Wiener Symphoniker, Jascha Horenstein - Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 (2011)

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Wiener Symphoniker, Jascha Horenstein - Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 (2011)

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Horenstein's Beethoven Nine is that rarest of things - a recording of the symphony which fitted onto a single LP, rather than the more common three sides. This was achieved both by having some quite lengthy sides - the label claims 33 minutes and 32 minutes duration, with a split partway through the third movement - and by Horenstein conducting the work at a fair old lick. I compared it to a later recording by Solti, which runs to a more leisurely 76 and three-quarter minutes. Whilst their 2nd and 4th movements are relatively similar, Horenstein's first movement is nearly 3 minutes quicker than Solti's, and his third is almost 33% faster and thus five minutes shorter.

In remastering I discovered a huge amount of detail which the rather veiled 1956 production had left hidden, and the XR remastering restores a sparkling vitality to the music which matches Horestein's pace and delivery well. I noted that the original LP production faded the master tape to silence between movements, and this has been done here as well - and I was able to take the opportunity to add some vital inter-movement breathing space.

On my near-mint pressing the second side presented a greater degree of surface swish than the first, which has been treated. I also excised an insect-like lathe whistle which was audible for much of the first side, warbling around 4.5kHz.

The end result is a particularly fine-sounding production of exceptional clarity.

by Andrew Rose