# SCHERCHEN / The 1950s Haydn Symphonies Recordings



## itywltmt

> Everyone wants to know me. I had to dine out six times up to now, and if I wanted I could have an invitation every day; but first I must consider my health, and second my work. Except for the nobility, I admit no callers till 2 in the afternoon.


These words, from private correspondence to a friend, describe *Haydn*'s welcome in London in early 1791. Haydn's presence in the English capital had been arranged by the violinist-cum-impresario Johann Peter Salomon; Haydn's secluded life as Kapellmeister to Prince Nikolaus Esterházy had hardly prepared him for the feverish musical and social activity in London.

Haydn's fame in England, as in France, was based above all on his symphonies from the 1770s and 1780s, and the main part of his lucrative deal with Salomon was the composition of six new symphonies (Nos 93-98) over two seasons, for which he would receive £300-equal to approximately £25,000 today.

There are 12 so-called London Symphonies, and they can be categorized into two groups: Symphonies Nos. 93-98, which were composed during Haydn's first visit to London, and Symphonies Nos. 99-104, composed in Vienna and London for Haydn's second visit. Every London Symphony, apart from one (No. 95), has a slow introduction to the first movement.

This week's share takes us back to my _Once Upon the Internet _series, and some downloads from the Japanese site _Public Domain Classic_ and the Italian site _LiberMusica_ - the latter still active.

Today's featured conductor, Herrmann Schechen, was one of the 20th-century's great new-music conductors yet he recorded an unusually wide range of repertoire, from the baroque to the contemporary.

Recorded in mono for the Westminster company between 1950 and 1953 Scherchen's recordings of the 12 London symphonies with the Vienna State Opera Orchestra and Vienna Symphony are pioneer performances because, at a time when precious few took these works seriously, Scherchen granted them the time and care they deserved. The result is not just a worthy acknowledgement of Haydn's historical importance, but a true realisation of his greatness. Scherchen turns out to be a classicist of humanity and warmth.

From these I retained three of the London symphonies - nos. 97, 102 and 103; 8 of the remaining 9 can be found on _LiberMusica_.

Happy Listening!








*Joseph HAYDN (1732-1809)*

Symphony No.97 in C Major, Hob.I:97
Symphony No.102 in B-Flat Major, Hob.I:102 (*)
Symphony No.103 in E-Flat Major ('Drum Roll'), Hob.I:103

Wiener Symphoniker
Hermann Scherchen, conducting
Source: Public Domain Classic and LiberMusica (*)

_Internet Archive_ URL - https://archive.org/details/10SymphonyNo.103InEFlatMajor


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## itywltmt

*We are featuring the music from this post on the For Your Listening Pleasure podcast as an episode I am posting July 12, 2022. The following notes are an update with useful links we have created or discovered since the original post.*

This is the first of two posts repurposing Haydn symphony recordings from the 1950's featuring Hermann Scherchen and Viennese orchestras in studio recordings. Symphony no. 93 is part of another _Once Upon the Internet_ I posted in 2018.

You will find the complete collection of the twelve London Symphonies on the Italian website LiberMusica.

Inserted here is a concert recording of Haydn's 95th with the Montreal Symphony from 2016..

Happy listening!



*Joseph HAYDN (1732-1809)*

Symphony No.93 in D, Hob.I:93

Wiener Staatsopernorchester

Hermann Scherchen, conducting

[OUTI-61]



Symphony No.95 in C-, Hob.I:95

Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal

Gunther Herbig, conducting

[OUTI-48]

Internet Archive - A LA CARTE #17 - Haydn: The London Symphonies (Nos. 93, 95, 97) : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive


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## itywltmt

*We are featuring the music from this post on the For Your Listening Pleasure podcast as an episode I am posting **July 19, 2022.** The following notes are an update with useful links we have created or discovered since the original post.*

This is the first of two posts repurposing Haydn symphony recordings from the 1950's featuring Hermann Scherchen and Viennese orchestras in studio recordings. Symphonies no. 99 and 101 are part of another _Once Upon the Internet_ I posted in 2018.

You will find the complete collection of the twelve London Symphonies on the Italian website LiberMusica.

Happy listening! 

*Joseph HAYDN (1732-1809)*

Symphony No. 99 in E-Flat Major, Hob.I:99 

Symphony No. 101 in D Major, Hob.I:101 «The Clock »

Wiener Staatsopernorchester

Hermann Scherchen, conducting

[OUTI-61]

Symphony No.103 in E-Flat Major ('Drum Roll'), Hob.I:103

Wiener Symphoniker

Hermann Scherchen, conducting

[OUTI-57]

Internet Archive - https://archive.org/details/01-alc-18-haydn-the-london-sympho


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