David Zinman, Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich - Johannes Brahms: Symphonies Nos. 1-4 (2011)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue & Log) ~ 667 Mb | Total time: 02:45:19 | Scans included
Classical | Label: RCA | # 88697 93349 2 | Recorded: 2010
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue & Log) ~ 667 Mb | Total time: 02:45:19 | Scans included
Classical | Label: RCA | # 88697 93349 2 | Recorded: 2010
After his highly variable Mahler cycle, it’s very good to be able to report that David Zinman is back in top form for Brahms. For the most part, these are splendid performances, beautifully played and recorded. The very opening of the First symphony sets the tone: rich, emphatic, but not exaggerated. Textures are clear, bass lines unusually audible. Zinman handles some of Brahms’ most intransigent bits of orchestration, such as the opening of the Third symphony, with its perpetually syncopated accompaniment, with effortless mastery. The inner movements of all four symphonies are without exception perfectly paced, including the slow movements of the Second and Fourth symphonies.