Classical Voice North America calls Pittsburgh Symphony and Manfred Honeck’s Beethoven Symphony No. 9 an “essential” recording:
“Honeck’s riveting new CD of Beethoven’s Ninth with the Pittsburgh Symphony was recorded at Heinz Hall concerts in June 2019. He introduced his swift approach to Beethoven, drawing on the composer’s metronome markings, with stunning performances of the Seventh in 2009. The recording of the Ninth benefits from the experience the orchestra had with Honeck’s interpretation at concerts in 2010, 2013, and 2015. The result is a performance that has lost none of its radical flair but also feels well lived in. … Honeck’s Scherzo bursts with rhythmic vitality, not only from its drive but also from shrewdly enlivening inner rhythms. … Beethoven’s lively tempo for the “Ode to Joy” theme, coupled with Honeck’s scrupulous attention to choral diction and accentuation, makes his finale a particularly exuberant experience. The Mendelssohn Choir produces a disciplined, full-bodied sound, and is fully as effective in the reflective music in the second part of the movement as in the prevailing vigorous passages elsewhere. … The vocal quartet is excellent, particularly in the sublime joy of their meditation on “Alle Menschen werden Brüder” (All men will be brothers), right before the music accelerates for the immoderate joy of the conclusion. … The Honeck/Pittsburgh Symphony Beethoven Ninth is an essential recording because it is, on balance, the most persuasive representation of Beethoven’s tempo intentions. That’s more than the matter of speed. It is the skill and detailed conviction of these performers that make those tempos effective.”
—Mark Kanny, Classical Voice North America
See the full review on ClassicalVoiceAmerica.org