# Recordings that never were



## Sudonim (Feb 28, 2013)

I was listening to Bernstein's latter-day take on Mahler 6 earlier today, and I started thinking about other great Mahlerian conductors - Jascha Horenstein in particular. It's too bad, thought I, that some of Horenstein's Mahler recordings are of lesser quality, not in terms of his conducting but of the recording itself and/or the less-than-world-class orchestra he may have been working with.

This in turn made me think it's too bad that Horenstein never recorded a complete set of Mahler's symphonies. (At least I don't think he did; I don't believe he ever recorded the 2nd or the 5th.) Along with Bernstein's, Kubelik's, and one or two others, it could have been one of the great one-conductor Mahler sets.

Then I remembered that Karajan recorded all of Sibelius' symphonies except the 3rd. I don't know why this is, but it does seem unfortunate that he didn't complete the cycle.

So I was thinking: what recordings never took place that you _wish_ had taken place? (I've provided a couple of possibles, but don't limit it to that kind of example - you might also wish for something like more modern technology to record Furtwängler or Toscanini, or something like that.)


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## realdealblues (Mar 3, 2010)

I guess I don't mind so much that Furtwangler or Toscanini didn't live to record a full stereo Beethoven Cycle in hi-fidelity because at least we've got recordings from them.

I wish Emil Gilels would have finished his Beethoven Piano Sonatas Cycle.

I wish Charles Munch would have recorded Brahms Symphony 3, because his 1, 2 & 4 are so excellent.

Glenn Gould was wanting to move into conducting before he died. I'd have loved to have heard what he would have done with something like a Mahler Symphony.

There's many, many others...

Editing: I had Charles Munch's Brahms mixed up...it was Symphony 3 he didn't record...not 2.


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## joen_cph (Jan 17, 2010)

Klemperer never recorded Mahler´s 6th - I´ve heard rumours that there should be an early performance in the archives of the Hungarian Radio, however. It seems a bit unlikely though, that so many years with a free market should pass without it being released ...


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## Sudonim (Feb 28, 2013)

realdealblues said:


> I wish Emil Gilels would have finished his Beethoven Piano Sonatas Cycle.
> 
> I wish Charles Munch would have recorded Brahms Symphony 2, because his 1, 3 & 4 are so excellent.


Oooh, good call on the Gilels - excellent example. Not that I necessarily need another complete cycle - or do I? :devil:

I wasn't aware of the "missing" Brahms 2 from Munch. Another good one.



> Glenn Gould was wanting to move into conducting before he died. I'd have loved to have heard what he would have done with something like a Mahler Symphony.


Could have been ... interesting! :lol:


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## Blancrocher (Jul 6, 2013)

Speaking of Gould, I'm sorry not to have at least one recording of the Diabelli Variations from him. I understand he performed them live a number of times, so the lack of a recording really stings.


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## realdealblues (Mar 3, 2010)

Sudonim said:


> I wasn't aware of the "missing" Brahms 2 from Munch. Another good one.


Whoops...also just realized it was Brahms 3...not 2.


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## bigshot (Nov 22, 2011)

Furtwangler in stereo. He just barely missed it.


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## kv466 (May 18, 2011)

Further speaking of Gould, there is the Grieg concerto that never was.


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## bigshot (Nov 22, 2011)

A Stokowski Ring Cycle would have been amazing.


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## Guest (Dec 14, 2013)

Lazar Berman playing Beethoven's Hammerklavier Sonata.


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## Itullian (Aug 27, 2011)

Klemperer RING, Tristan, Meister, etc


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## Pip (Aug 16, 2013)

One that got to the rehearsal stage in the studio, Carlos Kleiber and Michelangeli, the VPO and the Beethoven Piano Concerto 5.
After a running through a passage of the first movement, the concertmaster was heard asking Michelangeli "how was it for you Maestro?", at which point Kleiber put down his baton and walked out of the studio, went to the railway station and took a train for Munich never to return, - the recording was never made.


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## Pip (Aug 16, 2013)

When the Soviet tanks rolled into Prague in 1968, many international artists refused to perform in Czechoslovakia.
The recording of Meistersinger which EMI were setting up for Barbirolli was shelved because JB would not perform there. By the time it was re-scheduled, it had moved to East Germany and Karajan made it.


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## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

Blancrocher said:


> Speaking of Gould, I'm sorry not to have at least one recording of the Diabelli Variations from him. I understand he performed them live a number of times, so the lack of a recording really stings.


Yes. I notice Kempff never recorded them either. Strange!


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## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

I never know why Heifetz never recorded the Dvorak concerto. Did he play it?
Would have been just up his street.


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## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

Pip said:


> When the Soviet tanks rolled into Prague in 1968, many international artists refused to perform in Czechoslovakia.
> The recording of Meistersinger which EMI were setting up for Barbirolli was shelved because JB would not perform there. By the time it was re-scheduled, it had moved to East Germany and Karajan made it.


At least the Karajan is one of the best.


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## Mahlerian (Nov 27, 2012)

Webern conducting Mahler's Sixth. According to Berg, he was the best Mahler conductor after Mahler himself, and based on his wonderful reading of the Berg Concerto, I'd love to hear what he could do with Mahler's most volatile score.

Among others who knew him, Walter never conducted the Sixth, citing what he considered weaknesses in melodic invention, and Klemperer never recorded it either.


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## Blancrocher (Jul 6, 2013)

I'm sorry to be missing a complete set of Shosty's Preludes and Fugues from Sviatoslav Richter. Richter made plenty of "I play what interests me" sort of comments and was notorious for not completing famous cycles, but in this case I think we lack what might have been the definitive op.87 as a result of Richter's personal disinclination for the composer and anger over his association with Stalin's regime.


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

A Gould recording of Shosty's Op. 87 would have been cool.


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## Blancrocher (Jul 6, 2013)

Bulldog said:


> A Gould recording of Shosty's Op. 87 would have been cool.


Shostakovich had enough pain in his life :lol:


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Leonard Bernstein's compilation of William Schumann's Symphonies 3-10. Oh how I ache for that!!!!

He only recorded symphonies 3,5 and 8 (a live performance).

Gerard Schwarz has a complete set with the Seattle Symphony, but Schwarz is no Bernstein.

This one should have been!! Bernstein was a champion of Schuman's music!!


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