Review of Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 op. 125 "Choral"

Introduction

Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770 – 1827)
Symphony No.9 in D Minor op. 125

Conducted by Maximianno Cobra the Europa Philharmonia Budapest Orchestra and Choir presents us with their interpretation of Beethoven’s symphony No.9 in D Minor.

I Allegro ma non troppo e un poco maestoso 26’09”
II (Allegro) Molto vivace 23’12”
III “Finale with chorus on Sciller’s Ode to Joy” 40’05”

Erika Miklosa, Soprano
Bernadette Wiedemann, Alto
Andras Molnar, Tenor
Istvan Raca, Bass


This DVD presents Beethoven’s 9th symphony in a full 5.1 recording and mix along with a 1.85 anamorphic video of the performance. A PCM stereo version of the mix is also included.
The DVD also contains DVD-ROM material for use on a PC or Mac.

Video

The video is presented in 1.85 anamorphic widescreen and looks suprisingly good. The orchestra is surrounded with blackness with no real background to speak of which gives us some real deep blacks and some good contrast. If there is one criticism I can see it’s that it can look a little artificial and processed, although no compression problems were noticed.

Audio

Audio is presented in 5.1 Dolby Digital and a PCM stereo mix.
The 5.1 mix gives a great sense of presence with the extra channels allowing the sound to breath rather than surrounding you in an all channel assault on the ears. If your expecting a total surround experience then you would be better served elsewhere. The front line (left, right, centre) speakers have most of the work here and sound very good with sound bass extension and well rendered mids and highs. Strings are especially well rendered with little in the way of compression problems. Rears although in constant use are subtly used which gives a good feeling of space and presence rather than blasting from behind as they would on a movie soundtrack. The sub has little to do though and only occasionally will add a little weight to the bass.
The only real problem with the audio is in the rendition of the piece rather than any digital problems. The symphony seems to be overly slow and can become a little boring and unexciting. Still if you prefer this kind of rendition of the symphony, then this DVD will probably be for you.

Features

Extras include a short 9min documentary which introduces Beethoven and the origins of the 9th symphony. This is narrated by the conductor Mr Cobra (cool name) who unfortunately has a little trouble with his English and can therefore be hard to understand at times. This means the narration is quite slow and tedious and adds little to the overall atmosphere of the programme.
Two audio only songs are included in PCM stereo only and include:
a)“Requited Love” 10’55”
b) “With a Coloured Ribbon” 4’32”

Erika Miklosa, Soprano
Erika Dallos, Piano

Other extras include DVD-ROM articles which can be viewed on a Mac or PC and which uses the Adobe Acrobat PDF format.

Articles include:
1) Ninth Symphony- “Genesis”
2) From Ode to Hymn – From Schiller to Beethoven
3) About tempi
4) Selected Bibliography

There is also a small biography section with information on the conductor and orchestra. A direct link to the ‘Ode of Joy’ is also included.

Conclusion

A good quality disk with a good selection of extras and information. The performance may not be to everyone’s taste but the encoding of the audio cannot really be faulted. You really need a DVD-ROM to get the most from the disk as all the documents are in PDF format. It would have been nice to have it available on the DVD to read but never mind. All in all a decent attempt at presenting a real live orchestra in your living room.