Audition: Schumann - Symphony No. 2, VPO/Bernstein/DG r1986
Comments are always welcome Audition: Schumann - Symphony No. 2 VPO/Bernstein/DG 1986 This symphony was one of Bernstein‘s earliest classical recordings in New York. I suspect given this symphony’s reputation and many tricky problems, it was a test of the young conductor’s ambition and mettle. He’d recorded it in America in June 1954 in NY for Decca, the orchestra was described as the New York Stadium Symphony Orchestra (a pseudonym for the NYPO). Then later in 1960 with the legit New York Philharmonic as part of his CBS cycle. Finally in 1985 it was recorded (with a suspiciously quiet audience) recording with the Vienna Philharmonic, live, on Deutsche Grammophon. The orchestra it should have been a walk in the park but it isn’t, it seems to be a trial for him again. Bernstein walks the very difficult line between the lyrical and martial elements of the work and occasionally the periods of over-orchestration by Schumann don’t help. Generally, the conductor ends u...
