Karajan Live

A veritable who's who of pieces & composers, the CDs Karajan Forever will hopefully live forever. Herbert VonKarajan was the conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic from 1955 until his demise in 1989. His vision & helmsmanship of this magnificent orchestra have literally changed the way a whole generation heard music.

Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 in E flat major Op. 55 “Eroica” – Berliner Philharmoniker; Herbert von Karajan
(live performance – Berlin, April 30, 1982)
Classical | DVD5 (no compression) | 3.10 GB; 3% recovery | Audio: PCM Stereo, Dolby Digital | Full scans | Filesonic links
Publisher: Sony Classical | Recorded: 1982 | Published: 2005

Jubilee Concert: 100 Years of Berliner Philharmoniker, April 30th, 1982
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The performance itself ? Nothing short of revelatory. You are not likely to see or hear a reading of the tragic slow movement which digs as deeply as this one. Karajan and his orchestra present a very profound experience ; the visual aspect of the performance helps us to see the emotion being poured into this sublime movement, and the intense response from the players. The first movement doesn't exactly ignite initially, but it soon gathers steam, and the Karajan charisma settles in for a coda which blazes its way to the final chords. The third and fourth movements are beautifully played, too. - from Amazon.com

Karajan surmounted this pinnacle of the choral-symphonic repertoire - which Beethoven himself called "the greatest work I have composed" - no fewer than four times in the recording studio, but only once live and on film: in this unique document from the 1979 Salzburg Easter Festival. The atmosphere of Salzburg's Festspielhaus and festival audience adds a special frisson to this conductor's classic interpretation of the Missa solemnis.

Recorded live in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome on June 29, 1985 at High Mass celebrated by Pope John Paul II, Herbert von Karajan conducts the Vienna Philharmonic for Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Coronation Mass. The performance features Agnes Baltsa, Trudeliese Schmidt, Gösta Winbergh, Ferruccio Furlanetto and Wiener Singverein.