Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra & Manfred Honeck – Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5, Barber: Adagio for Strings (2017)
DSF Stereo DSD64/2.82MHz | Time – 01:00:08 minutes | 2,38 GB | Genre: Classical
Source: SACD | Artwork: Front cover | © PentaTone
2018 Grammy Winner – Best Orchestral Performance and Best Engineered Album, Classical
In his fascinating and scholarly music notes, Maestro Manfred Honeck gives us great insight into the history of both pieces and describes how he conducts and interprets each. He reminds us that Joseph Stalin’s Soviet government was offended by Shostakovich’s previous works. Under threat of arrest or banishment to Siberia, Shostakovich devised a new, less-complex compositional style for the 5th Symphony, still full of irony and double meaning, to appease Stalin and appeal to the common people.
The Adagio of Samuel Barber is his most performed work, and one of the most popular of all 20th Century orchestral works. It is beloved for its beautiful simplicity and emotion. Manfred Honeck describes Barber’s 1967 acapella version for mixed choir using the “Agnus Dei” text and tells us his own interpretation is inspired by this text. He says it is “for me, without a doubt, the key to finding a deeper sense of this piece. Perhaps it is for this reason that the Adagio has enchanted and moved audiences around the world since its very first incarnation and has continued to do so in all subsequent versions born since.”
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Manfred Honeck, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra – Bruckner: Symphony No. 9 (2019)
DSD256 (.dsf) 1 bit/11,2 MHz | Time – 63:11 minutes | 9,96 GB
FLAC (tracks) 24-bit/96 kHz | Time – 63:11 minutes | 1,04 GB
Studio Master, Official Digital Download – Source: nativeDSDmusic | Artwork: Digital booklet
Reference Recordings proudly presents this iconic work in a new and definitive interpretation from Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, in superb Stereo Audiophile sound. This “Soundmirror” recording was made and post-produced in DSD 256 on a Pyramix workstation to give you, the listener, the highest sound quality possible.
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Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Manfred Honeck – Tchaikovsky – Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74; Dvorak – Rusalka Fantasy (2016)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:07:01 minutes | 2,87 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Reference Recordings
Of his Symphony No. 6, Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky wrote, But I absolutely consider it to be the best, and in particular, the most sincere of all my creations. I love it as I have never loved any of my other musical offspring. Tchaikovskys Symphony No. 6 was the composers final completed symphony. He led the premiere performance in October of 1893, only nine days before his death. This release also includes the world premiere recording of the Rusalka Fantasy. This orchestral suite is taken from Dvoraks opera by Manfred Honeck and Tomas Ille. Performing these works is the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, which has a long and rich history of touting the worlds finest musicians and conductors. This is the fifth release in the well-received Pittsburgh Live! Series.
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Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Manfred Honeck – Richard Strauss: Tone Poems (2013)
DSD64 (.dsf) 1 bit/2,82 MHz | Time – 59:24 minutes | 2,34 GB | Genre: Classical
Official Digital Download – Source: nativeDSDmusic | Digital Booklet | © Reference Recordings
Recorded: June 8 – 10, 2012 at Heinz Hall for the Performing Arts, Pittsburgh, PA
There are few composers who have such an impressiveability to depict a story together with single existential moments in instrumental music as Richard Strauss in his Tondichtungen (“tone poems”). Despite the clear structure that the music follows, a closer interpretative look reveals many unanswered questions. For me, it was the in-depth discovery and exploration of these details that appealed to me, as the answers resulted in surprising nuances that helped to shape the overall sound of the pieces. One such example is the opening of Tod und Verklärung (Death and Transfiguration) where it is obvious that the person on the deathbed breathes heavily, characterized by the second violins and violas in a syncopated rhythm. What does the following brief interjection of the flutes mean? The answer came to me while thinking about my own dark, shimmering farmhouse parlor where I lived as a child. There, we had only a sofa and a clock on the wall that interrupted the silence. The flutes remind me of the ticking clock hand. This is why it has to sound sober, unemotional, mechanistic and almost metallic. Another such example is the end of Don Juan where the strings seem to tremble. It is here that one can hear the last convulsions of the hero’s dying body. This must sound nervous, dreadful and dramatic. For this reason, I took the liberty to alter the usual sound. I ask the strings to gradually transform the tone into an uncomfortable, convulsing, and shuddering ponticello until the final pizzicato marks the hero’s last heartbeat.
Another detail I would like to emphasize can be found in the trial scene of Till Eulenspiegel. Before Till is sentenced to death, the D-clarinet has a note that, according to Strauss, must sound entstellt (“distorted”). The problem with this note is that it is impossible to hear, because the whole orchestra enters with a fortissimo . That is why I have this “distorted” note played one octave higher than written. This way, it does not only sound higher, but tremendously entstellt . In my opinion, this must have been a mistake, because Strauss surely knew that the instrumentation he asked for makes the note inaudible.
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Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Manfred Honeck – Strauss: Elektra & Der Rosenkavalier Suites (2016)
DSF Stereo DSD256, 1 bit/11,2 MHz | Time – 58:31 minutes | 9,23 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download – Source: nativeDSDmusic | Booklet, Front Cover | © Reference Recordings
Recorded: May 13-15, 2016, Heinz Hall for the Performing Arts, Pittsburgh, PA
This new recording presents orchestral suites based on two of the most significant operas in history. Der Rosenkavalier found its place in the concert hall from the beginning, first with two waltz sequences and later with the famous 1944 suite. But Elektra remained purely on the opera stage until now. Conductor Manfred Honeck has made his own symphonic adaptation, in collaboration with the Czech composer Tomás Ille.We proudly present these Strauss suites, new and old, in definitive interpretations from Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, in superb audiophile sound.
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Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Manfred Honeck – Strauss: Elektra and Der Rosenkavalier (2016)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 58:31 minutes | 2,54 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Reference Recordings
Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra present this acclaimed live 2016 recording of orchestral suites based on two of the most significant operas in history. Der Rosenkavalier found its place in the concert hall from the beginning, first with two waltz sequences and later with the famous 1944 suite, but Elektra remained purely on the opera stage until now, thanks to Honeck’s own symphonic adaptation in collaboration with Czech composer Tomás Ille.
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Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra & Manfred Honeck – Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5 / Schulhoff: Five Pieces for String Quartet (2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:00:22 minutes | 1,05 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Reference Recordings
Reference Recordings proudly presents Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 in a significant new interpretation from conductor Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. It is coupled with Erwin Schulhoff’s Five Pieces for String Quartet, newly arranged for large orchestra by Manfred Honeck and Tomáš Ille. This album was recorded in beautiful and historic Heinz Hall, home of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, in superb audiophile sound. Maestro Honeck honors us again with his meticulous music notes, in which he gives us great insight into his interpretation as well as the history and musical structure of Tchaikovsky’s great Symphony No. 5. This release is the fourteenth in the highly acclaimed Pittsburgh Live! series of multi-channel hybrid SACD releases on the FRESH! imprint from Reference Recordings. This series has received numerous GRAMMY® Nominations, and its recording of Shostakovich’s Symphony No.5 /Barber Adagio for Strings won the 2018 GRAMMY® Awards for Best Orchestral Performance and Best Engineered Classical Album.
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María Dueñas, Wiener Symphoniker, Manfred Honeck – Beethoven and Beyond (2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:39:44 minutes | 1,93 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Deutsche Grammophon (DG)
At the heart of Spanish violinist María Dueñas’s DG debut album, ‘Beethoven and Beyond’, is an intriguingly individual interpretation of the Beethoven ‘Violin Concerto’. The work was recorded live at Vienna’s Musikverein with the Wiener Symphoniker and Manfred Honeck, and features Dueñas’s own newly written cadenzas for each movement. The album also includes a series of showpieces for violin and orchestra by Kreisler, Saint-Saëns, Spohr, Wieniawski and Ysaÿe. To complement these works and the concerto, Dueñas has recorded a companion disc of cadenzas written for the first movement of the Beethoven by those same five composers.
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Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Manfred Honeck, William Caballero – Beethoven: Symphony No. 3, Op. 55 “Eroica” – Strauss: Horn Concerto No. 1, Op. 11 (Live) (2018)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:05:16 minutes | 2,28 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Reference Recordings
Reference Recordings proudly presents these two iconic works in definitive interpretations from Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, in superb audiophile sound.
In his fascinating and scholarly music notes, Maestro Honeck gives us insight into the history of both pieces, and describes how he conducts and interprets each. He reminds us that the “Eroica” was a bold departure from earlier symphonies, a “dance symphony with dramatic inventiveness, full of new elements that had never been heard before.” He quotes Beethoven’s student Ferdinand Ries, who wrote “Beethoven played recently for me (the “Eroica”) and I believe both heaven and earth must tremble when it is performed.” Honeck puts his own inimitable stamp on this interpretation, giving the listener a chance to experience the novelties of the “Eroica” as if hearing it for the very first time.
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Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Manfred Honeck – Dvorak, Janacek – Symphony No. 8, Symphonic Suite (2014)
DSF Stereo DSD64/2.82MHz | Time – 01:02:02 minutes | 6,12 GB | Genre: Classical
Official Digital Download – Source: nativeDSDmusic | © Reference Recordings
Recorded: October 11-13, 2013
Nominated for 2015 GRAMMY Award! Best Orchestral Performance.
For more than 116 years, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra has been known for its artistic excellence. The PSO has a rich history of the world’s finest conductors and musicians. Past conductors include the legendary names of Reiner, Steinberg, Previn, Maazel,and other greats. This tradition was furthered in fall 2008, when celebrated Austrian conductor Manfred Honeck became Music Director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra..
The PSO is critically acclaimed as one of the world’s greatest orchestras, and has completed more than 36 international tours, including 20 European tours, eight trips to the Far East, and two to South America. The PSO was the first American orchestra to perform at the Vatican in January 2004 for the late Pope John Paul II, as part of the Pontiff’s Silver Jubilee celebration.
The PSO also has a long history in the areas of recordings and radio concerts. As early as 1936, the PSO broadcast coast-to-coast, receiving increased national attention in 1982 when it began network radio broadcasts on Public Radio International. The PRI series with the PSO can be heard on Classical WQED-FM 89.3 in Pittsburgh. Many PSO recordings remain in print and available, and they have won critical acclaim and many awards..
This release and the entire “Pittsburgh Live!”series are recorded and mastered by the team at Soundmirror, whose outstanding orchestral, solo, opera, and chamber recordings have received over 70 GRAMMY nominations and awards! Soundmirror has recorded for every major classical record label, now including Reference Recordings.
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra , Manfred Honeck – Brahms: Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 98 – MacMillan: Larghetto for Orchestra (Live) (2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 53:57 minutes | 1,69 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Reference Recordings
Reference Recordings proudly presents the Symphony No. 4 of Johannes Brahms, with James MacMillan’s Larghetto for Orchestra, in exceptional performances from Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. We are excited that this release coincides with the orchestra’s 2021-2022 season and triumphant return to live concerts! These works were recorded live in beautiful and historic Heinz Hall, now celebrating its 50th Anniversary season.
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Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Manfred Honeck – Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 – Johnathan Leshnoff: Double Concerto for Clarinet & Bassoon (Live) (2020)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:01:08 minutes | 1,93 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Reference Recordings
One salutary aspect of the tendency of orchestras, especially American and British ones, to issue their live concerts on recordings is that standout performances tend to be picked. The performance here of the Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36, was recorded in 2016, but it clearly stuck in some heads and was identified as a worthwhile moment (the Double Concerto by Jonathan Leshnoff was recorded three years later; this live album doesn’t represent a single concert). It is indeed special: the Symphony No. 4 has rarely received such an intense performance. It’s not the speed; conductor Manfred Honeck comes in a minute slower than Mariss Jansons on the first movement of his Oslo Philharmonic recording, but there is still a feeling of urgency, amplified by slight changes to the score that Honeck details in his expansive liner notes (available on the Chandos label’s website for downloaders and streamers) and by a general high-contrast approach to dynamics. Listeners will have to make their own decisions about these, but it’s quite arguable that Honeck does nothing that a conductor of the late 19th or early 20th century might have also considered. The Pittsburgh Symphony is in fine form in the symphony’s thrilling brass passages and in the all-pizzicato strings of the third movement. The accompanying Double Concerto for clarinet and bassoon by Leshnoff is also a pleasure: a neo-Romantic work agreeably written and elegantly performed by soloists Michael Rusinek and Nancy Goeres. The live engineering in the acoustically difficult Tchaikovsky, from Pittsburgh’s Heinz Hall, is very fine.
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Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Manfred Honeck – Bruckner: Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, WAB 109 (Ed. L. Nowak) (2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:03:10 minutes | 1,96 GB | Genre: Klassiek
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Reference Recordings
Maestro Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra present Bruckner Symphony No. 9, an iconic work in a new and definitive interpretation in superb audiophile sound. This release was recorded in beautiful Heinz Hall, home of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.
In this revelatory recording of Bruckner’s monumental work, Maestro Honeck invites us to explore the presence of the divine, to experience the beauty of this world, while also facing the darker and more violent abysses. In his deeply personal and scholarly music notes that accompany the recording, Maestro Honeck gives us great insight into the history and the musical structure of Bruckner’s final composition, and describes how he conducts and interprets this work. With lyrical and majestic moments, Bruckner’s Symphony No. 9 is a masterful journey.
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Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra & Manfred Honeck – Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125 “Choral” (Live) (2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:02:45 minutes | 2,03 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Reference Recordings
Celebrate Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in a new and definitive interpretation from Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra! Recorded in superb audiophile sound, this release is the eleventh in the highly acclaimed Pittsburgh Live! series on the FRESH! imprint from Reference Recordings. This series has received GRAMMY® Nominations in 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2020. Its recording of Shostakovich’s Symphony No.5 /Barber Adagio for Strings won the 2018 GRAMMY® Awards for Best Orchestral Performance and Best Engineered Classical Album. The album booklet includes Maestro Honeck’s meticulous music notes, in which he gives us great insight into his unique interpretation as well as the history and musical structure of Beethoven’s most famous symphony.
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Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Manfred Honeck – Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7 (2015)
DSD128 (.dsf) 1 bit/5,6 MHz MHz | Time – 59:53 minutes | 5,63 GB
or DSD64 (.dsf) 1 bit/2,8 MHz MHz | Time – 59:53 minutes | 2,82 GB
or FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/176,4 kHz | Time – 59:53 minutes | 2,23 GB
Studio Master, Official Digital Download – Source: nativeDSDmusic | Artwork: Digital booklet | © Reference Recordings
SAN FRANCISCO: Conductor Manfred Honeck writes in his fascinating and thorough music notes: “A recording of Beethoven is always a great occasion and event. The marrying of the music’s historic interpretation with the brilliance of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s playing and the fantastic technique of Soundmirror have made this recording,
comprised of three live concerts from December 2014, possible. It has been a joy to look deeply into that which Beethoven has composed, while also discovering the sense and content of the music and thus the reason why it has been written. For me, this is always the most beautiful part of the creative process.”
This release is the fourth in the highly acclaimed Pittsburgh Live! series of multi-channel hybrid SACD releases on the FRESH! series from Reference Recordings. Each, including the newest Bruckner 4 (FR713SACD) has received dozens of critical accolades. Dvořák/Janáček (FR710SACD), garnered a GRAMMY® nomination for Best Orchestral Performance. Since 1896, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra has been known for its artistic excellence, a rich history of the world’s finest conductors and musicians, and a strong commitment to the Pittsburgh region and its citizens. Past music directors have included many of the greats, including Fritz Reiner (1938-1948), William Steinberg (1952-1976), Andre Previn (1976-1984), Lorin Maazel (1984-1996) and Mariss Jansons (1995-2004). This tradition of outstanding international music directors was furthered in fall 2008, when Austrian conductor Manfred Honeck became music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony.
The orchestra has been at the forefront of championing new American works, and gave the first performance of Leonard Bernstein’s Symphony No. 1 “Jeremiah” in 1944, and John Adams’ “Short Ride in a Fast Machine” in 1986. The Pittsburgh Symphony has a long and illustrious history in the areas of recordings and radio concerts. As early as 1936, the Pittsburgh Symphony broadcast on the airwaves coast-to-coast and in the late 1970s it made the groundbreaking PBS series “Previn and the Pittsburgh.” The orchestra has received increased national attention since 1982 through network radio broadcasts on Public Radio International, produced by Classical WQED-FM 89.3, which are made possible by the musicians of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.
This release and the entire Pittsburgh Live! series are recorded and mastered by the team at Soundmirror, whose outstanding orchestral, solo, opera and chamber recordings have received more than 70 Grammy nominations and awards. Soundmirror has recorded for every major classical record label, now including Reference Recordings.
FRESH! is part of Reference Recordings’ mission to encourage unique and fine artists, and give them a strong platform for promotion and sales nationally and internationally.
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