Beethoven: Symphony No.9 (1983) / Herbert von Karajan(cond), Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Janet Perry(S), Agnes Baltsa(Ms), etc

わが国でも「第9」の呼称で広く親しまれている全人的な理念を音楽で表現したこのベートーヴェン畢生の大作は、独唱と合唱を終楽章に置いた革新的な作品です。カラヤンがベルリン・フィルハーモニーを指揮してドイツ・グラモフォンに3度完成させた交響曲全集の最後となった録音で、オーケストラの機能を最大限に発揮させ、精緻でありながら力感の漲る壮大なスケールで、カラヤンのベートーヴェン解釈の総決算といえる演奏を展開しています。
ユニバーサルミュージック

Admirers of Herbert von Karajan have four Beethoven symphony cycles to choose from, and out of these, his 1962-1963 recordings are almost universally praised, with the rendition of the Symphony No. 9 in D minor singled out as one of this conductor's greatest achievements. Over 20 years later, Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra took on the Ninth again, in this digital recording that would be his last statement for Deutsche Grammophon of this great symphony. By this time in his career, Karajan was a legend and he could ask anything of the BPO, so in this performance he emphasized the polished sound of the orchestra rather more than the energy and excitement of the music. However, Deutsche Grammophon's reproduction reflects the limitations of early digital technology, with a shallow surface quality and overly bright sonorities, so perhaps what Karajan created and heard in the orchestral sound is not preserved in this CD.