Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony no.6 "Pastoral" / Overtures
Herbert von Karajan had no feeling whatsoever for this symphony. His performances are all mercilessly fast and utterly charmless, as if he couldn't wait to get the whole thing over with. He also strips out as many repeats as possible, which wrecks the Scherzo's structure completely. It's really amazing that a man who considered himself the acme of German conductorhood could have so little sympathy for this classic of the repertoire, but facts are facts. A performance to avoid.--David Hurwitz