Nielsen and Busoni



Carl Nielsen? My opinion was not very high of him until I attended a concert performance of 'Saul and David' conducted by Andrew Davis and was blown away. In the right hands it is a fantastic piece. Sadly the recording with Christoff and Horenstein pales by comparison. I guess like Busoni, he needs a really good performance to bring his works to life.

Do you like Busoni? My theory is that the works he is famous for are not his best. For example I prefer 'Turandot' to 'Dr. Faust' and the Violin Concerto to the Piano Concerto. However, the Turandot Suite is only any good under Muti and the Violin Concerto needs performers such as Celibidache and Adolf Busch to make its point I think. His Goethe Lieder in the hands of Fischer-Dieskau are great songs but as for the others?



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