# Favorite recordings of overtures



## EvaBaron (Jan 3, 2022)

I noticed almost no one ever talks about this which is very understandable since an overture is often a very small part of an opera. And often the overtures that aren't part of an opera are included in the symphony cycle of that composer. So people will usually decide which cycle they like the most based on the performances of the symphonies, and then they will listen to the overture recordings in that favorite symphony cycle box. Of course recordings of opera's get talked about all the time and one of the biggest deciding factors in opera recordings is obviously the quality of the singing. But today we will treat overtures like alone standing, small orchestral pieces and I would like to know your favorite alone standing recordings. Of course the recording can also be attached to an opera, but remember, whether you like the rest of the recording of the opera doesn't matter in this situation. I will begin
Rossini: William Tell overture, Karajan/BPO
Mozart: Don Giovanni overture, Marriner/ASMF
Beethoven: Egmont overture, Fricsay/BPO
Brahms: Tragic overture, Jochum/LSO


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## wkasimer (Jun 5, 2017)

Some of my other favorites:

Mendelssohn: The Hebrides
Mendelssohn: Ruy Blas
Shostakovich: Festive Overture
Glinka: Ruslan and Ludmila
Beethoven: Coriolan

I really don't have particular favorite recordings, except for Bernstein's Ruy Blas.

This CD is a great collection:


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## Kreisler jr (Apr 21, 2021)

Without operas:
Mendelssohn: Hebrides (Maag, but it is a magical piece, one of Mendelssohn's best, hard to ruin)
Beethoven: Consecration of the House/Weihe des Hauses (Bernstein, Klemperer)
Beethoven: Coriolan (Furtwängler, Reiner)

from operas
Nicolai: Merry Wives of Windsor (Kleiber in one of his Vienna NYD, this used to be more popular)
Smetana: The bartered Bride (Ancerl)
Bernstein: Candide (like all Rossini ouvertures in a nutshell)


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## Josquin13 (Nov 7, 2017)

Here are my 10(+) favorite overtures, along with links to some of the recordings that I most reach for,

1. Beethoven: Consecration of the House, or "Die Weihe des Hauses", which along with the 7th Symphony are among Beethoven's most Handel influenced works (who was his favorite composer, & here it shows). Conductor Jos van Immerseel astutely coupled this overture with his recording of the 7th Symphony in his Beethoven 1-9 cycle, and it's fascinating to hear the two works together played on authentic Viennese horns,






2. Beethoven, Coriolan Overture. Both of Eugen Jochum's two recordings, with the London Symphony Orchestra & the Concertgebouw Orchestra nail this overture:






3. Mozart, the complete Overtures, performed by the Staatskapelle Dresden, conducted by Sir Colin Davis on RCA. I've also liked & may even prefer the Mozart Overture recordings that this great Mozart orchestra made with conductor Otmar Suitner; although those performances may be extracted from his Dresden opera recordings of the same, I'm not sure):






4. Monteverdi, Orfeo--this may well be my favorite overture of all!! It's foot stomping brilliance never fails to put a smile on my face, especially when it is performed by Ensemble Elyma, conducted by Gabriel Garrido:






5. Mendelssohn--The Hebrides, or Fingal's Cave Overture, which is one of the most mysterious & unusual looking places on earth. Evidently, Mendelssohn was musically inspired by the strange echoes that he heard in the cave. Not surprisingly, the island has attracted artists & poets, too: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fingal's_Cave. I like Claudio Abbado's recording with the London Symphony Orchestra, as well as Kurt Masur's with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra:

Abbado:





6. Brahms, Academic Festival Overture, this is one of the few late Bernstein DG recordings that I like: Brahms: Academic Festival Overture - Leonard Bernstein, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. Although Eugen Jochum is wonderful in this work, too, & generally I prefer Jochum to Bernstein in Brahms: Johannes Brahms: Academic Festival Overture, Op. 80. LPO, Eugen Jochum. Rec. 1976.

7. Mendelssohn, A Midsummer Night's Dream Overture: for me, conductor Wilhelm Furtwangler & his Berlin Philharmonic remain unsurpassed in this music, despite the older sound:

Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night's Dream Overture (Furtwangler)

8. Beethoven, "Egmont" Overture. Eugen Jochum & the LSO once again make as good a choice as any in this music, in my opinion:

Beethoven: Overture to the incidenntal music “Egmont”, Op. 84. LSO, Eugen Jochum. Rec. 1977

9. Beethoven, Overture to Fidelio. Here I like Kurt Masur & the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra's riveting 1981 digital account from their complete Eurodisc recording of the opera; which, IMO, is one of Masur's finest Beethoven recordings (along with his Beethoven 5th in New York on Teldec, & his Beethoven 1st & 4ths in Leipzig): Fidelio, Op. 72: Overture

10. Handel--I especially like Handel's overtures to the Music for the Royal Fireworks & the Water Music Suites 1-3:

Handel: Music For The Royal Fireworks, HWV351 (1749) - Overture

But since those overtures may not count for this thread, I'll pick the Overture to his brilliant, but lesser known opera, Amadigi Di Gauli, as performed by Al Ayre Español, conducted by Eduardo Lopez Banzo (though Minkowski's recording is excellent, too):

Handel - Amadigi Di Gaula - Overture; Gavotta - Al Ayre Espanol & Eduardo Lopez Banzo

Of course, I could have easily picked number of other Handel overtures, too, such as to Ariodante, Samson, Serse, & Tamerlano, etc.: Tamerlano - Act 1: Overture , etc.). In regards to Ariodante, which is one of his better operas, IMO, I've most liked the recordings by conductors Nicholas McGegan, William Christie, & Raymond Leppard:

Ariodante: Act 1. Overture: Largo, Allegro
HANDEL Ariodante / William Christie
Handel: Ariodante HWV 33 - Overture: Allegro - Adagio

Edit: Oh my, I just realized that I completely forgot about Wagner, whose Act I Overtures to his operas Tristan und Isolde, Lohengrin, & Parsifal are special favorites of mine, along with the opening overture to Das Rheingold from the Ring cycle:









Richard Wagner "Tristan und Isolde" - Prelude | Carlos Ludwig Kleiber


Richard Wagner - Tristan and Isolde, Opera, WWV 90. Act I. PreludeStaatskapelle Dresden, Carlos Ludwig Kleiber. Deutsche Grammophon, 1982.Act I. Prelude http...




www.youtube.com












Wagner "Lohengrin" Windgassen -- Nilsson -- Varnay -- Uhde -- Eugen Jochum- Bayreuth 54


Lohengrin: Wolfgang WindgassenElsa: Birgit NilssonOrtrud: Astrid VarnayFriedrich von Telramund: Hermann UhdeKönig Heinrich: Theo AdamDer Heerrufer des Königs...




www.youtube.com












Wagner - Lohengrin, Prelude, Bridal Chorus / Synopsis + New Mastering (Cent. rec. : Rudolf Kempe)


Wilhelm Richard Wagner (1813-1883) - Lohengrin Opera. *Click to activate the English subtitles for the presentation* (00:00-00:38)Prelude (00:00)Act 1*Click ...




www.youtube.com












Wagner - Parsifal Vorspiel - BRSO / Jochum


Richard WagnerParsifal - Erster Aufzug - VorspielSymphonieorchester des Bayerischen RundfunksEugen JochumStudio recording, Munich, 12-14.XII.1957




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R.Wagner: Parsifal - Vorspiel (Reginald Goodall, 8/5/1971)


Live recording, Royal Opera House, Covent GardenLondon-Video Upload powered by https://www.TunesToTube.com




www.youtube.com












Wagner: Parsifal, WWV 111 - Prelude


Provided to YouTube by Universal Music GroupWagner: Parsifal, WWV 111 - Prelude · Hans Knappertsbusch · Wiener PhilharmonikerWagner: Rienzi Overture; Siegfri...




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WAGNER DAS RHEINGOLD JANOWSKI 1980







www.youtube.com


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## Becca (Feb 5, 2015)

One that I particularly liked when much, much younger...










And a couple of Klemperer collections...


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## Animal the Drummer (Nov 14, 2015)

I have a much-loved LP of Wagner overtures and preludes played by the Czech Philharmonic under Franz Konwitschny. I suspect it was originally issued by Supraphon but I have the Classics for Pleasure pressing.


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## Kreisler jr (Apr 21, 2021)

That Paray Mercury LP was combined/re-shuffled with Suppé on CD (or maybe there is another disc with the Offenbach remainder) 
Franz von Suppé is roughly between Rossini and Joh. Strauss... brilliant and melodic and worth trying for anyone who likes "lighter" classical music (several of them used to be very popular "pops" items). From Offenbach, I'd also recommend "Die Rheinnixen" (Les fées du Rhin).


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## Coach G (Apr 22, 2020)

My favorite overtures:

1. Tchaikovsky: 1812 (Arthur Feidler/Boston Pops)
2. Rimsky-Korsakov: Russian Easter (Arthur Feidler/Boston Pops)
3. Beethoven: Coriolan (Charles Munch/Boston Symphony)
4. Wagner: Tannhauser (Herbert Von Karajan/Vienna Philharmonic)
5. Rossini: Barber of Seville (Arturo Toscanini/NBC Symphony)
6. Rossini: William Tell (Arturo Toscanini/NBC Symphony)
7. Rossini: Thieving Magpie (Arturo Toscanini/NBC Symphony)
8. Rossini: Italian Girl in Algiers (Arturo Toscanini/NBC Symphony)
9. Shostakovich: Festive (Arthur Feidler/Boston Pops)
10. Bernstein: Candide (Leonard Bernstein/New York Philharmonic)


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