This morning’s conductor of Anton Bruckner’s “Symphony of Pauses” (Symphony No. 2 in C Minor, WAB 102) is Eugen Jochum (1902-1987).
I first encountered Mr. Jochum on Day 6 of my 144-day journey.
I first listened to his conducting of the Berliner Philharmoniker orchestra (what I’m hearing right now) on Day 6, which was October 8th for all of you keeping score.
Here are the objective aspects of today’s listening fare:
Bruckner’s Symphony No. 2 in C Minor, composed in 1872
Eugen Jochum conducts
Berliner Philharmoniker plays
The version used is the 1875/76 version, edited by Leopold Nowak
The symphony clocks in at 51.16
This was recorded in 1966, Munchen Herkules-Saal, Germany
Jochum was 64 when he conducted it
Bruckner was 48 when he composed it
It was released on the Deutsche Grammophon (DG) Record Label
Bruckner wrote his symphonies in four parts. The time breakdown of this one (Symphony No. 2 in C Minor, 1875-76 Nowak Edition), from this particular conductor (Jochum) and this particular orchestra (Berliner Philharmoniker) is as follows:
Moderato………….17:57
Andante…………….14:05
Scherzo……………….6:37
Finale…………………13:17
Total: 51:16
Okay. Now for the subjective aspects to this morning’s listening:
My Rating:
Recording quality: 5 (slight tape hiss, some ambient movements)
Overall musicianship: 5
CD liner notes: 5 (the best of all the box sets I have – extensive essay from Jochum)
How does this make me feel: 5
This, to me, is how Bruckner’s Symphony No. 2 in C Minor ought to sound. It’s a big, clear, warm, powerful recording that stirs me to the soul.
Even the seemingly slightly slowed pizzicato and French horn melody in Movement II (Andante) cannot detract from the swelling beauty that the melody becomes when it’s taken up by the whole orchestra around the 7:00 mark.
It’s Movement II by which I judge a conductor/orchestra playing Bruckner’s Second Symphony. It was that for the First Symphony, too. But this time, even more so.
Overall, this DG box set of Jochum conducting the Berliner Philharmoniker is remarkable.
Let’s see if the quality remains for the next seven symphonies.