Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 - Klemperer 1959 #LVB6

Beethoven: Symphony No. 6

Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Otto Klemperer. 

EMI stereo in Oct 28-29 1957, released 1959

Klemperer recorded the symphony in 1954/55 in mono - a fine recording for it’s time,

This conductor is just the man for this symphony - he doesn’t make the symphony a bucolic idyll and his dispassionate nature makes for some welcome harder edges to the work.  But he is determined to be rustic and he knows all the points where greater emphasis in the score is worthwhile.

The course of the symphony is as Beethoven intended.  It captures a cycle of life which all Europe shared for hundreds of years. Klemperer pushes in an objective way and clearly it’s not it’s not about him.  On the other hand technically his preference for forward woodwind is fabulous and it changes the delicacy of the bird song and the gravity of the storm.  The glory is on the whole conception. 

On the down side, the two solo celli are somewhat swamped and the horns are somewhat muted.   The violins are split left and right.  EMI catch the cellos and bass lines very well.

Regarding tempi Klemperer is not as slow as he would later become but he does knows how to tweak speeds especially accelerating into crescendo to the positive effect but not overdoing it.

This is a symphony for Shepherd in Klemperer’s view, not for the gentry. But as ever Klemperer is always instructive.

Performance 9 out of 10 

Recording 10 out of 10 

Interpretation 9 out of 10.