Now that interest is dying out in buying new recordings
(how many versions of the Beethoven or indeed any symphony cycle can
the general public want or need?), attention has turned sharply to what
is usually titled ‘Classic’ recordings. These almost always include
an artist – be it soloist or conductor – now dead, and the marketing
pitch is somewhere along the lines of:
‘legendary…his artistry lives on through modern technology…
There are two questions I feel obliged to ask of these
recordings. Firstly, has it worked? The real problem with re-mastering
is that – with some notable exceptions – it either has the effect of
making any recording sound acoustically dead, as though it were recorded
in a broom cupboard, or it just has no effect on sound whatsoever, it
sounds just as scratched and uneven in quality, it just takes up less
storage space.
The other question that must stand is ‘Why has this
been done?’ Is making these recordings available of benefit to the public,
or is it a quick and cheap way to make a bit of money?
For all the respect that I have for the artists of
the early twentieth century, I am not going to buy a CD of Klemperer,
just because it is Klemperer just as I would not buy a CD of Rattle
now, just because it is Rattle. Putting a famous name on the front cover
isn’t enough to make a good CD, yet many of these ‘Classic’ recordings
rely on just that. The actual music played is treated as irrelevant,
when in fact it is the key to a good ‘Classic’ recording.
Here, Beecham is getting the treatment. He’s a good
choice – people not only know the name but usually a couple of anecdotes
about the conductor to go with it. However, the BBC have arguably approached
this with some intelligence, having pulled out two works both popular
and well-associated with Beecham: Beethoven’s and Brahms’ second symphonies.
Out of all the Beethoven symphonies, it was the second and seventh that
he conducted most frequently, whilst his love of Brahms’ second is well
recorded.
There is no real question as to whether it is any good
– it is Beecham after all – so a fantastic rendition of both works is
practically guaranteed – and delivered. The Brahms and Beethoven are
indeed outstanding. More importantly perhaps for the consumer, the remastering
is of high standard, although there is some (forgivable) deadening of
tone and this CD is to my mind one of the exceptions to the rule of
‘Classic’ releases.
Christa Norton
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/Sir
Thomas Beecham