Szell/Cleveland 1966 LIVE CONCERT FOOTAGE!!: Beethoven symphony no.5 finale

From September 1966, part of the Bell Telephone Hour DVD and the only known film of Szell conducting in Cleveland. According to Michael Charry's biography, Nathan Kroll, the producer of the broadcast, tried to talk Szell out of the Beethoven as being too well known, but Szell insisted saying "you will hear it like you've never heard it before" (Charry p.239). For the full concert performance (audio only) see • Szell / Cleveland LIVE... ...

[@johnschlesinger2009]

One of the greatest conductors. Szell said that one must think with the heart, and feel with the brain. His performance rarely departed from this ideal. Sadly, he died prematurely - at his peak. The Cleveland orchestra became a giant under him. For me, he represents everything a professional musician should aspire to.

[@diegoruvalcabapena5240]

very sure

[@bassdivamtm]

Yes.

[@petermihacerar1137]

Feelings can be misinterpreted. And can not. Acceptance is same for anyone.

[@峰幸大畑]

マエストロ、ジョージ・セル！ 後にも先にも、セルほど偉大な指揮者は存在しません。 最高のマエストロでした！

[@bigguy2823]

As a kid in the Cleveland school system, we made about 3 field trips between 4th and 6th grade to Severance Hall for concerts. Unfortunately, I don't believe we ever saw George Szell conduct when we were there. Instead, we got assistant conductor Louis Lane, who was pretty good himself. Of course, we had our share of goofballs, being 10 to 12 years old at the time, and I don't know how many of us really appreciated what we were experiencing, even though our teachers emphasized how great our orchestra was and how admired and respected they were around the world. We were just happy to get out of a half day of school. One thing I remember was the bus ride from Memorial Elementary School on Cleveland's east side to Severance Hall. Our route took us past two different high schools, Collinwood, which was a combination junior and senior high school, and which most of us would be attending after we graduated from 6th grade, and rival Shaw High in East Cleveland. We cheered as we passed Collinwood, and booed when we rode past Shaw. LOL

[@telephilia]

Out of the American heartland a supreme orchestra with a supreme conductor

[@RaineriHakkarainen]

Phildelphia Orchestra and Czech Philharmonic had better sound than Cleveland Orchestra in 1965-1975!!

[@douglasmurphy6214]

Szell one of the titans of conducting

[@HiromiMaruyama]

I would be crying like a baby if I were there in the concert hall. People in the hall has no idea who they were experiencing!?

[@stephenpopovichl122]

Szell was one of the great conductors-one of the greatest orchestras of modern times and I may add the timpanist Cloyd Duff was one of the best musicians in the orchestra. Beautiful full tonal sound and perfectly in tune - played exactly the right articulations for this piece.

[@stephenpopovichl122]

Thank you

[@jimgott119]

I attended a Duff masterclass, and at a lunch afterward one of the students asked, “Was Szell the tyrant he’s made out to be?” Without hesitation, Duff replied, “Yes!”

[@michaelcarroll7621]

​@@jimgott119And that is why the Cleveland Orchestra was able to achieve what it did.

[@thoughtsfromthebackoftheor709]

The robust sound of the string section in this video I believe is something that was left in the past. It almost reminds me of the Berlin Phil approach of passion over precision. I think the orchestra overall had an edge especially when listening to TCO Rodzinski which it appears Szell embraced. A relentless visionary on the podium - sincere gratitude to Szell and his contemporaries for making it ALL about the music!

[@tarakb7606]

What a conductor !!!

[@davidcarson1959]

Perfect!

[@nicolapascoli4580]

Szell the great !!! ❤❤❤

[@marcallen4532]

How can everyone in the audience experience this music so stone faced? At the very least, I'd have a huge smile on my face. More likely I couldn't resist the urge to conduct and shed tears.

[@tommytbone9778]

IS George pointing at me? of course he is I`m in the 4th seat in the trombone section. At least I thought I was in the 60s taking all those lessons. And getting a ticket to see the Orchestra wasn`t easy to come by back then. Great to see them at the peak of their fame and seek more. Bravo Maestro for all you`ve done for the Orchestra.

[@OboeCanAm]

According to Donald Rosenberg, this was in fact a "dress rehearsal, with family and friends serving as the audience". Multiple cameras, and very tight shots of the audience support this assertion. Great rehearsal!!

[@szellandclevelandorchestra9753]

Thanks, I've corrected the text for this video.

[@ric55]

It is worth noting that the very great Szell was unusual at that time in conducting without a score. I was very fortunate through the sixties to be able as a student to watch many visiting and resident conductors. Few dispensed with a score.

[@hannslunninger416]

Ich habe den Eindruck, dass vieles von dieser höchsten und unbegreiflichen Qualität heute einfach nicht mehr verständlich ist. Einen Eindruck zu haben, worauf es ankommt, dass der höchste Grad der Performance eben kein Produkt von Vermarktung ist, sondern das Ergebnis einer Jahrzehnte langen ehrlichen und intensiven Auseinandersetzung mit Musik, der diese Künstler ihr ganzes Leben gewidmet haben.

[@jeromeglick]

The full-bodied energy is incredible. Despite the old restricted sound quality, every part comes through. The shakiness of the cameras adds to the intensity, as though throwing the cameramen off guard. To think of what those in the audience would have been blessed to witness, in a profound performance that Beethoven himself would have loved! Has powerful thrilling joy ever been better expressed in music?

[@volodymyrkarpyak4158]

Grandiose concentration of energy!

[@Selcuk.Aytimur]

He was one of the best with his orchestra

[@rockinyaworld]

My grandfather, Ronald Phillips is playing the Bassoon at 5:32. That is the only footage I have ever seen outside of him playing live. Thank you so much for sharing. I have contacted the orchestra and they will not allow me to purchase any copies of his performances or even view any. Seeing this video meant a lot. Thank you

[@chrisa9373]

Wow Sara, that is so kewl! You must be terribly proud of your grandfather! I am no music expert and hold no degrees in the field, but this is the single best performance of B5 ever done. It is a damn shame that cowards and lawyers ruin this word for all of us. Would think that an institution with the class and history of the CLE Orchestra would be able to oblige your simple requests. George was a perfectionist. Hence your grandfather was perfect in his performances. If you have half of the drive your grandfather has - you will move mountains. Rock on, Sara.

[@luccharbonneau9382]

You should be proud

[@thejils1669]

WOW!!! Sara, that's a great family legacy. But, let's do a little KZbin sleuthing, shall we. In the frame and subsequent frames you're referencing, we see three bassoonists with their unmistakable bells pointing upward. The bassoonist in the very foreground of the frame is actually playing the contrabassoon, identified by the longer bocal of this instrument compared to standard bassoon. If your grandfather did play contrabassoon on this particular performance, then his identification is secured. If not, your grandfather is one of the other three players playing the standard bassoon with unmistakable bells pointing upward. The bassonist at the very end of the row wearing the glasses is Mr. George Goslee. Therefore, your grandfather, if he wasn't the contrabassoonist on this particular performance, is one of the two remaining bassoonists in the middle of this row.

[@kenmcguire5837]

A bit late, but greetings from another grandchild of someone in that double reed section. My grandfather was Harvey McGuire.

[@偏見じじい]

このコンビが1970年に来日して演奏したモーツァルト、ベートーヴェン、シビリウス。とにかくすごかった。私の財産です。

[@jamesanderson6787]

.999 fine gold to the ears, great upload

[@MarshallArtz007]

Wow! You can’t play it much better than that! 😎🎹

[@user-szell8134szell]

全ての音があるべき場所に収まっている。しかも平面的ではなく立体的に。これがSzellとCLOの凄さ！

[@MrKlemps]

Even though Szell knew the camera was on him, this is a real performance. All of Szell's gestures go toward an accurate, yet supremely energetic realization of the music via the score. His primary concerns are about balance and unanimity of note lengths (elementary articulation). Even in a work as familiar to most if the players as Beethoven's Fifth, these matters are really difficult to do well or as supremely well as Szell constantly demands through economical but intense gestures. Performing like this is exhausting yet highly gratifying. There is nothing remotely resembling Szell and the Clevelanders out there now. His only rivals then were Klemperer and the Philharmonia. (Bernstein and Karajan were more famous and made more money but were not in their league)

[@karldelavigne8134]

Karajan and the BPO in the 1960s were world class; Klemperer was too but his age sometimes counted against him. But there were at least a dozen conductors in that league then.

[@killmrdarcy4367]

A very thoughtful, intelligent and much appreciated comment, while thanks for sharing your erudite analysis. For me, the only B5 that comes close to this finale is Klieber fils, while as you rightly say, this quality of performance is no longer heard in concert halls. From a human perspective and further to the camera focus on the fretful mid west housewives in the audience, one can only hope that these 'Betty Freidan' subjects were given more courage to better endure their repressed suburban lives after hearing this totally riveting account of the B5! ...Yes, if there is one thing that a Beethoven symphony should remind us of, it is that we're all interconnected as human beings, while the irony of this performance is that Cleveland has now become a rust belt exploitation enclave for Trump!

[@stephenpopovichl122]

@@killmrdarcy4367 No need to bring politics into this discussion-bad taste in all due respect!

[@wolfie71231]

Karajan was a different type of conductor in a different tradition. But we can agree Bernstein was never first class.

[@nicolapascoli4580]

Klemperer not at this level. But Karajan in the '60es yes; Bernstein is very good in the recording with Wiener Philharmoniker, not with New York Philharmonic

[@thoughtsfromthebackoftheor709]

The energy, palpable behind each note. So grateful that we have this example!

[@XanAxDdu]

sconvolgente io amo questo direttore come toscanini bohm e abbado

[@JuergenOlafSteiniger]

Danke für diese wunderbaren Aufnahmen dieses Ausnahmedirigenten eines Ausnahmeorchesters.

[@llapidus]

What a pity that this performance was not the one captured by Columbia, to be issued as the authorized statement of Szell's interpretation of the piece, rather than the dryer, straight-laced version that has come down to us in a jacket featuring a portrait of Szell covering most of his face with the five widely spread fingers of his left hand. The playing here is far more flexible, passionate and incendiary than the studio version.

[@bw2082]

Szell is the best. Love the 4th movement tempo

[@watanabesumioh]

これは驚いた。素晴らしい名演。

[@bfrank531]

I was the kid picking his nose at 3:00

[@jeromeglick]

Fantastic! So do you remember whether this was a dress rehearsal, with family and friends as the audience? In Severance Hall, I presume?

[@thejils1669]

Fantastic! According to the score, right on cue! Szell would've been proud.

[@bayreuthguru]

No, that was Jimmy Levine.

[@heifetz14]

Did you wait until the camera was pointing at you,or were you just a bit peckish?

[@wolfie71231]

0:51 you rarely see Szell hand out gold stars, but it looked like he did here

[@andrewvincenti2664]

Superb❤

[@brichpmr]

The immortal Cloyd Duff on Timpani!

[@stephenpopovichl122]

The immortal Cloyd Duff is correct-Szell said he considered him one of the best musicians in the orchestra. Beautiful musicianship and always with taste and balance-intense yet balanced as was Szell.

[@MrKlemps]

@@stephenpopovichl122 It is distinctly to Szell's credit, though certainly not surprising, that he also expressed admiration for a very different kind of great timpanist--Saul Goodman of the New York Philharmonic.

[@stephenpopovichl122]

@@MrKlemps Saul was great also no doubt-Szell was very particular however who he chose for his principals is my understanding. Cloyd as you know had a different approach and mostly in his tone in my opinion. Both were great. Duff reflected as did the Cleveland Orchestra a chamber orchestra like sound. Saul and Cloyd were very different but again the leaders at the time and still are looked upon as the top two in the country for their time. Many others also like Hinger, Schware ect. Cloyd studied with Schware I believe?

[@MrKlemps]

@@stephenpopovichl122 Schwar, with whom Duff studied in Philadelphia, was of an earlier generation--eg. Freeze in New York, Szulc in Boston. What Szell did in Cleveland was unprecedented. The only roughly comparable accimplishment since was Levine's with the Met Opera Orchestra, but then JL was Szell's protégé and learned how to do it from the master. Timpani debates, like trumpet and oboe debates etc, will go on a long as Symphony Orchestras endure and man has breath. Herseth or Broiles? Vacchiano or Voisin? Let's all just get along,. One revered timpanist belongs in your mix however: Vic Firth who played in the Boston Symohony for over 50 incredible years.

[@stephenpopovichl122]

@@MrKlemps All sounds right to me-I watched Firth on TV with Boston in the 70's 80's. He is the first one that I observed that would end a phrase ending with a roll and requiring a decrescendo with a "buzz" roll. Mr. Klemp it sounds like you are or were a timpanist?

[@phillip1508]

最好的贝多芬第五号交響曲.强勁.力量。

[@shin-gg2rk3mt3d]

セルを「非常に良い指揮者だが、氷のように冷徹」と評したのは、かの大指揮者クレンペラーだが、この「運命」のようにライブの熱い名演も残している。当のクレンペラーもライブの「運命」で、壮絶な熱演を残しているのだ。

[@tianrainjp]

I thought the cover photo was a special setting of post with humors LOL

[@kevinhetzer5313]

😊❤

[@amadeus2321]

Szell created european sound from American orchestra.

[@srothbardt]

He said he wanted to bring the two together-the precision of American orchestras with the unique qualities of European orchestras.

[@mhenrikse]

with American technique and flexibility, according to Szell himself.

[@genialhorn]

It's very unfortunate that the audio and the visual are 'out of sync'. It's very slight, maybe less than 1/4 second, but it makes it look like Szell is 'following' the music rather than leading it. Very frustrating.

[@heifetz14]

KZbin tends to cause this. It sort of ruins the whole experience. Even so,the adverts are perfectly in sync,which is the most important thing.

[@duwir5959]

he create the best orchestra of the States at his time (for me Chicago with Fritz Reiner was at the same level), but e.g. NYP was it not.

[@alenkrajancic3818]

Koji dirigent! Poznavao je partituru i sekcije orkestra bolje od ikoga!!

[@srothbardt]

Hurwitz considers Szell’s live performance with the Vienna Philharmonic as the best recording of the 5 th.

[@nicolapascoli4580]

The live with Wiener in Salzburg '69? Absolutely fundamental! That's incredible!!!

[@hectorberlioz1449]

The best is with the Concertgebouw Orchestra. Hurwitz is an amateur who pretends to know everything , in fact he has a rather restricted knolledge on conductors and orchestras. He can only talk from his own perspective. He is a pain in the ass, why listen to the opinion of an amateur!

[@heifetz14]

@@hectorberlioz1449 He thinks very highly of you,Hector.

[@Twentythousandlps]

The finale needs Beethoven's exposition repeat.

[@神田貴和]

セル指揮クリーブランドはCBSに膨大な録音を残したが、録音技術が悪すぎて、セルの凄まじい演奏を全く伝えていない。残してくれただけマシだが、出来ればRCAかDGに録音してほしかった。

[@thejils1669]

Au contraire, mon ami...I beg to differ. The Szell/CO Beethoven symphony cycle was masterfully engineered by Epic, and, to this day, has been remastered a total of FOUR times. Incredible! As one of my friends exclaimed on hearing Szell/CO B9: "Holy shit! You can hear every instrument loud and clear."

[@hectorberlioz1449]

Szell' s Concertgebouw Philips/ recording remains the best Beethoven 5 on record. The Concertgebouw has such a more and mellow beautiful sound than the rather harsh and agressive sounding Cleveland Orch.

[@corgansow6173]

You should also hear his live Vienna Philharmonic recording of the fifth too. It was on orfeo label if not mistaken, but you can also find it on youtube

[@renemilleret1938]

It is mainly due to the difference in acoustics between the Convertgebow Concert hall and Cleveland's Severance Hall.

[@hectorberlioz1449]

@@renemilleret1938 you mean Concertgebouw instead of convertgebow 😖