Brahms: Symphony No. 1 / Haydn Variations / Academic Festival Overture
The Columbia Symphony may not have been a first-class orchestra, but Bruno Walter trained it to do the right things, and it responded with first-class accounts of these symphonies. While there are instances of less-than-stellar ensemble work, there is also some very fine first-desk playing, and the performances as a whole are marked by a natural feeling of movement, phrasing, and expression. Walter's approach to the music is kindly, caring, wonderfully whole--sunny but not overly brilliant, warm but not overly heated, and sincere but not overly impassioned. Anyone who thinks that means the conductor was slow, shapeless, or indulgent should listen. There is thrust here, and plenty of momentum. The recordings, made between 1959 and 1961, are closely miked and somewhat bass-heavy, but have benefited immensely from Sony's state-of-the-art remastering. Considering the vintage, the sound is wonderfully alive and direct.--Ted Libbey