Abendroth Recordings ('39-'50)beethoven, Brahms, Schumann: Symphonies

Hermann Abendroth was a fixture on the German music scene for over fifty years and established a reputation as a fine conductor primarily through his efforts in the German and Viennese repertoire, particularly the works of composers such as Beethoven, Brahms, and Schumann. Abendroth was a direct, straightforward musician who scrupulously adhered to the composer's score yet was capable of great expressiveness and lyricism, as evidenced in his performance of Wagner's 'Faust' Overture included in this collection.
Abendroth's forceful style is ideally suited to works such as the Beethoven symphonies offered here: the Third and the Ninth. He demonstrates his ability to establish and maintain a solid rhythmic and harmonic foundation while exercising flexibility in the melodic lines in his expansive accounts of Brahms' Fourth Symphony and Schumann's Fourth as well. Beethoven is again represented through his Fourth Piano Concerto, featuring Wilhelm Kempf in a virtuosic performance with sensitive, fluent accompaniment by Abendroth. The sound quality of these broadcast performances varies greatly, but the well-annotated accompanying booklet contributes to making this a very informative collection.