Leonard Bernstein – Bernstein Conducts Beethoven Overtures (Remastered) (2017) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Leonard Bernstein – Bernstein Conducts Beethoven Overtures (Remastered) (2017)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 45:32 minutes | 1,82 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sony Classical

On the eve of his centenary in 2018, Sony Classical releases the most important collection, Leonard Bernstein’s classic American Columbia recordings, remastered from their original 2- and multi-track analogue tapes. This has allowed for the creation of a natural balance (for example, between the orchestra and solo instruments) that brings the quality of these half-century-old recordings, excellent for their time, up to the standards of today’s audiophiles. In addition, there has been a meticulous restoration of some earlier masterings in which LP surface noise was too rigorously eliminated at the expense of the original brilliance.

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Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92 (Remastered) (2019) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92 (Remastered) (2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 38:03 minutes | 1,54 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sony Classical

Leonard Bernstein was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts. He took piano lessons as a boy and attended the Garrison and Boston Latin Schools. At Harvard University, he studied with Walter Piston, Edward Burlingame-Hill, and A. Tillman Merritt, among others. Before graduating in 1939, he made an unofficial conducting debut with his own incidental music to “The Birds,” and directed and performed in Marc Blitzstein’s “The Cradle Will Rock.” Then at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, he studied piano with Isabella Vengerova, conducting with Fritz Reiner, and orchestration with Randall Thompson.

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Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125 Choral (Remastered) (2019) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125 Choral (Remastered) (2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:09:26 minutes | 2,85 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sony Classical

Leonard Bernstein was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts. He took piano lessons as a boy and attended the Garrison and Boston Latin Schools. At Harvard University, he studied with Walter Piston, Edward Burlingame-Hill, and A. Tillman Merritt, among others. Before graduating in 1939, he made an unofficial conducting debut with his own incidental music to “The Birds,” and directed and performed in Marc Blitzstein’s “The Cradle Will Rock.” Then at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, he studied piano with Isabella Vengerova, conducting with Fritz Reiner, and orchestration with Randall Thompson.

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Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92 (Remastered) (2019) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92 (Remastered) (2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 42:21 minutes | 1,75 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sony Classical

Leonard Bernstein was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts. He took piano lessons as a boy and attended the Garrison and Boston Latin Schools. At Harvard University, he studied with Walter Piston, Edward Burlingame-Hill, and A. Tillman Merritt, among others. Before graduating in 1939, he made an unofficial conducting debut with his own incidental music to “The Birds,” and directed and performed in Marc Blitzstein’s “The Cradle Will Rock.” Then at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, he studied piano with Isabella Vengerova, conducting with Fritz Reiner, and orchestration with Randall Thompson.

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Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Op. 68 Pastoral (Remastered) (2019) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Op. 68 Pastoral (Remastered) (2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 44:21 minutes | 1,76 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sony Classical

Leonard Bernstein was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts. He took piano lessons as a boy and attended the Garrison and Boston Latin Schools. At Harvard University, he studied with Walter Piston, Edward Burlingame-Hill, and A. Tillman Merritt, among others. Before graduating in 1939, he made an unofficial conducting debut with his own incidental music to “The Birds,” and directed and performed in Marc Blitzstein’s “The Cradle Will Rock.” Then at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, he studied piano with Isabella Vengerova, conducting with Fritz Reiner, and orchestration with Randall Thompson.

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Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 4 in B-Flat Major, Op. 60 & Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93 (Remastered) (2019) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 4 in B-Flat Major, Op. 60 & Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93 (Remastered) (2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 58:54 minutes | 2,36 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sony Classical

Leonard Bernstein was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts. He took piano lessons as a boy and attended the Garrison and Boston Latin Schools. At Harvard University, he studied with Walter Piston, Edward Burlingame-Hill, and A. Tillman Merritt, among others. Before graduating in 1939, he made an unofficial conducting debut with his own incidental music to “The Birds,” and directed and performed in Marc Blitzstein’s “The Cradle Will Rock.” Then at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, he studied piano with Isabella Vengerova, conducting with Fritz Reiner, and orchestration with Randall Thompson.

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Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 55 “Eroica” (Remastered) (2017) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 55 “Eroica” (Remastered) (2017)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 49:42 minutes | 1,99 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sony Classical

On the eve of his centenary in 2018, Sony Classical releases the most important collection, Leonard Bernstein’s classic American Columbia recordings, remastered from their original 2- and multi-track analogue tapes. This has allowed for the creation of a natural balance (for example, between the orchestra and solo instruments) that brings the quality of these half-century-old recordings, excellent for their time, up to the standards of today’s audiophiles. In addition, there has been a meticulous restoration of some earlier masterings in which LP surface noise was too rigorously eliminated at the expense of the original brilliance.

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Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36 & Symphony No. 1 in C Major, Op. 21 (Remastered) (2019) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36 & Symphony No. 1 in C Major, Op. 21 (Remastered) (2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:00:17 minutes | 2,36 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sony Classical

Leonard Bernstein was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts. He took piano lessons as a boy and attended the Garrison and Boston Latin Schools. At Harvard University, he studied with Walter Piston, Edward Burlingame-Hill, and A. Tillman Merritt, among others. Before graduating in 1939, he made an unofficial conducting debut with his own incidental music to “The Birds,” and directed and performed in Marc Blitzstein’s “The Cradle Will Rock.” Then at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, he studied piano with Isabella Vengerova, conducting with Fritz Reiner, and orchestration with Randall Thompson.

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Wiener Philharmoniker & Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: String Quartet No.14 In C Sharp Minor, Op.131 (2019) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Wiener Philharmoniker & Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: String Quartet No.14 In C Sharp Minor, Op.131 (2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 45:58 minutes | 1,86 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Deutsche Grammophon (DG)

Leonard Bernstein’s otherwise harmonious relationship with the Vienna Philharmonic hit a few bumps when he proposed that they perform this string quartet transcription of Beethoven’s Quartet in C-sharp Minor, op. 131. But only a few minutes into the first rehearsal, all static evaporated. One hears why: this great, idiosyncratic piece–along with the Quartet in F, op. 135–is played with startling freshness and affection. The unanimity of the orchestra ensures that textures are rarely muddied, while the sound of massed strings gives the music a grandeur always implied but never realized by conventional string quartet performances. What comes most to the fore in this version is the music’s meditative qualities. At times, the slow movements sound like Mahler, with whom Bernstein identified even more strongly than with Beethoven.

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Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 15 – Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 18 (Remastered) (2017) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 15 – Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 18 (Remastered) (2017)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:14:31 minutes | 3,08 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sony Classical

On the eve of his centenary in 2018, Sony Classical releases the most important collection, Leonard Bernstein’s classic American Columbia recordings, remastered from their original 2- and multi-track analogue tapes. This has allowed for the creation of a natural balance (for example, between the orchestra and solo instruments) that brings the quality of these half-century-old recordings, excellent for their time, up to the standards of today’s audiophiles. In addition, there has been a meticulous restoration of some earlier masterings in which LP surface noise was too rigorously eliminated at the expense of the original brilliance.

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Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Missa Solemnis in D Major, Op. 123 (Remastered) (2019) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Missa Solemnis in D Major, Op. 123 (Remastered) (2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:17:18 minutes | 2,87 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sony Classical

Leonard Bernstein was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts. He took piano lessons as a boy and attended the Garrison and Boston Latin Schools. At Harvard University, he studied with Walter Piston, Edward Burlingame-Hill, and A. Tillman Merritt, among others. Before graduating in 1939, he made an unofficial conducting debut with his own incidental music to “The Birds,” and directed and performed in Marc Blitzstein’s “The Cradle Will Rock.” Then at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, he studied piano with Isabella Vengerova, conducting with Fritz Reiner, and orchestration with Randall Thompson.

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Edda Moser, Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Mass In D, Op.123 “Missa Solemnis” (1979/2017) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz]

Edda Moser, Leonard Bernstein – Beethoven: Mass In D, Op.123 “Missa Solemnis” (1979/2017)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:21:23 minutes | 1,56 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Deutsche Grammophon (DG)

A lovingly crafted and deeply felt performance. Bernstein succeeded superbly in conveying his own intellectually ferocious vision of what the piece truly signifies.

“In his Missa Solemnis, Beethoven grasped heavenward hoping to touch the face of a God he could neither see nor hear, in a supreme effort to bolster his own inner convictions. That’s why you can view the piece from pretty much any faith-led or philosophical standpoint and the music still seems powerful and meaningful. Leonard Bernstein was a cogent and committed arbiter who succeeded superbly in conveying to all who would listen his own intellectually ferocious vision of what the piece truly signifies. Thus, DG’s Galleria reissue of his 1978 Concertgebouw performance is one of the greatest utterances of Bernstein’s Indian summer on the Yellow Label.

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Orchestre National de France & Leonard Bernstein – Leonard Bernstein – An American in Paris (2018) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz]

Orchestre National de France & Leonard Bernstein – Leonard Bernstein – An American in Paris (2018)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 06:40:49 minutes | 7,25 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Warner Classics

This 7CD set is the fruit of the love affair that developed in Paris between Leonard Bernstein and the Orchestre National de France in the 1970s. Beside long-admired studio recordings, featuring Mstislav Rostropovich and Alexis Weissenberg among the soloists, it presents live performances completely new to the catalogue: a 1975 programme to celebrate Ravel’s centenary — with Bernstein himself as soloist in the G major piano concerto — and orchestral suites taken from two of Bernstein’s most celebrated and brilliant works, both infused with jazz: the film score On the Waterfront and the landmark Broadway musical West Side Story.

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Leonard Bernstein – A Tribute to Benjamin Britten (Remastered) (1977/2018/2021) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Leonard Bernstein – A Tribute to Benjamin Britten (Remastered) (1977/2018/2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 40:06 minutes | 1,35 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sony Classical

Leonard Bernstein was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Among the most important conductors of his time, he was also the first American conductor to receive international acclaim. According to music critic Donal Henahan, he was “one of the most prodigiously talented and successful musicians in American history”.

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Leonard Bernstein, Wiener Philharmoniker – Beethoven: Symphonie Nr. 9 (2005) MCH SACD ISO

Leonard Bernstein, Wiener Philharmoniker – Beethoven: Symphonie Nr. 9 (2005)
SACD ISO (MCH only): 3,79 GB | Full Artwork | 3% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Deutsche Grammophon “Eloquence” # 476 7368 | Country/Year: Germany 2005, 1980
Genre: Classical | Style: Viennese School

I want to add a very quick review, and I hope it will provide some information on this. I’ve had this on RBCD from its original release in the 1980s. I’m very familiar with this performance and it’s been one of my favorites of all time, next to the Bohm (also with Gwyneth Jones) and the last Karajan one.

In fact right after I ordered the SACD of this one (from JPC using the links from SA-CD.net), I pulled out my old RBCD and listened to it several times before someone bought it from me through my Amazon.com store. It was very fresh in my mind. I received my JPC shipment today and I’ve listened carefully to it on SACD.

Since I love the performance, I’m giving that high marks on performance. The playing is so exciting, and the tempi, which is pretty variable (but we all love that about Bernstein’s perfs), always keeps you guessing. The soli are really great, and I love hearing Kurt Moll do this. Dame Jones can sometimes be slightly off pitch but her musicianship outweighs that.

Regarding the sound, I am NOT impressed with what they’ve done to this. I am very disappointed. While the recording still sounds the same, it sounds like someone just hit the “loudness” button on an old amplifier. There’s no gain in clarity or fidelity — in fact it sounds a little more diffuse that it already did. I expected that the original sound recording would be filled with detail given the size of the piece and all the multi-miking that was going on. But nothing extra is elucidated here. The rear channels just have a little bit of echo to add some sense of space. But overall it all sounds wrong. I’m not impressed by the SACD transfer. I am certainly going to check out the CD-Audio layer and report back about how that sounds in comparison to my RBCD. Hopefully, they didn’t mess that up, too.

If you want this performance on SACD, you can’t really go wrong since it at least sounds as good as the RBCD, and it’s cheaper anyway than the RBCD-only version. I’m torn because I love this performance, but I can not rightfully give it high marks for sound. At least it’s not as awful as the SACD job that was done on Karajan’s second recording of the 9th. ~sa-cd.net

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