More of the Music of Ludwig van Beethoven
Reviews and Commentaries for the Music of Beethoven
In our opinion this is the best sounding Beethoven 6th Symphony ever recorded. It is the most beautiful of them all, and has long been my personal favorite of the nine Beethoven composed.
Ansermet’s performance is clearly definitive to my ear as well. The gorgeous hall the Suisse Romande recorded in was possibly the best recording venue of its day, possibly of all time; more amazing sounding recordings were made there than any other hall we know of.
There is a richness to the sound that exceeds all others, yet clarity and transparency are not sacrificed in the least.
It’s as wide, deep and three-dimensional as any, which is of course all to the good, but what makes the sound of these recordings so special is the weight and power of the brass and the timbral accuracy of the instruments in every section.
We have a section of classical recordings that we nominate for the best performances with top quality sound, and this record is of course one of its founding members.
The best pressings from the Readers Digest set with Leibowitz conducting were very good but no match for Ansermet and the legendary Orchestre De La Suisse Romande.
We have liked Monteux on RCA for the 6th in the past. We do not believe that even the best pressings of that album are competitive with this London.
The ’60 Decca/London cycle with Schmidt-Isserstedt and the Vienna Phil has always sounded flat and modern to us, on every pressing we’ve played.
Production and Engineering
James Walker was the producer, Roy Wallace the engineer for these sessions from October of 1959 in Geneva’s glorious Victoria Hall.
Released in 1960, it’s yet another remarkable disc from the Golden Age of Vacuum Tube Recording.
A Must Own Record
This is a recording that belongs in any serious classical collection. Others that belong in that category can be found here.
Further Reading