Dvorak
Symphony No. 8 in G major, Op. 88
Sibelius
Symphony No. 4 in A minor, Op. 63
Symphony No. 7 in C major, Op. 105
En Saga, Op. 9
Cleveland Orchestra
George Szell
Dvorak from a concert given on 16 02 1966 at Severance Hall, Cleveland
Sibelius 4 from a concert given on 11 01 1966 at Severance Hall, Cleveland
Sibelius 7 from a concert given on 23 05 1965 at B-Messuhallissa, Helsinki, Finland
Sibelius En Saga from concerts given on 09 & 11 12 1965 at Severance Hall, Cleveland
Reviewed by: Rob Pennock
Reviewed: September 2026
CD No:
Duration: Running time: 110 minutes
Unlike today, back in the 1960s the world was awash with great conductors. Several of whom led great orchestras, moulded in their image. Of these, none were greater than George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra, which he took over in 1946.
As well as turning the orchestra into what could be called an elegantly transparent, virtuoso juggernaut with antiphonal violins, he raised their international profile by touring and recording a substantial discography. Where, today, a copy of the Beethoven Ninth on the British Columbia SAX label will cost you around £2000.
With regard to live performances; various official and pirate labels have released a fairly wide variety and these CRQ performances are also available on YouTube in hopelessly compressed, dead, lossy sound.
Performance wise, from the opening bars of the Dvorak, you hear beautiful string tone, characterful woodwind and crashing timpani. There is tempo variation, gorgeous phrasing, rhythmic flexibility, control and power. In the Adagio the ebb and flow is completely natural. Szell is in no hurry in the Allegretto, the string playing in the Trio ultra-refined and the finale a joyful tour de force.
In the incredibly dark Sibelius 4, from the Molto moderato opening on subterranean cellos, basses and bassoons and terse cello solo, there are fragments of melody, which continue on through what are almost s series of glacial variations. Here Szell’s control of pace, texture and tension is absolute. He ignores the second movements Allegro molto vivace marking, emphasising it’s thematic, tonal and dissonant links with the first. The clarity and intensity of the playing in the Largo is exceptional. There is no lightening of the mood at the start of the Rondo finale, Szell’s impetus, bleak, rocking phrasing in the second section and the seething power of the rest of the movement are brilliant.
His Seventh is fast, but each section is superbly characterised. Szell’s grip, clarity of thought, structure and execution are absolute and you can say much the same of En Saga, which is perfectly paced with magnificent brass. This is very great conducting.
Irrespective of the date, the clear, well projected sound is pretty good, although the Dvorak is bass light and the flutter at the end of the finale’s opening trumpet solo should have been corrected. Thankfully the applause has been retained, but don’t expect much info with the download. You just get the front piece and have to go to the website for everything else. But the album is pretty cheap. Please bear in mind, you can only buy or stream this this from the Bandcamp website.
CRQ download and stream from https://crqeditions.bandcamp.com/