Claudio Abbado: The Last Concert

Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra

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Claudio Abbado: The Last Concert Review

by James Manheim

This sumptuous package does not quite deliver what it advertises: the enclosed program, with Blu-ray video disc, was recorded over three nights at the Philharmonie in Berlin. It does, however, provide a fitting close to the career of Claudio Abbado, conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic from 1990 until May of 2013, when the music here was recorded. The lengthy booklet is almost worth the price of admission by itself, containing cogent reflections regarding how Abbado's regime differed from that of his autocratic predecessor, Herbert von Karajan, as well as a delightful survey of the shifting relationship between Felix Mendelssohn and Hector Berlioz, the composers of the two works on the program. The pairing of the music from Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream (the overture plus excerpts from the incidental music) and Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique is unusual but makes brilliant sense in terms of capturing diverse currents of Romantic music, and the 80-year-old Abbado was, true to form, finding new things in both works. Sample especially the "March to the Scaffold" from the Symphonie Fantastique (CD two, track four), where Abbado eschews the foot-tapping forward rhythms generally associated with the piece in favor of a more tumultuous reading that only initially seems less intense. In a nutshell, he diverts the listener's attention toward the inner state of Berlioz's protagonist rather than toward the external scene. The Symphonie Fantastique is dark and youthfully overwrought in general, and it's marvelous. There are also many fine moments in the Mendelssohn, where Abbado did not let the work's overfamiliarity worry him in the least; the gossamer overture got the concert off to a strong start, and it never really declined. The sound on the CD version is entirely clear, and available audiophile downloads promise an even richer experience. Strongly recommended.

Track Listing - Disc 1

Title/Composer Performer Time Stream
Ein Sommernachtstraum Op. 61 (Excerpts)
1
Overture, Op. 21: Allegro di molto - Poco ritenuto
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 12:04 SpotifyAmazon
2
No. 1 Scherzo: Allegro vivace
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 04:47 SpotifyAmazon
3
No. 3 Song with Chorus (Lied mit Chor): You spotted snakes with double tongue. Allegro ma non troppo
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 04:14 SpotifyAmazon
4
No. 5 Intermezzo: Allegro appassionato - Allegro molto comodo
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 03:58 SpotifyAmazon
5
No. 7 Notturno: Andante tranquillo
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 05:45 SpotifyAmazon
6
No. 9 Wedding March [Hochzeitsmarsch]: Allegro vivace
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 04:55 SpotifyAmazon
7
No. 13 Finale: Through this house give glimmering light. Allegro di molto
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 04:27 SpotifyAmazon

Track Listing - Disc 2

Title/Composer Performer Time Stream
Symphonie fantastique Op. 14
1
1. Rêveries - Passions. Largo - Allegro agitato e appassionato assai - Religiosamente
Hector Berlioz
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 15:51 SpotifyAmazon
2
2. Un bal. Valse. Allegro non troppo
Hector Berlioz
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 06:44 SpotifyAmazon
3
3. Scène aux champs. Adagio
Hector Berlioz
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 16:06 SpotifyAmazon
4
4. Marche au supplice. Allegretto non troppo
Hector Berlioz
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 06:46 SpotifyAmazon
5
5. Songe d'une nuit du Sabbat - Dies Irae - Ronde du Sabbat - Dies Irae et Ronde du Sabbat ensemble. Larghetto - Allegro
Hector Berlioz
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 10:18 SpotifyAmazon

Track Listing - Disc 3

Title/Composer Performer Time Stream
Ein Sommernachtstraum Op. 61 (Excerpts)
1
Overture, Op. 21: Allegro di molto - Poco ritenuto
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 12:06 SpotifyAmazon
2
No. 1 Scherzo: Allegro vivace
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 04:47 SpotifyAmazon
3
No. 3 Song with Chorus (Lied mit Chor): You spotted snakes with double tongue. Allegro ma non troppo
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 04:14 SpotifyAmazon
4
No. 5 Intermezzo: Allegro appassionato - Allegro molto comodo
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 03:59 SpotifyAmazon
5
No. 7 Notturno: Andante tranquillo
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 05:46 SpotifyAmazon
6
No. 9 Wedding March [Hochzeitsmarsch]: Allegro vivace
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 04:56 SpotifyAmazon
7
No. 13 Finale: Through this house give glimmering light. Allegro di molto
Felix Mendelssohn
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 04:26 SpotifyAmazon
Symphonie fantastique Op. 14
8
1. Rêveries - Passions. Largo - Allegro agitato e appassionato assai - Religiosamente
Hector Berlioz
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 15:15 SpotifyAmazon
9
2. Un bal. Valse. Allegro non troppo
Hector Berlioz
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 06:45 SpotifyAmazon
10
3. Scène aux champs. Adagio
Hector Berlioz
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 16:05 SpotifyAmazon
11
4. Marche au supplice. Allegretto non troppo
Hector Berlioz
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 06:48 SpotifyAmazon
12
5. Songe d'une nuit du Sabbat - Dies Irae - Ronde du Sabbat - Dies Irae et Ronde du Sabbat ensemble. Larghetto - Allegro
Hector Berlioz
Claudio Abbado / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 10:17 SpotifyAmazon
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Claudio Abbado: The Last Concert

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