Sony George Szell Conducts Beethoven Symphonies 1-9 & Overtures

Many facets of George Szell come together in this album: Although born in Budapest to a Hungarian Jewish family, he was a true Viennese musician, supremely talented and rudely arrogant. Beethoven was central to his repertoire - even more so than for most conductors. The Cleveland Orchestra was the pearl in Szell's crown. Artur Rodzinski turned a mediocre group into a fine ensemble; Szell polished it to perfection. Donal Henahan of The New York Times called it 'the world's keenest symphonic instrument.' A decade after Szell's death, Cleveland's music director Christoph von Dohnanyi complained: 'We give a great concert, and George Szell gets a great review'.