Music Chat: My First Bernstein Review (Preview to The 10 Best Recordings) 

For me, LB is a hero. I was privileged to have met him at Tanglewood in 1988 and he was most encouraging to me as a young composer, giving me huge confidence to continue to write. It was so sad that he died so young. So many Brits are still prejudiced against him, and to have been able to hear him talk at leisure, discovering his marvellously sympathetic and open mind totally changed my life - analogous as a life-changing event to your 'Pathetique' review I suppose, Dave. He made you feel that, for the time he was speaking with you, you were the only person who mattered in his life. I know he was a terribly difficult man who could be quite cruel. His parting shot to us, that group of composers he met that evening in Serenak, as he finished off his bottle of Ballantynes, was that we were all great BUT THAT 'YOU TAKE YOURSELVES TOO SERIOUSLY!' I have never forgotten that! (And you're right about Prince Charles's watercolours...) Regarding LB's 10 best: I'd have added Charles ives' 2nd Symphony - maybe superseded by MTT?

A terrific set of recommendations- I have to admit that it took me time to fully appreciate Bernstein's work since I preferred a more restrained approach to the music (Klemperer, Szell, Reiner.) To your list I would add the 2nd symphony of Ives and his late Mozart symphonies with the Vienna Philharmonic. Many thanks for the terrific series. I am looking forward to soloists and singers. Keep up the great work!

NOT self-indulgent on your part; I really appreciated hearing your full review. I recall the controversy when the recording was released, but find that the more you live with the "Pathetique" and delve into Tchaikovsky's personal/artistic "investment" in it (another plug for Timothy Jackson's sensational analysis in the Cambridge Handbook series), the more you instinctively understand and appreciate what Lenny does with it in this performance. The most amazing thing about it is the way in which Bernstein SUSTAINS the TENSION and emotion throughout the Finale. Every serious admirer of this great work should own this recording. LR PS-- also appreciated your reference to the "impersonal grandeur" of the 3rd Mvt. "Impersonal Hysteria" might also apply, but it IS impersonal and emotionally detached..almost mechanical in its madness. The Finale, though, is another matter.

I remember that review well--it led me to buy the recording. I do very much love Leanord Bernstein, but I couldn't get my ears around that 6th. Now, 30+ years later, I shall try it again. FWIW, one of my favorite LB recordings that is probably not on many people's list is his Brahms 3rd with the New York Philharmonic. As you have noted, it is a very difficult piece for conductors to get right, and Bernstein's approach works very well for me. I also revel in Stanley Drucker's clarinet playing. In any event, you have prompted me to sign up as an insider. It is not that I was loathe to spend the money, it is that I already spend too much time watching your splendid talks.

Back in the day, I was a clerk at a college bookstore in which there were interminably slow periods. I remember reading that review in between customers.

Spot on! The man was an infectious genius -- and everything you say here is true. I listened to this recording recently, as a consequence of having purchased the complete Bernstein/DGG box and, while I was aware he had taken far more deliberate tempos than his early Columbia Records New York Philharmonic recording, reminiscent of his equally convincing Bizet Carmen at the Met/DGG recording, it wasn't until I heard this review that I would ever have guessed the timings are so elongated. The orchestra plays each note with obvious enthusiasm and there is coherence and drama from the first note to the last. By the end, you don't merely feel entertained. Instead, you feel you have witnessed the real-life event of whatever was taking place with the composer at the time. I look greatly forward to the Insider's Video -- AS HE SAYS, FOLKS, it is a bargain. Sign up now. Not only will you save a mint on your recording budget, you will discover works you THINK you already know, thanks to recordings you would never have stumbled upon without this incredible resource. I don't think there is anything on the planet to compare. Thank you, sir, for these magnificent videos -- WE LOVE 'EM!

Lenny was an inspirational conductor of the highest order. He wore his emotions on his sleeve ( baton) when conducting. He was an absolute joy to watch on the podium. He even once described conducting as an Orgasmic experience. RIP, Maestro Bernstein !!!

thank you for all your very helpful and enjoyable videos. have become an insider and bye bye Gramophone.

Is there a review of his fifth for DG? The one paired with Romeo & Juliet. I have listened to both of these since the late 80s. I bought them when they came out.

Dave is actually the real Santa Claus fronting as a music critic.

Another example of Dave being wholesome as well as educational. I love him as a critic and I love him as a person. Keep up the good work Boss.

I'm very happy I have all of these recordings and they are superb indeed! What a genius Bernstein was.

I heard him conduct Tchaik 6 in Central Park with the NY Phil. Very memorable

I bought half the albums on your top ten Bernstein recordings list. (I already had the other half.) Still listening to them all, but they're some of the best leads I've gotten from your reviews. Such good albums!

I had the opportunity to attend two Bernstein concerts while living in Chicago in the 1980's. His Shostakovich 7th with CSO was one of my greatest concert experiences. On the other hand, his Sibelius 5 with visiting Vienna was a big disappointment. Yes, it was wonderfully played, but Sibelius sounded like he came from Bavaria instead of Finland. Just proves that the point that Bernstein did have very personal viewpoints in the music and when he hit the mark it could be overwhelming but when he missed it could be dreadful. But either way he was very committed and nothing he did was a run-thru (unlike what I often experienced with Solti who could use CSO subscription concerts as rehearsals for his East Coast and European tours).

I enthusiastically agree. Please become an insider. Real criticism of classical music is such a rare and precious thing, you can't assume it will always be around at such a professional level. It's a great deal -- far less expensive than Gramophone and minus the puff pieces, besides.

I’ve just done an iPod playlist of Bernstein’s DG recordings of great last symphonies: Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Bruckner, Mahler (Berlin, even with the gaffs), Sibelius, and Stravinsky’s Three Movements with Israel. (I’m awaiting the CD set of his Schumann, recently ordered). The more I listen to him the more I’m amazed at his breadth of repertoire, understanding of the music, and ability to get what he wanted from his orchestras.

I was with Bernstein at his performance of the Pathetique at Ravinia the year this recoding was made. Such greatness…..

Hi David, I have recently purchased the boxes bernstein conducts beethoven with the original jackets during his nypo years. A brilliant thinker , conductor and composer . You r written review is both entertaining, descriptive and gives such wonderful context to the piece.

WHO WOULD "EVER" TURN OFF ONE OF YOUR VIDEOS???? I met Leonard Bernstein for about 15 seconds after a New York Philharmonic concert held at Newark (New Jersey) Symphony Hall back in 1967. Still remember the program if anyone is interested. Mr. B was outside the hall waiting for his limo to pick him up. Told him how much I enjoyed the concert. He just smiled. The only thing I didn't like about Lenny is that he smoked and this is what helped kill him. The world could have gotten at least another 20 more years of the Bernstein genius if he didn't have this habit. Just enjoy what we have from Leonard Bernstein, there will never be another. Fred

Dave, I'll have you know that I went through that list. And, as it turns out, I had all but one of them! So I went ahead and did something about that. I won't say which one, though, because I don't want to spoil anything here. Leonard Bernstein is one of my musical heroes. I can't think of any other musician who has had such an impact on classical music as he has. Not only that, but he was a great humanitarian as well.

Three cheers for Bernstein! He was a conflicted human being, and perhaps that disposed him to express so passionately and so well, in his own compositions and in his conducting, the conflicts of his time, and ours. It may be that his "Young People's Concerts" were designed more for the parents than the children. However, this child was enthralled by them, and Bernstein's clear and compelling teaching was a major influence on my decision to study music in college. I can guess that there wer emany others of my generation who went on to study and perform music because of Lenny's amazing gift at oral, as well as musical, communication. Thanks, Dave, for reading your early review of Bernstein's DG Tchaikovsky 6. I have read many reviews of it, mostly negative, but actually have never heard it. Now I want to. I will not offer a "best ten" list of my own, except to say that such a list would inevitably begin with Bernstein's Columbia/Sony recordings of Mahler 3, 6 & 7 which introduced me to the composer and to which I still return to renew my love for that composer.

I proudly number myself among Lenny's Kids. The Young People's Concerts, which I viewed both on CBS TV and in school music classes (remember them?), had a huge impact on me, and played a sizeable role in my classical conversion -- there's probably a law against such conversion now, but I remain eternally grateful. As I matured as a listener, I retained full admiration for LB's totally committed performances, even when he went to extremes. And I love how he loved the pop and jazz I also love -- that's a lot of love, which he had in overflowing abundance. God bless Leonard Bernstein.

Another enjoyable and informative installment in this wonderful weekly series. I especially liked this because my musical education was engendered by Bernstein’s Young Peoples Concerts and subsequent listening to his NYPO recordings. I concur with your list and your comments. Anxious to see 10 best lists for the likes of Szell, Maazel, Previn, Abbado, and Jansons.

Hallo Herr Hurwitz,ein Gesundes Neues Jahr und ich hoffe es geht Ihnen gut,ich habe 300 LPs und CDs aber nur wenige Bernstein Aufnahmen,ich liebe den Sound der New Yorker aus den 50er und frühen 60er Jahren bevor sie ins Lincoln Center zogen und die Akkustikprobleme begannen,i love Mitropoulos aber lieben kann ich Bernstein nicht,ich mag aber seine 6.Beethoven mit New York Philharmonic von 1963,kraftvoll und robust gespielt aber im 2.Satz kommt dann die Wärme.

Thanks to reissues and box sets it's not unusual to find any given Bernstein recording on Sony three or six times in my overflow room.Bernstein was an irresistible talent, intellect and personalty. With this talk I've finally become a Classics Today Insider, and having 9 1/2 of these top ten recordings, just ordered that last (for now) crucial 2-CD set.

After watching yesterday's video about Ruth Slenczynska and this video, I've wondered about something that you might find as an interesting subject to tackle. It has to with classical musicians (Instrumentalists, singers, composers, conductors, ...critics?) and how they navigated their art during their autumnal years. I would be interested in learning about the output that seasoned professionals produced if they were fortunate to live long lives. Was the majority of it waning in the final years while paling in comparison to earlier triumphs? Or are there more often inspirational examples of well cultivated music making with an understanding that only comes with maturity? Would a "Twilight of the Musical Gods" series be something you'd be interested in? I would love to hear and learn from the many examples you must certainly possess. Thank you for continuing to put out these wonderful videos!

Bernstein said somewhere that his greatest achievement on disc was conducting an orchestral arrangement of Beethoven’s C sharp minor string quartet.

I remember reading that review when it was new - the lines about Tchaikovsky taking his own life and other renditions sounding positively glib by comparison are truly illuminating.

Mr. Hurwitz, You are the best music critic of all time, certainly the best I ever encountered. La ragione? You are a superlative MUSICIAN!