The Consensus Reference Recordings of Beethoven

Gil Zilkha, singer/collector/music enthusiast
In this installment of Essential Classical Music, I cover the consensus reference recordings of the major Beethoven works. This video is taken from my larger video covering the consensus reference recordings of the core classical music repertoire.
Featured works:
Symphony No. 3 “Eroica”
Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7
Symphony No. 6 “Pastoral”
Symphony No. 9 "Choral"
Piano Concerto No. 4
Piano Concerto No. 5 "Emperor"
Violin Concerto
String Quartets
Piano Trio No. 7 "Archduke”
Violin Sonata No. 9 "Kreutzer"
Piano Sonatas
Missa Solemnis

[@martinhaub6828]

The more I listen to Hermann Scherchen's Beethoven symphony set on DG, the more impressed I get. Those recordings have certainly changed my view of what I thought were the "best". Thrilling music making that you don't hear anymore.

[@kwoktungchan1345]

I agree with you

[@jaykauffman4775]

Note the EMI release of the 51 Furtwangler is edited. However the actual undoctored broadcast is now available.

[@GilZilkha]

Correct, on Orfeo. Although the newest Warner remastering is pretty good, and there is even an excellent Tahra transfer featuring the Big 3 of ‘42, ‘51, and ‘54.

[@jaykauffman4775]

@@GilZilkha Tahra did great work. Fortunately we still have great engineers like Ward Marston and Mark Obert-Thorn to make some of these historic reference recordings sound really good. Pristine and Immortal Performances also do wonderful work. So enjoy your videos best. Jay

[@frankgyure3154]

Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra.

[@geraldmartin7703]

The "reference" Beethoven Symphony #5 in the monophonic era was Erich Kleiber's with the Concertgebouw. I've often wondered if that factored into critics' being enamoured of son's stereo recording. (I have both and prefer Fricsay).

[@ferguszade5594]

In the Beethoven Violin Concerto Heifetz and Munch (Boston) soar technically and sonically above the Perlman/Guilini. You seem to conflate popularity with quality.

[@GilZilkha]

See my video on the Best Recordings of the Beethoven Violin Concerto for my own views on recordings of the work. This is a video about critical consensus. You are right that Heifetz/Munch is highly regarded, but I think the critical consensus has shifted more to the Perlman. And, by the way, technical considerations are not all that count. Certainly not in the public ear.

[@ferguszade5594]

@@GilZilkha Just shows how much these critics know😀. Enjoyed the rest of your review

[@wkasimer]

Not to mention Grumiaux and Milstein....

[@ferguszade5594]

@@wkasimer or indeed the often overlooked Hermann Krebbers whose recording of the work with the Concertgebouw is fabulous.

[@wkasimer]

@@ferguszade5594 Of course. It's easy, though, to understand why Krebbers wouldn't be a "consensus" pick - he wasn't an international soloist, instead spending most of his career as concertmaster of the Concertgebouw. So I'm guessing that the people developing the "consensus" have never heard of him, much less paid any attention to him. BTW, I'm glad that Decca has recognized him enough to issue a box of his complete recordings.

[@wkasimer]

Some of these consensus picks seem more like "consensus error" to me.

[@jaykauffman4775]

Ha. That reminds me that I always thought a rosette in the Penguin guide was the kiss of death

[@Ludwig55555]

I agree with you 100%