Claudio Abbado’s Last Concert with the Berliner Philharmoniker (2013) Blu-ray 1080i AVC DTS-HD 5.1

Name: Claudio Abbado’s Last Concert with the Berliner Philharmoniker
Released: 2016
Genre: Classical
Conductor: Claudio Abbado
Сomposer: Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847), Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)
Artist: Deborah York (soprano), Stella Doufexis (mezzo-soprano), Damen des Chors des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Berliner Philharmoniker

Label: © Berlin Phil Media GmbH
Recorded: Philharmonie Berlin 18, 19, 21 May 2013
Quality: Blu-ray Audio/Video
Duration: 01:36:07 +
Video#1: MPEG-4 AVC 950 kbps / 1920*1080i / 29.970 fps / 16:9 / High Profile 4.1
Video#2: MPEG-4 AVC 20999 kbps / 1920*1080i / 29.970 fps / 16:9 / High Profile 4.1
Audio#1: German DTS-HD MA 5.1 / 48 kHz / 3709 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)
Audio#2: German LPCM 2.0 / 48 kHz / 2304 kbps / 24-bit
Subtitle: Japanese
Size: 45.46 GB

This marks the second anniversary of Claudio Abbado’s death on 20 January 2014 aged eighty. The set – on CD and Blu-ray (audio and video) – captures Abbado’s final concert with the Berliner Philharmoniker‏ in May 2013. It was the end of a treasured partnership that bore plentiful and remarkable fruit.

Abbado first conducted the Berliner Philharmoniker‏ in 1966, the start of a unique relationship that was to last nearly half a century. Succeeding Herbert von Karajan into the biggest job in the world of classical music Abbado was elected by the members of the orchestra as chief conductor of the Berliner Philharmoniker‏ serving from 1990 to 2002. He became only the fifth chief conductor in the orchestra’s history. Following his resignation from that post Abbado would return to the orchestra as a guest. The relationship between orchestra and Abbado remained cordial and these appearances as guest were clearly events to savour.

In May 2013 there was a series of three concerts at the Philharmonie which turned out to be Abbado’s last with the Berliner Philharmoniker. They were described as a “triumph” by the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Abbado’s programme comprised two key works from composers both close contemporaries: Felix Mendelssohn’s enchanting A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Hector Berlioz’s progressive Symphonie fantastique.

Inspired by Schlegel’s translation of Shakespeare’s original play Mendelssohn was only seventeen when he wrote his overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Some sixteen years later in 1842-43 owing to a commission from Frederick William IV of Prussia, Mendelssohn returned to the text, writing incidental music for a stage production. The score was complete with two women soloists and women’s chorus and incorporated the overture into the score. Sadly today Mendelssohn’s incidental music to A Midsummer Night’s Dream is rarely performed in its entirety. In 1995 during his tenure as chief conductor Abbado and the orchestra recorded some fifty minutes of excerpts from the incidental music and coupled these with the Symphony No. 4 ‘Italian’ for Sony Classical. This live May 2013 concert performance contains forty minutes of excerpts including the overture but without any passages requiring narration. Right from the opening measures of the youthful overture one feels the uplifting and glowing magical atmosphere of an enchanting fairyland. Sticking in the memory are the outstanding violins in the Overture, the horn playing in the Notturno and the trumpets in the Wedding March. Performed in English Ye spotted snakes is sung by soprano Deborah York and mezzo Stella Doufexis as the first and second fairies. They are joined by the fresh and sparkling twenty-strong women’s chorus — a wealth of charm.

In 1830 the twenty-six year old Hector Berlioz’s wrote his epic Symphonie fantastique subtitled An Episode in the Life of an Artist. This is a richly scored work for large orchestra and ground-breaking in its day. His best known work, Berlioz wrote his own programme note for the five movement score. This follows the self-destruction of an artist over his infatuation with a beautiful woman. In reality this is a musical self-portrait and the object of Berlioz’s own self-destructive passion was the Irish actress Harriet Smithson his muse whom he was later to marry. Abbado recorded some Berlioz but I know of very little with the Berliner Philharmoniker. He released a recording of Symphonie fantastique but that was with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 1983 a fine performance which has been criticised in some quarters for the balance of its recorded sound. Having attended live performances of Symphonie fantastique three times in the last year and less than a week ago by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra I did wonder if this new Abbado account from 2013 would be one performance too many. Thankfully there is nothing to fear as it soon becomes evident that Abbado and his players revel in this early romantic showpiece; enjoying every second. Immediately noticeable in this splendidly moulded performance is the composure and technical precision of the players. Striking are the vivid orchestral textures, astutely chosen tempi and dynamic contrasts which are ideally emphasised and provide plenty of dramatic bite. The graceful lilt the violins give to charming waltz themes in Un bal is memorable as is the simply stunning cor anglais in Scène aux champs, the magnificent brass especially the contribution from the glowing trumpets and also the precision of the bassoons in March to the Scaffold. With a performance as excellent as this the Symphonie fantastique didn’t feel as overlong as it can often do in the wrong hands.

Pure Audio Blu-ray Disc
All recordings in lossless studio master quality as well as High Definition video
i) 2.0 LPCM Stereo, 24-bit/48 kHz
ii) 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio 24-bit/48 kHz
Running time: 96 minutes
Video of full concert
Picture: Full HD 1080/60i – 16.9
Sound:
i) 2.0 LPCM Stereo, 24-bit/48 kHz
ii) 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio 24-bit/48 kHz
Running time: 107 mins
Bonus videos:
Video Direction: Daniel Finkernagel & Alexander Lück
i) Documentary: ‘Abbado in Berlin – The First Year’ – A film by Bob Eisenhardt, Susan Froemke and Peter Gelb [59.50]
ii) Members of the Berliner Philharmoniker Remember Claudio Abbado [15.36]
iii) Promotional feature: About Berliner Philharmoniker’s Digital Concert Hall (which is the Berliner Philharmoniker’s video streaming service) [01.28]
Running time of bonus content: [76.54]
Region code: ABC (worldwide)
German/English/Japanese

Tracklist:
  Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
  A Midsummer Night´s Dream
1. Ouverture Op. 21: Allegro di molto – Poco ritenuto 12:04
2. No. 1 Scherzo: Allegro vivace 04:47
3. No. 3 Song with Chorus: »You Spotted Snakes with Double… 04:14
4. No. 5 Intermezzo: Allegro appassionato – Allegro molto… 03:58
5. No. 7 Notturno: Andante tranquillo 05:45
6. No. 9 Wedding March: Allegro vivace 04:55
7. No. 13 Finale: »Through the House Give Glimmering Light«… 04:27
  Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)
  Symphonie fantastique
8. I. Rêveries – Passions: Largo – Allegro agitato e… 15:51
9. II. Un bal: Valse. Allegro non troppo 06:44
10. III. Scène aux champs: Adagio 16:06
11. IV. Marche au supplice: Allegretto non troppo 06:46
12. V. Songe d´une nuit du Sabbat – Dies Irae – Ronde du… 10:18
Bonus videos
· Documentary: “Abbado in Berlin – The First Year”
· Members of the Berliner Philharmoniker remember Claudio Abbado

DISC INFO:

Disc Title:     BERLINPHIL_ABBADO
Disc Size:      48,808,916,083 bytes
Protection:     AACS
BD-Java:        Yes
BDInfo:         0.5.8

PLAYLIST REPORT:

Name:                   00000.MPLS
Length:                 1:36:07.762 (h:m:s.ms)
Size:                   5,491,279,872 bytes
Total Bitrate:          7.62 Mbps

VIDEO:

Codec                   Bitrate             Description    
-----                   -------             -----------    
MPEG-4 AVC Video        950 kbps            1080i / 29.970 fps / 16:9 / High Profile 4.1

AUDIO:

Codec                           Language        Bitrate         Description    
-----                           --------        -------         -----------    
LPCM Audio                      German          2304 kbps       2.0 / 48 kHz / 2304 kbps / 24-bit
DTS-HD Master Audio             German          3709 kbps       5.1 / 48 kHz / 3709 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)

FILES:

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00008.M2TS      0:00:00.000     1:36:07.762     5,491,279,872   7,617

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