The listening public should never dismiss Ormandy...if you do he will surprise you with a fantastic performance. Ormandy was just a 1st class musician that would always give you a solid, respectful, musical product. We could sure use more conductors like him today 👍
Ok, rehearing what Dave said so beautifully and eloquently, I have to just pipe up and say: BOY, IS HE RIGHT ABOUT THE BALANCES & COLOR of ormandy's Dvorak 7th. Spot on Dave you usually are frankly but this time you really really hit the nail on the head. And more importantly you're right what great masterpieces of music these two works are !! BEAUTIFUL
I have this on an RCA Japan CD and love it for its energetic performance, the wonderful playing of the Orchestra, and the warm and dynamic sound. Having been the youngest pupil admitted to the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest and given a command performance on violin for good old Emperor Franz Josef, this music was certainly a living thing for him, as it was for Reiner, Szell, etc.
I totally agree with Dave on this recording, and on Ormandy in general. Harris Goldsmith's review in the November 1980 issue of High Fidelity (noted elsewhere here) concluded by saying "If Ormandy has ever made a finer record, I haven't heard it." I love the string portamentos, especially in the third movement of the 8th. Always tastefully done - and good taste was an essential part of Ormandy's art. I checked the ArkivMusic site and apparently this is available from them.
I really wasn't expecting that! Hell, I never knew this particular recording existed. Given your enthusiasm Dave, you've got me on the hunt for this Dvorak Symphony 7 & 8. Thanks for the recommendation and take care!
My parents still have the lp of Ormandy and Philly in the New World. That was the record that made me love symphonies. Don't really know the 7th and 8th Ormandy recordings, so I have a homework listening assignment. My go to has been Dohnanyi and Cleveland, which I think are extraordinary.
Have owned this CD for ~ 15 years (an Arkiv mastering which plays fine for me) and it is everything that Dave and others here have praised about it. For me, No. 8 comes off even a bit better than No. 7. Beautifully played and very well paced. Gee, I really do miss hearing Philly live in its prime during Ormandy's stewardship.
Great performances/recordings! I lean to 7 over 8 for its slow movement. Ormandy's RCA 9 (There was a remastered "blue spec" version too) is also fabulous! thank you.
Dave is of course characteristically both brilliant and courageous in praising this unusual performance of the great Eugene Ormandy . To put it in proverbial perspective, when compared to George Szell's version ( who does it extremely well but characteristically overdriven), the ormandy interpretation is far more colorful and typically more human
I bought this not too long ago, a warning that the current copy I got is an Archiv CD-R in case your CD player struggles to play those like mine does. Actually all my hifi brand CD/SACD players seem to have issues with certain or all CD-Rs but my much cheaper universal player can play them.
The listening public should never dismiss Ormandy...if you do he will surprise you with a fantastic performance.
Ormandy was just a 1st class musician that would always give you a solid, respectful, musical product.
We could sure use more conductors like him today 👍
Ok, rehearing what Dave said so beautifully and eloquently, I have to just pipe up and say:
BOY, IS HE RIGHT ABOUT THE BALANCES & COLOR of ormandy's Dvorak 7th.
Spot on Dave you usually are frankly but this time you really really hit the nail on the head.
And more importantly you're right what great masterpieces of music these two works are !!
BEAUTIFUL
I have this on an RCA Japan CD and love it for its energetic performance, the wonderful playing of the Orchestra, and the warm and dynamic sound.
Having been the youngest pupil admitted to the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest and given a command performance on violin for good old Emperor Franz Josef, this music was certainly a living thing for him, as it was for Reiner, Szell, etc.
I totally agree with Dave on this recording, and on Ormandy in general. Harris Goldsmith's review in the November 1980 issue of High Fidelity (noted elsewhere here) concluded by saying "If Ormandy has ever made a finer record, I haven't heard it." I love the string portamentos, especially in the third movement of the 8th. Always tastefully done - and good taste was an essential part of Ormandy's art. I checked the ArkivMusic site and apparently this is available from them.
I really wasn't expecting that! Hell, I never knew this particular recording existed. Given your enthusiasm Dave, you've got me on the hunt for this Dvorak Symphony 7 & 8. Thanks for the recommendation and take care!
I'm not the greatest at finding things online but I can't find this recording anywhere. Not to buy or to stream on Idagio.
@@damianjb1I got mine from HMV Japan online. I agree, not available anywhere else for now
As an Ormandy fan since the early 1960's, I couldn't agree more.
My parents still have the lp of Ormandy and Philly in the New World. That was the record that made me love symphonies. Don't really know the 7th and 8th Ormandy recordings, so I have a homework listening assignment. My go to has been Dohnanyi and Cleveland, which I think are extraordinary.
The late Harris Goldsmith also praised the 7th recording, 40 years ago, in the original LP issue.
Never heard of it! And neither can find this anywhere... I hope it gets streamable soon!
Have owned this CD for ~ 15 years (an Arkiv mastering which plays fine for me) and it is everything that Dave and others here have praised about it. For me, No. 8 comes off even a bit better than No. 7. Beautifully played and very well paced. Gee, I really do miss hearing Philly live in its prime during Ormandy's stewardship.
Great performances/recordings! I lean to 7 over 8 for its slow movement. Ormandy's RCA 9 (There was a remastered "blue spec" version too) is also fabulous! thank you.
Nice to know, even if the recording is as available today as a rock on Mars.
I need someone to upload this version somewhere. Can't find it. We're playing it next semester.
Looked high and low for this recording, and it simply doesn't exist out there for streaming. Anyone have any ideas?
not available on apple music, just the 9th
Yeah a Columbia Ormandy box set is due out next February…so much is currently not available
Dave is of course characteristically both brilliant and courageous in praising this unusual performance of the great Eugene Ormandy .
To put it in proverbial perspective, when compared to George Szell's version ( who does it extremely well but characteristically overdriven), the ormandy interpretation is far more colorful and typically more human
I wonder if this recording is going to be in the new Ormandy box
No.
I assume that there will be a Sony/RCA/Ormandy box in the the not too distant future since Sony is releasing everything else.
I bought this not too long ago, a warning that the current copy I got is an Archiv CD-R in case your CD player struggles to play those like mine does. Actually all my hifi brand CD/SACD players seem to have issues with certain or all CD-Rs but my much cheaper universal player can play them.
Discogs doesn't even seem to know of this CD. Individual vinyl, yes, but not this CD.
Weird, this recording is not on idagio.