Philharmonia Orchestra, Otto Klemperer - Mozart - Symphonies (2006)

Klemperer's Mozart recordings have been available almost without a break since their original LP releases. It's not hard to see why, since he conducted Mozart with authority, never lapsing into either heavy-handed Romanticism or its opposite, treating the music like a fragile piece of porcelain. Klemperer's sturdy rhythms make even some of his slow dance-based movements seem faster than they actually are. Period performance buffs will still feel this big-band Mozart is too heavy but the more open-minded will appreciate the way Klemperer brings the winds forward to create appropriate balances with the strings. The conductor's late recordings could be variable affairs, but for the most part these glow with the ardor of his love for the composer and his music. The Philharmonia (and its successor, the New Philharmonia) are in top form, with the winds – in solo turns or as a section--particularly outstanding. Klemperer's muscular directness yields a set that will never be out of fashion, especially in this Great Recordings of the Century remastering in which the original recordings don't sound their age. -- Dan Davis