Shostakovich 5 Symphony

If you take it for granted that Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli was the greatest pianist of the twentieth century and that his performances of Beethoven's "Emperor" Concerto were the greatest of the twentieth century, then you'll probably want to pick up this disc containing Michelangeli's fabled May 29, 1957, performance in Prague with Vaclav Smetacek and the Prague Symphony Orchestra. Although Smetacek is not the deepest, the greatest, or the most sympathetic accompanist Michelangeli ever had, and although the Prague players are not always quite on their best behavior, Michelangeli is as he always is in this work: absolutely definite.

Born in 1943 in the Latvian capital of Riga, Mariss Jansons grew up in the Soviet Union as the son of conductor Arvid Jansons, studying violin, viola and piano and completing his musical education in conducting with high honours at the Leningrad Conservatory. Further studies followed with Hans Swarovsky in Vienna and Herbert von Karajan in Salzburg. In 1971 he won the conducting competition sponsored by the Karajan Foundation in Berlin. His work was also significantly influenced by the legendary Russian conductor Yevgeny Mravinsky, who engaged Mariss Jansons as his assistant at the Leningrad Philharmonic in 1972. Over the succeeding years Mariss Jansons remained loyal to this orchestra, today renamed the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, as a regular conductor until 1999, conducting the orchestra during that period on tours throughout the world. From 1971 to 2000 he was also professor of conducting at the St. Petersburg Conservatoire.

Fans of Leonard Bernstein will not want to miss the chance to snap up this limited edition 60-CD set, Bernstein Symphony Edition. With a list price of just over two dollars per disc, it's a bargain not to be missed. What's most impressive about these recordings of well over 100 symphonies made between 1953 and 1976, almost all of which feature the New York Philharmonic, is the scope and depth of Bernstein's repertoire.

Whatever listeners may think of Mstislav Rostropovich's first recording of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5 with the National Symphony Orchestra, it is a historical document of the utmost importance to anyone who claims to love the music of Shostakovich.

Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphonies No. 4 in C minor, op.43; No.5 in D minor op. 47; No. 6 in B minor, op. 54;
No.7 in C major, Op.60 'Leningrad'; No. 8 in C minor, op. 65; No. 9 in E flat major op. 70 –
Kirov Orchestra, Mariinsky Theatre St. Petersburg (with Rotterdam Philharmonic on Op. 60); Valery Gergiev
Classical | 5 CDs | EAC Rip | 1,27 GB (3% recovery) | FLAC+LOG+Cue | Full scans | RS links
Publisher: Philips | Recorded: 2001 | Published: 2003

This is one of Gergiev's finer performances on disc. His rhythmically taut, propulsive conducting makes for a powerful rendition of Shostakovich's Leningrad Symphony-one that is strongly argued and purposefully projects the work's grand, dramatic sweep. (on Symphony No. 7)
Gergiev gives the Fifth an admirably direct, clean performance full of excitement and intensity. (on Symphony No. 5)
Gergiev's Shostakovich Fourth has a textural clarity that reveals many rarely-heard details, such as the strings' shimmering Ravelian downward scale in the first movement's final bars. (on Symphony No. 4) – classisctoday.com