Einem: Dantons Tod

1. Dantons Tod, opera, Op.6
   Composed by Gottfried von Einem
   Performed by Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
   with Georg Hann, Rosette Anday, Herbert Alsen, Ludwig Weber, William Wernigk, Peter Klein, Maria Cebotari, Wilhelm Felden, Julius Patzak, Joseph Witt, Paul Schoffler
   Conducted by Ferenc Fricsay
   
   

Einem: Dantons Tod,Gottfried von Einem,Ferenc Fricsay,Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra,Georg Hann,Herbert Alsen,Joseph Witt,Julius Patzak,Ludwig Weber,Maria Cebotari,Paul Schöffler,Peter Klein,Rosette Anday,Wilhelm Felden,William Wernigk,Stradivarius,Classical,German/Austrian 20th/21st Century Opera,Opera

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Average customer rating: Top notch mostly 1950s mono recordings in excellent sound A great conductor's legacy of great performances of music of a wide variety of composers. Brilliant "Life in Music" Rescued from the Vaults

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Customer Reviews:

Top notch mostly 1950s mono recordings in excellent sound.......2005-11-10

"Ferenc Fricsay: A Life in Music" consists mostly of top notch 1950s mono recordings in excellent sound, from DG's back catalog. I knew of Ferenc Fricsay (1914-1963) mostly from his recording of Bartok's Piano Concertos 1,2,and 3 with pianist Geza Anda. Fricsay also recorded Mozart's operas "Don Giovanni" and "Die Zauberflote", both with Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau in the cast for DG; also Beethoven's 9th Symphony; Bartok's "Concerto for Orchestra", and "Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta", all for DG. Fricsay did not live a long time, dying at age 48 from cancer, but he made alot of recordings from 1949 until his death in 1963, many of them sadly hidden in DG's vaults for decades.

DG has given the public a great release with this 9 disc set of Fricsay recordings, mostly in mono, but excellent sound. Do not be afraid of the mono sound: it is very clear and balanced, in many cases better than many stereo and even digital recordings made more recently. Included are Beethoven's Symphony 1; Mendelssohn's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" with the vocal duets included; Prokofiev's "Classical" Symphony; Franck's Symphonic variations and Rachmaninoff Paganini Variations with Swiss pianist Margrit Weber; Haydn's "The Seasons" (complete, live performance with Maria Stader, Ernst Haeflinger, and Joseph Greindl); works of Falla, Francaix, Hindemith, Frank Martin, Hartmann, and others. There is a wide variety of music and you will not be disappointed.

Most of these recordings are with the RIAS Symphony Orchestra of Berlin, which Fricsay conducted for the majority of his conducting career. The RIAS orchestra was "Radio in the American sector" of Berlin, a part of West Berlin during the 1940s, 50s, and 60s. Some tracks are with the Berlin Philharmonic, others with the Berlin Radio Orchestra. In all cases, the orchestras play very well, responding with great precision to every nuance of Fricsay's direction.

I believe Fricsay would have wider recognition had he lived longer. He was roughly a contemporary of Karajan, Solti, Giulini, and Bernstein, and is sadly underrated today. Perhaps this collection will help to boost his reputation with a new generation of music lovers born after his time. Highly recommended.

A great conductor's legacy of great performances of music of a wide variety of composers........2005-09-18

Some two years after Mr. Richman posted his review, I wish only to support his high rating of these masterful performances by one of the greatest conductors of the mid-twentieth century. These recordings are gifts of grace. The fact that this collection remains available is little short of a miracle. And in addition thre is a Fricsay set in the series of "Great Conductors of the 20th Century" also still available. Many other recordings of performances under the baton of Ferenc Fricsay are to be found if one searches under his name on Amazon. His recordings of Verdi's Requiem and Beethoven's Ninth Symphony on DG remain among the greatest ever made of either of these two eternal masterpieces.

Try the $12.00 2CD "great Conductors" set first. At that price you can't lose. I predict that having heard those recordings you will quickly seek out and purchase "Ferenc Fricsay, A Life in Music." Too expensive? Not at all. It's worth every penny. It's easily worth several months of anyone's budget for buying CDs. And the recorded interview with Fricsay, already ill and seemingly knowing his death is approaching, will inspire you even as it breaks your heart. His death as he approached his 40th birthday was an incalculable loss to the Western classical tradition. Yet we do have the recordings -- go and listen to them!

Brilliant "Life in Music" Rescued from the Vaults.......2003-08-13

Now that Deutsche Grammophon is part of Universal, we have seen some interesting things happen, and not all of them bad. What I'm referring to in this case is the new "Original Masters" Limited Edition Box Set series. Finally, the classical music world has taken a page out of the jazz reissue handbook -- put out a quality product featuring rare recordings but make its availability limited, and people will snatch it up.

Now in its second round of the "Original Masters" box sets, DG has chosen to follow-up on the success of the "Great Conductors of the Century" series. They have just released two glorious 9-disc collections of the performances of conductors Ferenc Fricsay and Igor Markevitch, the vast majority of which have been previously unavailable on CD.

This particular set, "A Life in Music," showcases some of the numerous recordings made by the great conductor Ferenc Fricsay for Deutsche Grammophon, many of which have been rare (and expensive) collector's items for years. As the track information is non-existent above, I will try to be of assistance.

The first disc contains Beethoven's 1st Symphony (1953) and the Overture and Incidental Music to Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream (1950) both with the Berlin Philharmonic (BP), and Prokofiev's 1st Symphony with the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra (BRSO) from 1954.

Disc two features Mahler's Ruckert-Lieder with Maureen Forrester (BRSO, 1958), and Tchaikovsky's 6th Symphony (BRSO, 1959).

Discs three begins with Respighi's orchestration of Rossini's La Boutique Fantasque (BRSO, 1955) and ends with Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade (BRSO, 1956).

Disc four features the great Waltzes, Polkas, Overtures and Marches of the Strauss Family (all with BRSO from 1949-52). Included here are The Blue Danube, Vienna Blood, Musical Joke, Pizzicato-Polka, Die Fledermaus, The Gypsy Baron, Voices of Spring, Roses from the South, Morning Papers, Annen-Polka, Chit-Chat Polka, and the Radzetky March.

Disc five focuses on Fricsay as an accompanist with pianist Margrit Weber (and the BRSO). Together they tackle Falla's Nights in the Garden of Spain (1957), Francaix's (1956) and Honegger's (1955) Concertos for Piano, Franck's Symphonic Variations (1957) and Rachmaninov's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (1960).

Disc six shines the spotlight on 20th Century composers. Here we get Von Einem's Zwischenspiel Interlude (1949), Hindemith's Symphonic Dances (1950), Hartmann's 6th Symphony (1955), and Martin's Petite Symphonie Concertante (1950), with Gerty Herzog on piano, Sylvia Kidd on harpsichord and Irmgard Helmis on harp.

On discs seven and eight, Fricsay performs a memorable account of Haydn's The Seasons. This is a live recording with the Berlin RSO from 1961 featuring soprano Maria Stader, tenor Ernst Haefliger, bass Josef Greindl and the St. Hedwigs Cathedral Choir, Berlin.

The final disc, number nine, wraps things up with "Ferenc Fricsay: A Life Retold," a 57-miunte interview complete with excerpts of memorable performances.

Despite the fact that most of these recordings are in mono (only the selections on disc two, and the Paganini Rhapsody are in stereo), the first rate performances more than compensate for any audio shortcomings. Well, I guess the consolidation of the music industry isn't so bad after all, as long as I can look forward to more reissues like Ferenc Fricsay: A Life in Music.

Average customer rating: An ignored opera that was once a huge dramatic success

Einem: Dantons Tod Manufacturer: Opera D'oro ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Modern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Operettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra | ( V ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music ASIN: B00005OC5W Release Date: 2001-10-02

Tracks:

1. Prld
2. Act One: Sie Die Hubsche Dame
3. Act One: Camille, Welch Trube Augen!
4. Act One: (Orchestral Interlude) - VPO/Ferenc Fricsay
5. Act One: Du Kuppelpelz! Du Runzlige Sublimatpille!
6. Act One: Was Gibt's Da, Burger?
7. Act One: Robespierre, Du Bist Emporend Rechtschaffen
8. Act One: He, Er Da Im Finstern?
9. Act One: (Orchestral Interlude)
10. Act One: Ich Sage Euch, Wenn Sie Nicht Alles
11. Act One: Ach, Camille!
12. Act One: Das Ist Eine Bose Zeit

Tracks:

1. Act Two: Danton! Danton!
2. Act Two: Camille, Morgen Sind
3. Act Two: Camille, Camille! Hore Camille!
4. Act Two: (Orchestral Interlude)
5. Act Two: Ihr Name, Burger!
6. Act Two: Ich Weiss Nicht Mehr
7. Act Two: Die Verhandlung Wird Fortgesetzt
8. Act Two: (Orchestral Interlude)
9. Act Two: Zerissen Ist Der Dunkle Wahn
10. Act Two: Wenn Ich Nach Hause Geh'

Customer Reviews:

An ignored opera that was once a huge dramatic success.......2007-05-16

It has taken me a long time to get around to von Einem's splashy, intensely theatrical Dantons Tod, even though I was aware of its high reputation in Germany. Like Pfitzner's Palestrina, the work hangs on in Germain opera houses but is totally ignored in Britain and America. This is the premiere performance from 1947 in servicable radio sound, mono of course, but with plenty of intrusive stage noises. Since the pitch isn't distorted, the sound didn't bother me, but newcomers to historical sound be warned. As for the performance itself, Fricsay leads with white-hot intensity, and it's only a pity that the big crowd scenes during the Reign of Terror, so essential to the opera's dramatic impact, sound distant and murky.

As for von Einem's musical idiom, it's moernist conservative, like Orff, "Zemlinky, and Pfitzner. The music reels and punches, with a great deal of well calculated melodrama, and since the basis was Georg Buchner's searing stage play (Buchner was the author of Woyzeck, made into Berg's opera, Wozzeck), von Einem wisely makes much of the singing declamatory, leading up to the riveting trial where Danton confronts his tormentor, the evil despot Robespierre. Any listener who has a taste for Wozzeck will find von Einem equally brutal and psychological but musically much closer to film music.

This particular staging from Salzburg launched Fricsay as a major conductor, and given the equally committed soloists, Daontons Tod couldn't have had a more auspicious launch. Every voice--Schoffler, Patzak, Cebotari, and Webber--is beyond criticism.

P.S. For those who want updated sound, there's a stereo recording of a concert performance on Orfeo. It has a good reputation but lacks the incendiary power of this set.

Average customer rating: A very strong overlooked opera A top historic recording of a rare opera

Von Einem: Dantons Tod Manufacturer: Archipel ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Modern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Operettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra | ( V ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Classical | Imports | Stores | Music Opera & Vocal | Imports | Stores | Music ASIN: B000050906 Release Date: 2000-10-17

Customer Reviews:

A very strong overlooked opera.......2007-05-16

It has taken me a long time to get around to von Einem's splashy, intensely theatrical Dantons Tod, even though I was aware of its high reputation in Germany. Like Pfitzner's Palestrina, the work hangs on in Germain opera houses but is totally ignored in Britain and America. This is the premiere performance from 1947 in servicable radio sound, mono of course, but with plenty of intrusive stage noises. Since the pitch isn't distorted, the sound didn't bother me, but newcomers to historical sound be warned. As for the performance itself, Fricsay leads with white-hot intensity, and it's only a pity that the big crowd scenes during the Reign of Terror, so essential to the opera's dramatic impact, sound distant and murky.

As for von Einem's musical idiom, it's moernist conservative, like Orff, "Zemlinky, and Pfitzner. The music reels and punches, with a great deal of well calculated melodrama, and since the basis was Georg Buchner's searing stage play (Buchner was the author of Woyzeck, made into Berg's opera, Wozzeck), von Einem wisely makes much of the singing declamatory, leading up to the riveting trial where Danton confronts his tormentor, the evil despot Robespierre. Any listener who has a taste for Wozzeck will find von Einem equally brutal and psychological but musically much closer to film music.

This particular staging from Salzburg launched Fricsay as a major conductor, and given the equally committed soloists, Daontons Tod couldn't have had a more auspicious launch. Every voice--Schoffler, Patzak, Cebotari, and Webber--is beyond criticism.

P.S. For those who want updated sound, there's a stereo recording of a concert performance on Orfeo. It has a good reputation but lacks the incendiary power of this set.

A top historic recording of a rare opera.......2003-08-01

Gottfried von Einem's opera Danton's Tod (Danton's Death) was first performed in 1947 at the Salzburg Festival and is only rarely heard. The world premiere was conducted by Ferenc Fricsay (with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra) and it is this recording that features here. The opera opens with a strident sequence of chords and a moody overture which sets the scene for the dark political machinations that follow. The music and style of the opera are not really suitable for those of you starting out with opera, but if you are a seasoned opera fan then this may take you into a new world. The recorded sound (mono) is pretty good for a 1947 live performance - but it obviously doesn't live up to today's standards if that is what you require. The performance itself is, in my opinion, superb. It was this performance that launched Ferenc Fricsay, deservedly, onto the world stage as a conductor and his gift for interpreting new music is clearly felt. Other recordings are difficult to come by, but the few I've heard do not match the interpretation of this one.

Average customer rating:

Einem: Dantons Tod Manufacturer: Stradivarius ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra | ( V ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Modern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music ASIN: B000001979 Release Date: 1995-12-19

Tracks:

1. Vorspiel - Chor Der Wiener Staatsoper/Richard Rossmayr/Die Wiener Philharmoniker/Ferenc Fricsay
2. Erster Teil, I. Bild: Nr.1-Sieh Die Hubische Dame - Paul Schoffler/Gisela Thury/Trude Ballasch/Peter Klein
3. Erster Teil, I. Bild: Nr.2-Camille, Welch Trube Augen! - Peter Klein/Julius Patzak/Paul Schoffler/Gisela Thury
4. Erster Teil, I. Bild - Die Wiener Staatsoper/Ferenc Fricsay
5. Erster Teil, II. Bild: Nr.3-Du Kuppelpelz! Du Runzlige Sublimatpille! - Georg Hann/Rosette Anday/Erwin Nowaro
6. Erster Teil, II. Bild: Nr.4-Was Gibt's Da, Burger? - Josef Witt
7. Erster Teil, II. Bild: Nr.5-Robespierre, Du Bist Emporend Rechtschaffen - Paul Schoffler/Josef Witt
8. Erster Teil, II. Bild: Nr.6-He, Wer Da Im Finstern? - Josef Witt/Ludwig Weber
9. Erster Teil, II. Bild - Die Wiener Staatsoper/Ferenc Fricsay
10. Erster Teil, III. Bild: Nr.7-Ich Sage Euch, Wenn Sie Nicht Alles - Paul Schoffler/Julius Patzak/Maria Cebotari
11. Erster Teil, III. Bild: Nr.8-Ach, Camille! - Maria Cebotari/Julius Patzak
12. Erster Teil, III. Bild: Nr.9-Das Ist Eine Bose Zeit - Maria Cebotari

Tracks:

1. Erster Teil, IV. Bild: Nr.10-Danton! Danton! Danton! - Georg Hann
2. Erster Teil, IV. Bild: Nr.11-Ja, Camille, Morgen Sind - Paul Schoffler/Julius Patzak
3. Erster Teil, IV. Bild: Nr.12-Camille, Camille! Hore Camille! - Maria Cebotari/Julius Patzak/Paul Schoffler
4. Erster Teil, IV. Bild - Die Wiener Staatsoper/Ferenc Fricsay
5. Erster Teil, V. Bild: Nr.13-Ihr Name, Burger! - Herbert Alsen/Paul Schoffler
6. Erster Teil, V. Bild: Nr.14-Ich Weiss Nicht Mehr - Herbert Alsen/Ludwig Weber/Julius Patzak/Peter Klein/Paul Schoffler
7. Erster Teil, V. Bild: Nr.15-Die Verhandlung Wird Fortgesetzt - Herbert Alsen/Paul Schoffler/Georg Hann
8. Erster Teil, V. Bild - Die Wiener Philharmoniker/Ferenc Cricsay
9. Erster Teil, VI. Bild: Nr.16-Zerrissen Ist Der Dunkle Wahn - Paul Schoffler/Julius Patzak/Peter Klein
10. Erster Teil, VI. Bild: Nr.17-Wenn Ich Nach Hause Geh' - William Wernigk/Wilhelm Felden/Maria Cebotari

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