Just wanted to see if that got any attention this weekend. Actually, Furtwängler is one of the great conductors of the century. Obviously.
The reason I write this is that I increasingly find myself listening to older recordings of classical music, particularly of the orchestral variety, due almost solely to the conductors. It is clear to me that many conductors of yore were more likely to interpret music more personally and insightfully than many of today’s conductors. Granted I have to put up with lower quality sound and in some cases less technically proficient orchestras, but the music is better.
So much of today’s music is bland and more or less played by the numbers, so to write. Can anyone out there honestly tell the difference between a Salonen and Rattle recording? If they can, is it as different and telling as the differences between, say, Walter and Klemperer or Furtwängler and Toscanini? There are other erstwhile conductors that float my boat – Kubelik, Karajan (earlier recordings), Bernstein (earlier recordings), Dorati, Reiner (limited repertoire), Beecham, Fricsay and some others – and some current conductors are quite enjoyable – Haitink and Slatkin come to mind – but generally I find many older recordings more satisfying.
Being relatively new to classical, I can only divine that the cause is the same as the decline in so many other areas of creative endeavor: excessive corporate greed. Some greed is good, and indeed a necessary part o’ capitalist life, but too much is not only destructive, but, more insidiously, leads to mediocrity. It looks like that has happened to classical as well.
I will say that this does not apply as much to chamber music and the solo piano repertoire. How can it with performers like The Lindsays and Andras Schiff, among many others, out there.
Just wanted to see if anyone else shares my views here. Please refrain from hurting my feelings or using any bad words as that may incur the Wrath of the Moderators. And I’ll automatically discount any harsh criticism of certain high volume contributors who shall remain nameless.
Posted on: 08 September 2000 by Former member
Todd,
I agree with your comment about the general blandness and uniformity of most conducting today. The great conductors of the past, such as Walter, Klemperer, Toscanini, Erich Kleiber, Monteux, even Furtwangler (shudder), produced much more distinctive musical interpretations, and that was undoubtedly much better than the current situation.
I wouldn't attribute this wholly to corporate greed. After all, it might not seem like it by comparison to today's standards, but the great musicians of the past, as well as their promoters, were every bit as greedy as those today. Toscanini's fees, for example, were obscene. I tend to believe that the convergence of conducting styles and orchestral sounds has more to do with the internationalisation of musicians. Few conductors spend more than a few months of the year with any orchestra, and they tend to carry their interpretations with them from orchestra to orchestra. The orchestras themselves seem to be eschewing the idea of producing a distinctive sound, the Vienna Philharmonic thankfully excepted. (I won't re-open the interesting debate about whether this is connected with the VPO's decision not to admit women to the orchestra.)
It is occasionally very interesting to hear older recordings. Thankfully, we can still hear some recordings of Beecham, E Kleiber, early Kubelik, late Walter, and Klemperer in acceptable sound. The problem with earlier recordings (particularly from the 30s and 40s) is the trade off of great performance vs awful sound. Everyone needs to form their own view of where to draw the line on that one. Personally, I generally find it difficult to listen to anything recorded before the 50s, because the sound quality usually compromises my ability to hear the quality of the performance. However, I usually have no such trouble with the great mono recordings from the 50s (e.g. Beecham's La Boheme, Karajan's 1951 Meistersinger, Erich Kleiber's Rosenkavalier, Furtwangler's (shudder) studio Fidelio*.)
Ross
* I recently bought Furtwangler's live Fidelio from the Salzburg festival, which many reviewers believe is better than the studio version. Apart from some splendid singing from Kirsten Flagstad, I don't find it as compelling as the studio version.
