# Favorite Incomplete Beethoven Symphony Cycle



## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

Post your favorite incomplete Beethoven cycle and how you assembled it. As an afterthought (and too late to change the subject line), it might be better to say "partial Beethoven symphony cycle" (glass half full...); ah well, it is what it is and incomplete does express the sadness of missing pieces (especially the 6th in this case).

Here is my favorite (alas) incomplete Beethoven symphony cycle. 
Ferenc Fricsay: Symphonies 1,3,5,7,8, and 9. 
Here is how I assembled it (top down):



















The only other Fricsay-conducted Beethoven symphony I could find is #1 
and it was hard to obtain (other than ripping from You Tube), but I got
it in this set and with the Berlin Philharmonic to match the others.









Of course the 10-disc Fricsay set has a wealth of other good stuff including
Beethoven Symphonies 7 and 8 with a different orchestra (RAIS):


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

Kleiber is awesome for his incomplete cycle


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

Albert7 said:


> Kleiber is awesome for his incomplete cycle


Carlos Kleiber, not Erich, right? What Beethoven symphony recordings are available under his wand? How would someone assemble this partial cycle?


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## Templeton (Dec 20, 2014)

As far as I know, these are the only Carlos Kleiber recordings of Beethoven symphonies, available on CD.

4 with Bayerisches Staatsorchester
5 with VPO
6 with Bayerisches Staatsorchester
7 with VPO and Bayerisches Staatsorchester

All are wonderful and easily available on Amazon and probably Ebay.

DVD recordings of the 4th and 7th are also available, with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. Both can also be viewed on You Tube or below. The performance of the 7th is my favourite recording ever:






All of the above are easily available via Amazon and are reasonably priced. I would particularly recommend the 'Carlos Kleiber: The Legend' DVD set, which includes the two Beethovens and the Coriolan Overture but also Brahms's 2nd and 4th, Mozart's 33 and 36, plus the 1989 and 1992 New Year Concerts with the VPO. In the UK, it's currently available for £26 but is often available for less, around £16-18, which is what I paid. The current price on Amazon US is, unfortunately, ridiculous, at $97 for a used copy and $145 for a new one.


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## AClockworkOrange (May 24, 2012)

Klaus Tennstedt stands out in my mind as far as incomplete cycles go. I love his approach both in studio and in live recording environments. He has an incredible synergy with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, I really wish he were able to complete his cycle of Beethoven's Symphonies (& Brahms too).

I love Ferenc Fricsay's Beethoven. His Ninth - the first in stereo if memory serves - appeared in A Clockwork Orange and is a stunningly beautiful interpretation. One of the few on par with Wilhelm Furtwängler's Ninths - in my opinion anyhow. 

Carlos Kleiber is superb, as is often stated rather promptly. His one recording (a rare performance as I understand) of the 'Pastoral' Sixth is my favourite recording of the piece and his recording of the Fourth is an exemplary petformance.


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

What a shame Carlos Kleiber never got to record the complete Beethoven 9 symphonies. That had a great chance of being really special.


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## AnotherSpin (Apr 9, 2015)

hpowders said:


> That had a great chance of being really special.


 Either yes or now. Best part of it - we would never know.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

What I really wish to do is fill in the gaps in my Fricsay partial cycle. I would need 2, 4, and 6. The problem is that the idea of mixing cycles seems to be like trying to breed cats with dogs, it just doesn't seem right. Nonetheless it would be nice to listen to the Fricsay and not have gaps. I don't know what conductor would be worthy to fill those gaps and would be similar in interpretation to Fricsay.


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## MarkW (Feb 16, 2015)

Semi-amusing Fricsay anecdote: When I was in college, long ago in a distant galaxy, I took a Beethoven seminar. At the class meeting, part of which concerned the Seventh Symphony, the Professor brought along the Fricsay recording from the music library to use when he needed to play an example. I had never heard of him, said as much to the faculty member, and asked casually, "Is he dead?"  He replied "It's hard to tell."


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## Guest (May 17, 2015)

Florestan said:


> Carlos Kleiber, not Erich, right? What Beethoven symphony recordings are available under his wand? How would someone assemble this partial cycle?


Carlos Kleiber gets my vote also. He only recorded the 5th and 7th as far as I know, but they are landmarks. Both are available on one disc.

edit: Ok someone already said he recorded a couple other, but the 5 and 7, imo, are essential to all classical music collections.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

What about Stokowski? How many Beethoven symphonies did he record? That might be an interesting partial cycle.


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