Schubert Symphonies

Twenty years ago musicologists were not aware that Schubert's Tenth existed. The detective story leading to its revelation is told by Brian Newbould in the booklet of this CD. The manuscript was discovered in a folio in Vienna containing no fewer than three uncompleted Schubert symphonies including No 10, which the composer was working on when he died. It is therefore his very last music. Professor Newbould's work involved deciphering Schubert's sketches and then reconstructing the work and orchestrating it. In three movements, the symphony is a wonder, with a first movement containing one of Schubert's loveliest melodies, and a sombre and Mahlerian slow movement of great poignancy.

It’s a shame that Végh never recorded a complete Schubert symphony cycle: he was virtually unmatched as a conductor of classical period music. No one knew better how to float a melody (to hear his way with the opening of the Fifth Symphony check out my review of the dreadful Minkowski cycle). It was a combination of characterful phrasing, perfect balances, and (crucially) players encouraged to get involved in the interpretation and characterize their individual parts. In other words, these performances are true collaborations.
– David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

For the third volume in their cycle of Schubert’s symphonies, Edward Gardner and the CBSO turn to the first and fourth symphonies. Composed in 1813, when Schubert was just sixteen, the First Symphony admirably demonstrates the young composer’s grasp of symphonic form and technique, and whilst the influences of Haydn, Mozart and early Beethoven are clearly audible, the spirit of Schubert’s own distinctive voice is certainly in evidence.

Günter Wand Edition - BOXSET 4DVD VOL 2 - Schubert: Symphonies 8 & 9 - DVD 6/8
Classical | DVD | with scans | 4,28 Gb (DVD5) | DVD´s FULL No compression
Audio: PCM Stereo | Relesase: August 16, 2005 | Publisher: TDK DVD Video

Few conductors have made a greater contribution to our present-day understanding of Bruckner than Günter Wand (1912-2002).
This first box includes Bruckner symphonies nos. 5, 6 and 8 in their original or restored versions as well as an elegant, but rarely performed Haydn Symphony and the "Unfinished" symphonies by Bruckner and Schubert. Later, TDK released the second box of 4 DVDs including the popular Bruckner Symphonies Nos. 4 and 7 and symphonic works by Brahms and Schubert.

Initially a bassoonist, Marc Minkowski began conducting at an early age, notably under the guidance of Charles Bruck at the Pierre Monteux Memorial School in the United States. At the age of nineteen he founded Les Musiciens du Louvre, an ensemble that was to play an active role in the Baroque revival. After their success at the Wiener Konzerthaus in 2009 with a complete cycle of Haydn's 'London' Symphonies recorded live by Na+¯ve (their exclusive record label since 2007), Minkowski and Les Musiciens du Louvre-Grenoble now release the complete Schubert symphonies.