio molto) comes alive in the hands of Leonard Bernstein.
This is a fine recording of a very fine performance.
I can’t help but give it a “Huzzah!”)
NOTE: appreciated “Lenny” discussing Beethoven’s Symphony No. 1 so much (on Day Day 3) that I thought I’d post him revealing what he finds most fascinating about Beethoven’s Symphony No. 2, which he calls “much greater” than the First, with a “sudden new abundance of manic ideas, wild high spirits bordering on madness” and “sudden surges and explosions.”
Enjoy.