# 100 Favorites: # 76



## JACE (Jul 18, 2014)

*Schubert: Symphonies Nos. 8 "Unfinished" & 9 "The Great"	
George Szell, Cleveland Orchestra (Sony)*










These recordings capture Szell at his best. The Clevelanders play with incredible precision and unanimity, generating an enormous sense of forward momentum and taut drama. Szell was sometimes accused of sacrificing feeling on the altar of precision, but there's nothing clinical or bloodless about these performances. Even though it's epic in scale, the Ninth dances with a Mozartean lilt; the Eighth is darkly mysterious.

The music is also exceptionally well-recorded. Years ago, as a grad-school student with no extra cash, I remember reading a review of Sony's newly-launched "Essential Classics" line in _The Absolute Sound_. (The university's science library had a subscription, and I made a special trip there to read it every month.) I was so excited! I couldn't afford most things in that magazine, but these budget-priced CDs were an exception. Not long after reading their glowing review, I bought this Szell/Schubert CD. I've enjoyed it ever since.


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