Beethoven Famous Overtures

• Amazon Sales Rank: #57311 in Music
• Released on: 2003-05-13
• Number of discs: 2
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Dimensions: .26 pounds

Beethoven Famous Overtures 2 Pic

Beethoven Famous Overtures 2 Image

Beethoven Famous Overtures 2 Pic

Beethoven Famous Overtures 2 Image

Beethoven Famous Overtures 2 Photo

Beethoven Famous Overtures 2 Picture

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful.
Dramatic Overture Collection
By dv_forever
This Karajan collection of famous overtures would be a great gift to a classical newbie. Heck, it would be just fine for someone like me who’s known all this music for years and wants a comprehensive set played by the supreme Berlin Philharmonic under the direction of their biggest superstar conductor. No wonder I bought it!

We have everything from Mozart’s Die Zauberflote to Beethoven’s Egmont and Coriolan to Mendelssohn’s Fingal’s Cave to Wagner’s majestic Prelude to Parsifal. Every selection is a winner.

The Weber and Rossini selections are particular highlights. If you want the top three Weber overtures, this could be the finest collection on the market. Rossini is represented by La Gazza Ladra and William Tell. These dramatic, urgent performances supersede Abbado, Giulini and the famous Fritz Reiner collection. Reiner is very hard driven and mechanical. On the other hand, Karajan knows when to charm the ear and when to lift the locomotive ( BPO ) off the rails. It’s great fun! I wish Karajan’s version of The Barber of Seville overture was on here but unfortunately they couldn’t squeeze it in. Verdi’s famous La Forza del Destino receives an outstanding rendition.

There are lighter pieces too. Verdi’s La Traviata prelude, some Suppe, Mascagni and the delightful Offenbach. Karajan could play it light with Offenbach and Mascagni as well as storm the heavens via the likes of the Beethoven and Bruckner symphonies. Wonderful collection for anyone on the lookout for overtures. There is something here to please anybody, from the die-hard fanatic collector to new listeners not very familiar with classical music.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful.
Great Light Classical By Karajan!!
By Dick Buckley
It goes without saying that Karajan at his best was a great conductor of serious classical music. Here he turns to lighter fare with the same masterful results. His renditions of the overtures included in this two disc set are magnificent. He includes many of the old favorites as well as some that you hear less often, and all are carried off with terrific aplomb and artistry.

The Mozart and Beethoven overtures featured are carried off with excitement and fury. They certainly rank up there with Reiner’s and other’s offerings with which I am familiar. He and the orchestra seem to have a real spring in their step, as though they are loving what they are doing.

The Weber offerings, though less commonly heard, are presented with the same verve and character. I could go on listing all of the selections contained here, because the same is true of all of them. I do an injustice to the rest by not listing each one and raving about it, but I’m sure that you get the point.

This is an outstanding set of CD’s, and at the two for one price, you do yourself a disservice if you do not leap at it while it is still available. A+++++

See all 2 customer reviews…