Enjoy The Music‘s Joe Milicia reviews the new Pittsburgh Symphony Dvořák & Janáček SACD and gives it a 5/5 rating for Performance and Recording Quality! “It would be great to have more program notes like the one in Reference Recordings’ new Pittsburgh Symphony release, with the conductor commenting in detail on his own interpretation of the music. … On a first hearing I found the performance overall to be consistently interesting but a bit studied—”carefully”…
The Arts Desk‘s Graham Rickson has a new rave for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Manfred Honeck’s latest FRESH! From Reference Recordings SACD: “Dvořák’s…Eighth [symphony] is the most radical, and Manfred Honeck’s remarkable performance highlights its originality in some style. …[Honeck] justifies every interpretive decision in his sleeve notes, and the musical results are pretty special. … What follows is electrifying – an exuberant adrenalin rush… Reach the close, and you’ll hopefully be awestruck. Cheap…
Critic Steven Ritter says the new Pittsburgh Symphony recording is “Interpretatively and sonically, this is one of the best releases of the Dvorak 8th I have ever heard.” in a new Five-Star Review: “This album only confirms the fact that the Pittsburgh Symphony, always one of America’s greatest and most underrated orchestras, now tops the list in both interpretative finesse and recorded sound. … Phrasing is perfect; he lingers some places where others may not,…
Classical Candor‘s John J. Puccio has a new review for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s new Dvořák & Janáček SACD: “This new rendering of [Dvořák] No. 8 by Manfred Honeck and his Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra on a live Reference Recordings Fresh! hybrid SACD stacks up pretty well. … There is great exuberance in the conductor’s handling of the various themes, while the sounds of nature, like the birdsong of the flute, create a truly sweet atmosphere.…
ClassicsToday gives a 10/10 for Artistic Quality and a 10/10 for Sound Quality to the new Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra Dvořák & Janáček recording, hailing it as “Honeck’s Incandescent Dvořák 8th!” “There are few things more wonderful in the life of a record collector than a really great recording of a repertory warhorse. … along comes a performance by a conductor who loves the music, who has genuine ideas about how it should go and what…
Luxemburg’s Pizzicato Magazine has a new rave review for the Pittsburgh Symphony and their new Dvořák and Janáček recording: “This is one of the most gripping performances of Dvořák’s 8th Symphony that I ever heard. Honeck and Pittsburgh excel themselves and definitely team up to one of those great partnerships like Solti and Chicago, Ozawa and Boston, Bernstein and New York, Szell and Cleveland, Tilson-Thomas and San Francisco.” —Alain Steffen, Pizzicato Read the full review…
Film music critic, Thomas Kiefner says “You won’t be disappointed” with the new Pittsburgh Symphony Dvořák/Janáček SACD: “One of the keys to the success of this recording is the superior sound which you’ll best hear in SACD… When I played it through my stereo system the result was nothing short of spectacular. Yes you’ll hear the occasional rustling of the papers and a stray cough but at least to me I didn’t find it distracting…
Audiophilia recommends the new Pittsburgh Symphony Dvořák/Janáček recording in their July Recommended New Releases: “Here, under a warm Bohemian sun, the Pittsburgers and their man have scored a home run. … And, though the opera Jenůfa is about child loss and redemption, conductor Honeck’s ‘conceptualization’ of the opera’s themes into a ‘Suite’ makes for very enjoyable listening. The pathos is there but with such wonderful and infectious rhythms, it’s hard to feel down. … Taken…
Dvořák • Janáček Manfred Honeck Pittsburgh Symphony OrchestraFR-710 SACD Antonin Dvořák Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Op. 88 Leoš Janáček Symphonic Suite from “Jenůfa”(Conceptualized by Manfred Honeck, realized by Tomáš Ille) Thrilling Live Performances From The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, In Brilliant Audiophile Sound! This release is the second in the “Pittsburgh Live!” series of multi-channel hybrid SACD releases on the FRESH! series from Reference Recordings. For more than 116 years, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra…
Culture Spot LA, which reviewed the first Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra recording on FRESH! From Reference Recordings, is already raving about the next installment in the “Pittsburgh Live!” series: “Anyone who is familiar with the Dvořák G major symphony will find Honeck’s interpretation remarkable. Like his interpretations of the Strauss tone poems, Honeck takes great liberties with the tempo and dynamics in order to realize his vision. … The result is a fresh and exciting version…