My listening post this morning is my happy place – the second floor of our local library.
Very little pleases me more than gazing out on open spaces, while surrounded by books, in solitude, with music in my hears.
If there is a heaven, that is what it will be to me.
Anyway, as I look out at leaf-less trees, a lot of brown, and puddles of very cold water here and there, I listen to Hebert Blomstedt (1927- ), Staatskapelle Dresden, and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in D minor.
I’ve encountered Maestro Blomstedt eight times previously, on…
Day 4. Rating: Not “Meh!” but not “Huzzah!”
Day 22. Rating: “Meh!”
Day 40. Rating: Not “Meh!” but not “Huzzah!”
Day 58. Rating: “Huzzah!”
Day 76. Rating: “Huzzah!”
Day 94. Rating: “Meh!”
Day 112. Rating: “Huzzah!”
Day 130. Rating: “Huzzah!”
A split decision: Four “Meh!” (or mostly “Meh!”) ratings and four “Huzzah!” ratings.
Today will be the tie breaker.
The pressure is on, Maestro Blomstedt. Better make it good.
Beethoven wrote his symphonies in four parts (except for the Sixth, which is in five). The time breakdown of this particular one (Symphony No. 9 in D minor), from this particular conductor (Blomstedt, at age 53) and this particular orchestra (Staatskapelle Dresden), at this particular time in history (1980) on this particular record label (Brilliant Classics) is as follows:
I. Allegro ma non troppo, un poco maestoso………………….16:55
II. Molto vivace…………………………………………13:48
III. Adagio molto e cantabile……………………………..16:24
IV. Finale………………………………………………25:09
Total running time: 71:36
My Rating:
Recording quality: 4 (a nice recording; however, not real complex or deep; also, missing some top end)
Overall musicianship: 3 (competent, but not terribly inspired)
CD liner notes: 0 (no liner notes in this budget-priced box set – boo! hiss! – but an extensive set of notes can be downloaded from the Brilliant Classics site covering their complete Beethoven box set; however, although extensive, the notes are not exhaustive; no information at all is provided about the conductors, the players, the orchestras, etc.)
How does this make me feel: 3 (“Meh!”)
I was all set to award this performance with “Huzzah!” when it started fizzling out the longer it wore on.
I thought Movement II stole the show. It was incredibly stirring, with lots of delightful changes of mood and energy. Yesterday, with Maestro Bernstein conducting, it was Movement III that opened my eyes to the beauty of Beethoven’s Ninth. Today, it was Movement II.
Movement I drew me in, Movement II stole the show…but then I started to lose interest. Movement III bored me to tears, and Movement IV was tainted by skips and defects in the digital file from 20:50 to the end. I mean, that file was corrupted so badly it was unlistenable. So I had to turn it off.
Overall, this is an above-average performance, relatively well recorded and well played.
But it’s not electrifying.
The hairs on my arms don’t stand up.
My toes don’t tap, my head doesn’t bob.
Bottom line: It’s “Meh!”
Life is too short to listen to something that’s just “above average.”