Bruno Walter - Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Op. 68 (Columbia Symphony Orchestra)

TAS Super LP List! Special Merit: Classical

200g 45 RPM Vinyl Double LP Pressed at Quality Record Pressings!
Mastered For 45 RPM From Original 3-Track Tapes by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound!

Bruno Walter helped shape the very essence of interpretive style among conductors. Walter's rendition of Beethoven's sixth symphony is perhaps the greatest ever recorded — his reading of the score comes off sounding like a piece of literature or poetry, but that is a great thing and perfectly blends with the music to create a benchmark recording.

And here, once again, Analogue Productions has taken a classic and shaped it to make this 200g 45rpm audiophile vinyl reissue of this famed recording. Mastered by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound from the original 3-track tapes, the lacquers were plated and pressed at Quality Record Pressings. The Stoughton Printing old-style tip-on gatefold jacket has been upgraded handsomely by a series of rarely-seen photos of Walter from the Sony Music Archives. Everything about this reissue radiates quality.

Analogue Production's 45 RPM release, the best-sounding version of this historic album, gives listeners an even richer sonic experience. The dead-quiet double-LP, with the music spread over four sides of vinyl, reduces distortion and high frequency loss as the wider-spaced grooves let your stereo cartridge track more accurately.

Written in 1808, Beethoven's Symphony No. 6 in F Major ("Pastoral"), Op. 68, is deemed one of the most influential by the famed composer. Unlike the vast majority of assumed names by which his works have become known, Beethoven directed from the very outset that his sixth symphony be titled "Pastoral Symphony," or a recollection of country life. It was a musical approach to the forces of nature that inspired Beethoven.

Walter's late life was marked by stereo recordings with the Columbia Symphony Orchestra, an ensemble of professional musicians assembled by Columbia Records for recordings.

Originally released in 1958, this recording still sounds fresh, with a broad soundstage, persuasive depth, and a remarkable sense of "air" and presence. Simply because of Walter's vibrant, fluid interpretation, taking into account both variable tempi and heightened accents, the result is one of the most passionate, awe-inspiring recorded versions of this symphony that's ever been recorded.

Features:
• 45rpm 200g Vinyl
• Double LP
• Plated & Pressed at QRP
• Mastered from original 3-Track tapes
• Mastered by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound!
• Deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket from Stoughton Printing w/rare photos from Sony Music Archives

Musicians:
The Columbia Symphony Orchestra
Bruno Walter, conductor

Selections:
Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Op. 68 "Pastorale"
1. I. Allegro ma non troppo (Cheerful impression awakened by arrival in the country)
2. II. Andante molto moto (Scene by brook)
3. III. Allegro (Merry gathering of country folk)
4. IV. Allegro (Thunderstorm; tempest)
5. V. Allegretto (Shepherd's song; glad and grateful feelings after the storm)