Tchaikovsky - Symphony No.5 in E Minor (1990)

1. I. Andante; Allegro con anima
2. II- Andante cantabile, conalcuna licenza
3. III- Valse Allegro moderato
4. IV- Finale Andante maestoso; Allegro vivace

Cleveland Orchestra
George Szell – conductor

My first purchase of a classical music piece was this recording on a Columbia Odyssey vinyl pressing in 1978. My only interest in classical music at the time (just out of high school) was to try to figure out why Stereo Review actually spent time reviewing that "boring" music, ... I'm not sure I had even heard of Tchaikovsky before that. I could not have made better choice. The music was incredibly powerful and incredibly moving. It was at that point I learned just what classical music could be even to someone with no formal training or musical ability to speak of.

Thus inspired, I went out and bought an audiophile recording of the 5th, expecting it to be even better. (The Odyssey pressing had audible tape hiss.) It was at *that* point when I realized how much difference the particular conductor/performance makes! The music seemed completely lifeless in comparison. It hardly seemed to be the same work. Since then I have owned several recordings of this piece, and none have come close to the Szell performance. It is simply that good. Maybe it is because first love is always the sweetest, but the other reviewers seem to agree with me.

The good news is that the CD release (which I just realized existed only a few weeks ago) has been fully remastered. The tape hiss, while still there, is much less noticable than I recalled. The dynamics are still there, despite the age of the recording. The *music* is still there, in all its glory. And it is as moving to this middle aged man as it was to the young kid. Highly recommended. ---amazon.com

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