PHILADELPHIA Orch LP ML 4544 TCHAIKOVSKY PATHETIQUE #6 R VG C VG (LP-4255)

Chandos ( January 20, 1998 ), Genre: Classical

IDI ( November 04, 2008 ), Genre: Classical

Sometimes the sound quality of a recording is less important than the performance. That's the case with these two classics of the phonograph, recorded in 1938. Since its first publication, Furtwängler's "Pathétique" has been recognized as a unique achievement, bringing out the full emotional quality of the music without ever veering off into sentimentality or eccentricity. It's one of those performances when everything goes right, amazing in the continuity of its effect, especially since it was recorded in four-minute takes on 78 rpm discs. The Wagner performance is no less remarkable. Ideally we might wish for more detailed, less richly rounded sound quality, but restorer Mark Obert-Thorn has given us better sound than these recordings have exhibited before, and it's fascinating to read his brief comments and the number of copies of each record he used (five!) If you love this music, no matter what other performances you've heard, you will still find something new and valuable in this CD, which is worth much more than it costs. --Leslie Gerber

JVC XRCD

Release Date: March 13, 2001

The Philadelphia Orchestra and Music Director Christoph Eschenbach continue a celebrated series of hybrid SACD recordings with their third Tchaikovsky release to combine well-known symphonic works and rarely encountered piano music. One of Tchaikovsky's most important and best-selling orchestral works, the Symphony No. 6 "Pathétique" was composed in the last year of his life (1893), and is forever associated with the tragedy of his untimely death. Filling out the recording, Eschenbach performs on piano the seldomheard Dumka (Scenes from a Russian Village), making this unusual coupling a unique release. The Philadelphia Orchestra has always had a special relationship with the music of Tchaikovsky, extending back to its earliest days under such legendary maestros as Stokowski and Ormandy. The magic is as strong as ever in their partnership with Christoph Eschenbach. Enthusiastic press greeted the release of their Tchaikovsky Fourth and Fifth Symphonies, each coupled with half of the piano cycle The magnificent "Philadelphia Sound" in concert is captured as never before using the finest SACD recording technology, for a product that can be played back in SACD surround, SACD stereo or CD stereo. The six previous hybrid SACD releases by the "formidable Ondine-Eschenbach-Philadelphia partnership" (Gramophone)which began in 2005, have been honored with accolades including BBC Music Magazine's Disc of the Month, Gramophone's "Editor's Choice, " The New York Times' "Top Ten Recordings of the Year, " and the German Record Critics' Award, among others.

The Philadelphia Orchestra and Music Director Christoph Eschenbach continue a celebrated series of hybrid SACD recordings with their third Tchaikovsky release to combine well-known symphonic works and rarely encountered piano music. One of Tchaikovsky's most important and best-selling orchestral works, the Symphony No. 6 "Pathétique" was composed in the last year of his life (1893), and is forever associated with the tragedy of his untimely death. Filling out the recording, Eschenbach performs on piano the seldomheard Dumka (Scenes from a Russian Village), making this unusual coupling a unique release. The Philadelphia Orchestra has always had a special relationship with the music of Tchaikovsky, extending back to its earliest days under such legendary maestros as Stokowski and Ormandy. The magic is as strong as ever in their partnership with Christoph Eschenbach. Enthusiastic press greeted the release of their Tchaikovsky Fourth and Fifth Symphonies, each coupled with half of the piano cycle The magnificent "Philadelphia Sound" in concert is captured as never before using the finest SACD recording technology, for a product that can be played back in SACD surround, SACD stereo or CD stereo. The six previous hybrid SACD releases by the "formidable Ondine-Eschenbach-Philadelphia partnership" (Gramophone)which began in 2005, have been honored with accolades including BBC Music Magazine's Disc of the Month, Gramophone's "Editor's Choice, " The New York Times' "Top Ten Recordings of the Year, " and the German Record Critics' Award, among others.

Tchaikovsky's final symphony has fascinated generations of music lovers since its first performance just over a century ago. Professor Jackson explores sensitively and without prejudice the question of the Pathétique's program and its relation to Tchaikovsky's homosexuality and death. The book covers the work's conception, genesis, and reception, and presents an in-depth analysis of its remarkable formal structure. The reception chapter investigates the Pathétique's impact on Tchaikovsky's younger contemporaries as well as its political interpretation in the twentieth century, especially its transformation into a cultural icon of the Third Reich.

CBS Great Performances, Genre: Classical

Release Date: 2007-10-23, Audio CD, Telarc