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Schubert: Symphonies Nos. 8 "Unfinished" & 9 "The Great"

7/8/2022, 6 Tracks, 1:27:26

Featuring

  • Herbert Blomstedt
  • Gewandhausorchester Leipzig
  • Franz Schubert

Did you know?

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Recording & Production

This album was recorded in November 2021 in the Gewandhaus in Leipzig amidst the coronavirus pandemic, without a live audience as originally planned.

Source: Booklet

Composition History

Schubert's 'Unfinished' Symphony No. 8 is a two-movement fragment from 1822, one of four symphonic attempts he failed to complete during a period of crisis.

Source: Booklet

Performer Biography

Herbert Blomstedt, at 94, is the world's longest-serving conductor and chose Schubert's last two symphonies for his debut on Deutsche Grammophon's Yellow Label.

Source: Booklet

Interpretation

Herbert Blomstedt's interpretation of Schubert's symphonies has changed significantly since his 1980s recordings, partly due to the New Schubert Edition correcting errors in earlier editions by Johannes Brahms.

Source: Booklet

Performer Biography

Herbert Blomstedt was the principal conductor of the Gewandhausorchester from 1998 to 2005 and remains closely associated with it as its conductor emeritus.

Source: Booklet

Historical Context

The Gewandhausorchester, founded in 1743, is the world's oldest civic orchestra and has a long history of performing Johann Sebastian Bach's music in St. Thomas's Church.

Source: Booklet

Notable Performances

The Gewandhausorchester gave the world premiere of Schubert's Symphony No. 9 in C major 'Great' on March 21, 1839, under Felix Mendelssohn, establishing Schubert's place in the symphonic canon.

Source: Booklet

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Schubert: Symphony No. 3 in D Major, D. 200
Schubert: Complete Symphonies
Schubert: Symphony No. 8 in C Major, D. 944 "Great"
Schubert: Sinfonien 2 & 4
Schubert: Symphony No. 8 in B Minor, D. 759 "Unfinished" (Live at Ozawa Hall, Boston, September 2007)
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