Wilhelm Furtwängler - Ludwig van Beethoven: Große Fuge - 1/2

[leoooooon0]

to tell the truth, i don't like this version. after all, the reason beethoven wrote a quartet was that he thought quartet was totally different from an orchestra piece. here it was arranged too orchestra, too heavy, too sad. we can not even hear the sunshine, or the belief that beethoven always had.

[beetle1233]

absolutely astonishing!

the grosse fuge is much more powerful when played by an orchestra.

the tonality is much like mahler, especially the sixth "tragic"

(mahler did love this grosse fugue, it probably had influnced his compositions)

and furtwangler, he's amazing, no one conducts beethoven than him (besides beethoven himself of course, but we don't know)

[kuangsu]

Nessuno come LUI ........ incomparabile !!!!!!

[GrauenausderTiefe]

thats a heavy version !

[pugay69]

This is incredible. A juggernaut of sound. It's like a 20 minute continuous male orgasm for orchestra.

[Zeffner]

Wow! This is even better when played by a big orchestra:D

[CaptainBluebear08]

exagerated. german irrationalism.

[TheStockwell]

@CaptainBluebear08 It's a fuge - you don't get any more formal and rational than a fuge.

[CaptainBluebear08]

@TheStockwell

And then they all SOUND alike, right?

[lfreundlich1]

When was it decided that the Grosse Fuge become fully orchestrated rather than be played as a string quartet? And, who did the first transcription?

[TheStockwell]

@lfreundlich1 I'm fairly sure Felix Weingartner started the practice. Mahler transcribed one of the quartets and was roasted for his audacity. Times change. Bernstein used a version by Mitropoulos - I think. Furtwängler did his own arrangement; I've seen his pocket score to the Fuge and he'd penciled in markings left and right.

[RICPOIRIER1]

Superbe interprétation! Il faudrait publier celle de Karajan également...

[isaacdelaconcha]

Que maravilla de interpretación de esta gran obra.

[angelcardona1357]

simplemente perfecta

[debartzen]

Increíble Fürtwangler.Las cuerdas mantienen todo el dramatismo y tensión de la obra.Mayestático.

[GreatPianists]

The maestro is incredible, as always.

However, there is a wartime live recording that surpasses this later one, I think. The tension is just incredible.

[Boycorrupted]

There is also a 1952 recording with the Berlin Philharmonic.

[TheStockwell]

@GreatPianists I'm fairly certain there aren't any wartime recordings of the Grosse Fuge by Furtwangler. According to the catalog I have, there are two recordings from 1952 and the 1954 Salzburg recording. That's it. I only WISH there were a wartime Grosse Fuge!

[atralfalgar]

Wilhelm Furtwängler is amazing ! how dramatic feelings he makes with this breathtaking performance !

[parabat7]

This work was part of the 'last' concert of the BPO in Berlin in late March 1945. A joke really as Fuge can mean flight. This is one of Ludo's last works - Symph 9 is Opus 125, only the 'late quartets' come after this. Brilliant interpretation but if it's Ludwig v. and its under Wilhelm's baton it is always very worthwhile listening to.