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PLEASE NOTE: Michael D's is currently in READ ONLY MODE. Anything submitted will simply not be written to the database.
Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
Beethoven-Symphonies 4 & 7 (Berlin Philharmonic/Abbado) (2001)

Beethoven-Symphonies 4 & 7 (Berlin Philharmonic/Abbado) (2001) (NTSC)

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Released 6-Sep-2007

Cover Art

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Details At A Glance

General Extras
Category Classical Main Menu Audio & Animation
Booklet
Multiple Angles-Conductor Camera
Featurette-In Conversation With Claudio Abbado
Rating Rated E
Year Of Production 2001
Running Time 80:36
RSDL / Flipper Dual Layered Cast & Crew
Start Up Menu
Region Coding 1,2,3,4,5,6 Directed By Bob Coles
Studio
Distributor
Euroarts
Select Audio-Visual Distrib
Starring None Given
Case Amaray-Transparent
RPI $59.95 Music Ludwig Van Beethoven


Video (NTSC) Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame None Audio dts 5.1 (768Kb/s)
Audio Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s)
Audio Linear PCM 48/16 2.0 (1536Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio 1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
16x9 Enhanced
Video Format 480i (NTSC)
Original Aspect Ratio 1.78:1 Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures No
Subtitles None Smoking No
Annoying Product Placement No
Action In or After Credits No

NOTE: The Profanity Filter is ON. Turn it off here.

Plot Synopsis

    Beethoven wrote his Fourth Symphony in 1806 after receiving a commission from Count Franz von Oppersdorff, who had been impressed by the composer's Second Symphony and wanted a piece in the same vein. Beethoven had been enjoying a long holiday at the summer house of his patron Prince Lichnowsky. The Count offered a great sum for the new work, so for once Beethoven was in a good mood and the symphony reflects this. It is by no means as profound as the symphonies that it falls between. Nevertheless it is still a work of quality and more assured than any other composer who was working at the same time was capable, with the possible exception of the aged Haydn.

    The Seventh was started in 1811 when Beethoven was staying at a resort in the hopes of improving his health, and completed the following year. While Beethoven's health did not improve (in fact his deafness became worse during his stay at the spa) the symphony does not reflect any growing despondency. It is full of dance rhythms and moves at a very quick pace. Critical reaction has been mixed. Beethoven's contemporary Weber said that the composer was "now quite ripe for the madhouse", while the twentieth century conductor Sir Thomas Beecham described it as being "like a lot of yaks jumping about".

    The two performances on this DVD come from a series of concerts given by the Berlin Philharmonic at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, under the baton of the orchestra's then chief conductor Claudio Abbado. Both symphonies are played quite fast, in line with Abbado's views of the tempo relationships within and between Beethoven's symphonies. The finale of the Seventh in particular is played at a breakneck speed which somehow the players manage to articulate. Both performances are quite enjoyable but perhaps they do not displace some of the classic recordings of either symphony. The audience is quite enthusiastic though; at the end of the Fourth the cameraman manages to spot Roberto Benigni and Nicoletta Braschi in the audience. Twice.

    This is one of four volumes of a complete set of the symphonies from these forces recorded in 2001, and all are well worth owning.

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Transfer Quality

Video

    The video is in the original aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and is 16x9 enhanced. The video is NTSC formatted.

    The video quality on all of the releases in this set are about the same. It is not especially sharp, and wide angle shots are often blurry and lacking in detail. Most of the video is from close to the players and the issues are not nearly as severe. Colour is muted. Black levels are good and shadow detail is acceptable.

    There are a few video artefacts, with some minor edge enhancement resulting in thin haloes at times. There is some pixellation and aliasing can be seen on the strings of the stringed instruments.

    There are no subtitles on the main programme.

    The disc is dual-layered. There is no layer break during either symphony as each is contained on its own layer.

Video Ratings Summary
Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    There are three audio tracks. I listened to the DTS 5.1 track in full and sampled the Dolby Digital 5.1 and Linear PCM 2.0 tracks.

    The DTS audio is very good. The timbre of the strings is well caught, especially the lower tones of the double-basses and the timpani. The sound is geared to the front channels with the rears only used to create an impression of the concert hall acoustic. There is a low frequency effects channel, but this does not translate into any noticeable subwoofer activity, because the sound is well blended in with that coming from the other speakers.

    The Dolby Digital channel has a slightly less rich sound and is at a lower volume level. The Linear PCM track is superior in terms of detail and the roundness of the sound, but the surround tracks have more presence and a more enveloping acoustic.

    There were no issues with audio sync.

Audio Ratings Summary
Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Extras

Main Menu Audio and Animation

    The main menu has some of the music and a brief loop of the video. As seems to be the case with all Euroarts DVDs, if you return to the main menu after accessing one of the submenus, the audio is gone.

Booklet

    The usual booklet with a few paragraphs on the music.

Multiple Angles-Conductor Camera

    The opportunity is afforded to watch the entire Seventh Symphony with the camera focused solely on the conductor.

Featurette-In Conversation With Claudio Abbado (26:24)

    This is an interview from August 2002 with Abbado that features excerpts from some of the performances in this set. He discusses his approach to Beethoven and how it has changed since he first conducted the symphonies, particularly in respect of the tempo markings and how movements within the same symphonies and different symphonies have a relationship between them in terms of the tempi. In Italian with optional English subtitles.

R4 vs R1

NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.

    This DVD is designed for worldwide release and appears to be the same in all regions.

Summary

    Two excellent concert performances of these symphonies.

    The video quality is very good but could have been better.

    The audio quality is excellent.

    This volume contains an informative featurette in addition to the usual extra material.

Ratings (out of 5)

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

© Philip Sawyer (Bio available.)
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Review Equipment
DVDSony DVP-NS9100ES, using HDMI output
DisplaySony VPL-HS60 LCD projector, 95 inch screen. Calibrated with Digital Video Essentials (PAL). This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 720p.
Audio DecoderBuilt in to DVD Player, Dolby Digital and DTS. Calibrated with Ultimate DVD Platinum.
AmplificationReceiver: Pioneer VSX-AX4ASIS; Power Amplifiers: Elektra Reference (mains), Elektra Theatron (centre/rears)
SpeakersMain: B&W Nautilus 800; Centre: Tannoy Sensys DCC; Rear: Tannoy Revolution R3; Subwoofer: Richter Thor Mk IV

Other Reviews NONE