Search - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Günter Kehr, Mainz Chamber Orchestra :: Mozart: Symphonies, Vol. 1

This is affable Mozart!

Gregory M. Zinkl | Chicago, IL | 01/09/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"These performances are really quite good. I rank them, not for the same reasons, with the more modern Mackerras on Telarc, but below my beloved Hogwood (mammoth) set. When we start talking price however, this comes out on top.



Why these performances have not gotten more attention is beyond me, unless it's label bias, or Kehr bias, or whatever.



These performances have a lot that other currently available recordings are lacking. Warmth, humanity, charm come to mind. If Kehr doesn't love Mozart, then he's putting on a really good show! I can almost hear the joy and excitement that the musicians have for playing Mozart, well-known and not (that's my impression, in any case). You have more traditional tempi, of course, and your minuets are danceable. In comparison, the Jaap ter Linden set on Brilliant Classics, while beautifully played, is boring as all get out--at least that's how I found them. While Arigoni has some interesting ideas about tempi, his orchestra is really third rate (especially the strings, or maybe there just isn't enough of them), and the performances get bogged down after awhile. Undoubtedly, Kehr's group is not the Berlin or Vienna Philharmonic, and while Bohm's late symphonies recordings with the BPO are clasics, yet I mostly prefer these recordings of the earlier symphonies to Bohm's DG performances of the same works.



The group is a chamber orchestra, but they play with such warmth, the lack of string heft is really not that noticeable (but yes, there still is clarity, and yes, Kehr does balance the brass well when the brass are accompaniment).



This is not digital engineering, but quite listenable in any case. For the price, it doesn't get much better than this. Highly recommended."

Spirited Mozart

HB | Fort Mill, SC | 04/27/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I bought this set mostly for No. 23, one of my favorites. The performance here is superb, full of warmth and wonderfully played. While not every symphony here is a masterpiece, the great ones make up for the mediocrities. If you don't want to shell out a whole bunch of money for a complete set of the Mozart symphonies at one time, this outstanding set will give you much enjoyment."