Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Sir Colin Davis – Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14, H. 48 (2024) [FLAC 24bit/48kHz]

Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Sir Colin Davis - Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14, H. 48 (2024) [FLAC 24bit/48kHz] Download

Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Sir Colin Davis – Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14, H. 48 (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/48 kHz | Time – 59:00 minutes | 585 MB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Digital Booklet, Front Cover | © BR-Klassik

The BR-KLASSIK label is now taking the 75th anniversary of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (BRSO) in 2024 as an opportunity to make previously unreleased recordings of concerts that are worth listening to available on CD and as a stream for the first time. Hector Berlioz’s passionate “Symphonie fantastique”, the almost revolutionary symphonic masterpiece by the great French composer, was performed by Colin Davis with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra at Munich’s Philharmonie im Gasteig on January 15 and 16, 1987. In his “Symphonie fantastique”, subtitled “Episodes from the Life of an Artist”, Berlioz combines the structures of the musical symphony with the form of a five-part classical drama. With the help of a leitmotif (an “idée fixe”), he tells the listener about the beloved woman of his dreams. The “Symphonie fantastique” thus paved the way for the symphonic poems of the Romantic period as well as the leitmotif method in Wagner’s music dramas. “I am still unknown,” wrote Berlioz in June 1829 at the age of 25 – but he was certain that he could achieve resounding success with the idea of a major instrumental work. With his “Symphonie fantastique”, he created a new kind of programme music. Berlioz was inspired by the works of Goethe and by Beethoven’s symphonic music – and also the fascination he felt for the Irish actress Harriet Smithson, whom he saw play Ophelia in Shakespeare’s Hamlet at the Odéon Theatre in Paris on September 11, 1827. The “Idée fixe”, the main theme, refers to the artist going through his life story in various inner states of mind. The starting point of the first movement is an unhappy love affair. The music presses ahead passionately and captivatingly towards its finale.The 75th anniversary of the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks (“Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra”) has been cause for celebration, not just for the powerhouse orchestra, but it has been a boon for listeners worldwide as the orchestra’s in-house label issues previously unreleased recordings. Here, we are presented with a live recording from January 1987 of Berlioz’s much-loved Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14, conducted by Sir Colin Davis, who served as the Bavarian Radio Symphony’s chief conductor from 1983 until 1993. Berlioz was a favorite of Davis’, who made his Bavarian Radio Symphony debut leading the composer’s La damnation de Faust, and this is another chance for audiences to hear his mastery over the orchestra. Orchestral brass players and brass lovers, in general, have been drawn to this programmatic work since its premiere for obvious reasons, and they will not be disappointed with the work from this orchestra’s formidable group, especially in the Dies irae section of the “Songe d’une nuit du Sabbat” (“Dream of the Witches’ Sabbath”). Davis and his orchestra are in their finest form throughout the entire finale; there are few conclusions as exciting as Berlioz’s here, and an appropriate amount of applause is retained, with minimal audience noise throughout. Davis recorded this work with several other orchestras, including a much earlier one leading the London Symphony, and his tempos here are more deliberate, likely influenced by his more robust repertoire, which, at this point, also covered the major symphonists such as Mahler and Bruckner. – Keith Finke

Tracklist:

1-1. Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks – Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14, H. 48: I. Rêveries – Passions (Live) (15:54)
1-2. Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks – Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14, H. 48: II. Un bal (Live) (06:42)
1-3. Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks – Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14, H. 48: III. Scène aux champs (Live) (18:58)
1-4. Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks – Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14, H. 48: IV. Marche au supplice (Live) (07:02)
1-5. Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks – Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14, H. 48: V. Songe d’une nuit du sabbat (Live) (10:22)