Re: [ARSCLIST] Kostelanetz, was [ARSCLIST] Transfer responsibility

[David Lennick <dlennick@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

The Toronto Symphony under Karel Ancerl played the Beethoven 7th in Massey Hall
in the early 70s and it was unbelievable. Unfortunately the soloist that night
was Isaac Stern, who knew he was just treading water and wouldn't allow the
concert to be broadcast, so nobody recorded it..not even the usual raincoat
brigade. Believe me, I've checked. That concert exists only in my head.

dl

Steven Smolian wrote:

> I can recall superb live performances by symphony orchestras that fully met
> the criterion of "perfect playing," especially from the period referred to
> here- the 1960s.  One was by an American aggregation- the Chicago under Wand
> (an Unfinished, in the 1980s).  I recall the Concertgebouw, the Residency
> (realy almost the same orchestra with the firsts and supporting principles
> swapped) and, from broadcast the Dresden.  Not complete concerts but
> complete pieces.  The 'Bow a few times.  They aspired.  When realized, the
> post-concert high was really something, and not just for the audience.
>
> Kostelanetz was mostly a formulaic conductor.  So many pieces ended with an
> antificial orgasm that, I assume, many of his players went through the
> motions, not emotions.
>
> Steve Smolian
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "David Lennick" <dlennick@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
> To: <ARSCLIST@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Thursday, August 24, 2006 4:51 PM
> Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Kostelanetz, was [ARSCLIST] Transfer responsibility
>
> > It doesn't explain why Kosty's recordings were so awful in the last years
> > of
> > his life. Either he or his producer turned out overmodulated,
> > over-reverbed,
> > over-arranged, souped-up doses of elevator music at ear-splitting volume
> > with
> > no subtlety, no variation and very little musicality. And that goes for
> > his
> > light classical and "Proms" stuff as much as for his pop recordings. He
> > could
> > do interesting stuff in concert..I have him conducting in Toronto in 1942.
> > He
> > plays the Shostakovich "Polka" and actually gets laughs from the audience,
> > although that would have been new music to them at that time.
> >
> > dl
> >
> > Lou Judson wrote:
> >
> >> Ron, this is a gem. May I take the quote below and use it for a
> >> signature line fo rmy emails? It is wonderful! It will set me in good
> >> stead with old timers, and puzzle the youngsters who will wonder what
> >> an "Lp recording" is...
> >>
> >> <L>
> >>
> >> Lou Judson . Intuitive Audio
> >> 415-883-2689
> >>
> >> On Aug 24, 2006, at 12:41 PM, Ron Fial wrote:
> >>
> >> Andre Kostelanetz said he had a problem listening to LP recordings,
> >> because after the engineers spliced all the takes together, the work
> >> was 'too perfect'.  No real orchestra could play that well.
> >
> >
> > --
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