König Ludwig

Er hat den berühmtesten Stimmen seiner Zeit zur Seite gesessen, Gerald Moore, der ,,König unter den Begleitern". Sein Name ist zum Synonym des Klavierbegleiters überhaupt geworden. Der einfühlsame Mitgestalter Moore adelte den Part des Klavierbegleiters und machte ihn zu einer eigenständigen Kunst.

The performance of Leonore Overture No. 3 tells you what to expect: the wonderfully flowing introduction, organically related to the tempo of the ensuing allegro, establishes a chamber-music-like balance between strings and winds. Brass and timpani cut through clearly, but never forcefully. The main body of the movement is fleet and graceful, yet also lacking in rhetorical emphasis and the kind of grandeur that many listeners prefer. David Zinman clearly takes his cues from the period-instrument crowd, but he also takes advantage of modern timbral smoothness to achieve singularly beautiful results. While you may not like the comparative dearth of weight, there’s no question that the orchestra fully realizes his approach, and it is excellently recorded to boot.