Anything but 'Unfinished' - Schubert by Carlo Maria Giulini

As probably some of you know, finding a recording of Schubert's 8th, 'Unfinished' symphony is not easy. Although of short length it is so full of musical and human drama and so round an expression of destiny as an unexcapable given, that is a real challenge to make it live to its real potential.

And yet, if only for Schubert's symphony and there are not enough stars for this CD. I looked a long time for a version of this symphony that will sound different every time I listen to it (the way Bruno Walter said) because I really felt that this symphony is one of those rare compositions that mix with your state of mind and spirit to accompany your thoughts. Listening to this CD was a revelation. A wonderfull orchestra in the hands of a master. An ever fresh sound, beatifully blended and right at the heart of Schubert. Arrau said that Schubert's latest works suggest the composer's feeling of fatality. You can understand this if you listen to Arrau's recordings of the latest Schubert Sonatas (especially no. 21) and Giulini's version of the "Unfinished" symphony. The breathing is vast and tensed, the strings carry the message to a powerfull climax, everything in a flow of unshakable inner logic. The depth of the conception and the sheer beauty of a most refined orchestra make this recording one apart.

Dvorak's 9th is also a very fine version even though I consider Celibidache's version with Munchner Philharmoniker the last word "From New World". But make time to listen to Giulini. His orchestra has always something to say that you never heard. Everything you expect to hear is there and probably the only thing that I find a little inappropriate is to much refinemet here and there, less of a teluric feeling that I think this symphony is all about.