This morning, as I munch on my Asiago bagel (toasted dark!) with plain cream cheese, and sip my quickly cooling Light Roast coffee at a restaurant-chain-that-must-not-be-named, I listen to Dutch conductor Bernard Haitink wave his baton before the London Symphony Orchestra, inwardly smiling smugly to myself knowing that I will be ticking off an item from my bucket list on Saturday, October 27th.
On that evening, I will see Bernard Haitink conduct the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The program will be Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 2 and Bruckner Symphony No. 6.
I cannot wait.
Back when I undertook my Bruckner projects (144 Days With Bruckner And Me and 63 More Days With Bruckner And Me, 2016-2017), I quickly identified Maestro Haitink as a favorite conductor. So I am beyond thrilled that I will see him in person (conducting Bruckner no less!) in just two short months.
I love Classical music. (I must, of course, or these projects are a masochist form of punishment.)
There’s very little as thrilling to me a discovering the magic of four worlds coming together: composer, conductor, orchestra, and recording. When those elements come together perfectly, it’s magical.
Like today’s Beethoven’s Symphony No. 2 in D Major conducted by Bernard Haitink, performed by the London Symphony Orchestra on the LSO label.
From the superb liner notes (these written by Lindsey Kemp):
It’s one of music history’s forgotten facts that at the time it was completed in 1802, Beethoven’s Second Symphony was one of the longest in existence. The arrival of the giant Third only a year later has obscured this truth, but it was evidently not lost on the critic who attended the Second’s first performance on 5 April 1803 and denounced it as “a hideously writhing wounded dragon that refuses to die.”
Of all the charges I could level against the Second, it being too long wouldn’t be one of them. To me, it’s just not as memorable as the First, and certainly not as memorable as some of Beethoven’s latter symphonies.
Let’s get down to brass tacks, shall we?
Beethoven wrote his symphonies in four parts (except for the Sixth, which is in five). The time breakdown of this particular one (Symphony No. 2 in D Major), from this particular conductor (Haitink, at age 77) and this particular orchestra (London Symphony Orchestra), at this particular time in history (April 19-20, 2006) on this particular record label (LSO Live) is as follows:
I. Adagio molto – Allegro con brio………………………………………………………………11:19
II. Larghetto……………………………………………………………………………………………………9:05
III. Scherezo. Allegro – Trio……………………………………………………………………………5:37
IV. Allegro molto…………………………………………………………………………………………….6:47
Total running time: 32:08
My Rating:
Recording quality: 5 (SACD multi-channel recording, rich, lush, and crystal clear)
Overall musicianship: 5 (flawless)
CD liner notes: 5 (big booklet with lots of pertinent information and essays)
How does this make me feel: 5
This recording has all the things, to borrow a favorite phrase from an engaging, albeit short-lived TV series called Good Behavior.
I knew from the first 60 seconds that this was going to be one of those rare “Huzzah!” recordings for me. It has clarity, depth, power, and energy.
This is a superb recording of Beethoven’s Second, one I wholeheartedly recommend.