Dvorak: Symphonies 8 and 9; The Noon Witch; In Nature's Realm

[The Absolute Sound]

<p>Richard Aldrich, writing of Dvorak in the 1904 <em>New York Times</em>, said that he “seemed, indeed, the last of the naive musicians, the direct descendant of Haydn, Mozart, and Schubert, rejoicing in the self-sufficient beauty of his music and untroubled by the philosophic tendencies and the searching for new things...which animate the younger men of today.” Among the many late 19th-century symphonies that leap from heartbreak to grandiosity to myth to turgid hyperdrama, Dvorak’s glorious Eighth and Ninth stand out like twin suns. In the Eighth, the darker moments are never wretched, and the lighter never cloying. The Ninth, <em>From the New World</em>, is one of the most tuneful and popular ever written. Both shine in these early 90s in-concert recordings. Ozawa’s pacing in the Eight is leisurely, but never drags; he doesn’t over- interpret anything, instead simply lets the music’s beauty speak for itself. Except for the inexplicable applause before the downbeat, the Ninth is excellent—brass and percussion crackle, the strings are full-bodied, and the winds elegant. The two exciting symphonic poems make great fillers. Sonics are spacious and balanced, liner notes informative and well-written.*</p>


[Source: http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/dvorak-symphonies-8-and-9-the-noon-witch-in-natures-realm/]

 

[bart]

Thank you for sharing.
I have various 8th and 9th's.

These stand out for me, in this order:

I'm so fond of this music that I'm very open to other suggestions!