Symphonies Nos. 1-9

Ludwig van Beethoven

Tonhalle Orchestra of Zurich (David Zinman, cond.)

album cover

The Mother Lode of Symphonic Music

Here, Beethoven flies. Literally. Conductor David Zinman approaches this mighty cycle of nine symphonies by following a newly researched edition of the scores (the so-called Bärenreiter version), and adhering to the tempo markings the composer intended. This turns out to be a touch radical: Over many decades of Beethoven interpretation, a consensus has taken hold that insists on slow tempos, which can impose a heft and a solemnity that isn't always in the score. Zinman says booyah to all that, and goes the other way: Passages known for their relative stability (the opening movement of the Sixth Symphony, the Turkish march in the fourth movement of the Ninth) move more freely and reach more dizzying heights. What once could seem plodding now moves at a freer, and often more fanciful, gait.

It's not Beethoven remixed, but it's close, and whether you own a more traditional reading of the cycle or are just beginning to explore this trove of symphonic amazingness, this version merits attention. Zinman and the members of the (smallish) Tonhalle Orchestra of Zurich sound like they're rediscovering these pieces every step of the way. There's a real involvement in the rendering, a commitment to framing Beethoven so that his enormous riches reveal themselves in new ways. This renegade spirit prevails throughout the cycle, from the spry early works that showcase the orchestra's uncommon agility, through the later ones that gently but unmistakably magnify the glory of Beethoven's motifs. These performances benefit from Zinman's uniformly light approach: By the last few symphonies, which positively glow, it's hard to believe that these works were dismissed as inferior during Beethoven's life.

The pieces themselves are, of course, awesome, endlessly wondrous achievements. The first two show Beethoven's mastery of the rules governing orchestral composition, while the third, the stirring "Eroica," finds him exploding that convention; the piece is twice as long as most orchestral works of its time, and contains an outpouring of valiant, heights-scaling melodies. Number 4, written for a smallish orchestra, is all summery lightness. The Fifth is famous for that inescapable four-note opening hook, but is equally significant for its brilliant development passages. The "Pastorale" Sixth Symphony is a series of nature scenes (the final movement, portraying a vigorous storm, is rendered torridly here), and is often cited as a precursor to impressionism. The Seventh was once described by Richard Wagner as "the apotheosis of dance itself." The Eighth is regarded as Beethoven's "difficult" symphony, and is the least performed of the cycle, and yet contains dazzling passages. The Ninth marks the first time a composer integrated a full chorus into an orchestra; its final "Ode to Joy" offers glorious, utopia-seeking sound as the path to peace and brotherhood.

Heard in chronological order, they document an artistic and emotional arc that encompasses nearly a quarter century (1800–1824) from the composer's early days as a virtuoso to his final inward years as a hearing-impaired eccentric. To recklessly oversimplify this progression: Along the way lies political jubilation (No. 3), the torment and disillusionment brought by the onset of deafness (No. 5), love of nature (No. 6), love of dance (No. 7), and love of mankind (No. 9). The recordings in this book are not ranked—competition has no place in music. Still, some works are more important than others. The Beethoven symphonies are to music what the American Revolution was to world history, a necessary seismic shift from which there was no turning back.

Genre: Classical
Released: 1999, Arte Nova
Key Tracks: Symphony No. 3: fourth movement. Symphony No. 5: first movement. Symphony No. 9.
Another Interpretation: Berlin Philharmonic (Herbert von Karajan, cond., 1963); NBC Symphony (Arturo Toscanini, cond.; circa 1950).
Catalog Choice: Violin Concerto, Philharmonia Orchestra
Next Stop: Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 9
After That: Miles Davis: Kind of Blue
Book Pages: 70–71