The Changing Sounds of the World's Great Orchestras
The third of four programmes in which Jonathan Swain explores the differences and developments in instrumental tone and playing styles throughout the century, contrasting orchestras from various countries and periods. Amid current concern that all of today's top orchestras sound the same, do any of them retain elements of their former distinctive characteristics? This programme focuses on the United States, a country famous for its virtuoso orchestras, and includes George Szell in Cleveland conducting Hindemith's Symphonic Metamorphosis,
Rachmaninov's Isle of the Dead from the Boston Symphony Orchestra under Serge Koussevitzky , and, at
11.15, Fritz Reiner 's celebrated Chicago recording of Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra.