There's a famous story that when Barenboim visited Klemperer in his
hotel he found the old man slumped in despair in front of the TV.
"What's the matter, Otto?" asked Daniel. "I've just been watching
Stokowski conduct Beethoven's 5th," was the reply. "Was it so bad?"
asked Barenboim. "NO!" roared Klemperer - "It was very good!" ... and
here's the 1st movt of that same performance.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smQScsCq4zY

In article s37g2000prg.googlegroups.com>,
Kerrison says...

Old Stoki could conduct Beethoven very well at times - e.g. his Phase-Four 9th.
His Phase-Four 7th, on the other hand, is putrid.

OTOH, Stoki's 1927 Beethoven 7th is a classic, standing alongside
Toscanini's NYPO recording. I know this is so, because B. H. Haggin
said so... --E.A.C.

On Jan 31, 1:45 pm, Paul Goldstein newsguy.com> wrote:

On Jan 31, 2:08�pm, "Edward A. Cowan" hughes.net> wrote:

Everyone did, and still does, agree with Haggin. (I know I do, for
the little that is worth.) His comment is especially interesting
because Stokowski was a special target for his negative criticism for
decades. After about 1940, if one reads his publications, it seemed as
if Haggin couldn't say anything good about anything Stokowski did and
simply despised him.

Stoki's circa 1958 United Artists LP of Beethoven 7 was greeted
rapturously by every critic I've read as a successful recreation of
the 1927 Philadelphia Victor 78s. It's superb indeed. So is the circa
1963 live performance from a London Proms concert, issued on CD by BBC
Legends.

Don Tait

The fifth symphony from the Philadelphia Orchestra's 100th anniversary
set is a great one too.

On Jan 31, 3:44�pm, phlmaestr...@yahoo.com wrote:

Yes, and I can't resist telling a story about Stokowski and the
Eroica.

I'm sure he conducted it many times in his long career. I heard him
do it with the Chicago Symphony around 1961. Frankly it wasn't that
interesting, something my friends and I said might have been partly
due to Stokowski's recent hip-breakage (he was still using crutches to
get on stage and sat to conduct). Anyway, in the end a disappointment.
The same for a Stokowski/Philadelphia Eroica not too long later. I
still have the tape of that. But then:

in the spring of 1968, Stokowski did the Eroica with the American
Symphony Orchestra. It was not long after the murder of Dr. Martin
Luther King Junior, and Stokowski was also becoming more and more
worked up about his opposition to the Vietnam war. This Eroica is hot,
blazing hot. It's a shattering experience.

I guess my final message would be that every performance, and
certainly every recording, can and will be different.

Stokowski live in 1968, but not in LvB:

Leopold Stokowski conducting the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

Shostakovich: Age of Gold--suite

Shostakovich: Symphony #6

Khachaturian: Symphony #3

Sensational, blew me away, the CSO sounds great.
Maybe the original poster will see this and post the links here:

(Qtd from the original post):
"This is one of my favorite live CSO recordings, the
full concert Stokowski did in Feb 1968. While he
recorded all three works with the CSO after these
concerts, I love the intensity of these live
performances. Also, the orchestra gives Saint Leopold
a HUGE tusch during the ovations, and Stokowski's
comment to the audience after this is priceless
Stokowski."

jjS

On Jan 31, 4:26�pm, jserrag...@gmail.com wrote:

Sam wrote:

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the Stokowskian orchestral seating.
Quite unusual, but I suspect it was effective in the hall. Is this a
British...

On 1 Feb, 06:13, Bob Harper comcast.net> wrote: