Karl Böhm - Edition Staatskapelle Dresden Vol. 49 (2024)

Karl Böhm in 1973 for the 425th anniversary of the orchestra wrote, “I headed the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden for nine years – the most wonderful and meaningful time of my life.” He was forty in 1934, when he moved to assume direction of the Dresden State Orchestra and Opera. There, his sensitive yet dramatic style of conducting, his vigour and intellectual resilience, his feel for classical form and unerring sense of tempo, very soon won the respect and trust of the musicians and singers in his charge; they did after all represent one of the best orchestras and most capable opera ensembles in Europe. Every season, Böhm conducted nearly all the Staatskapelle concerts and about 70 opera performances, setting new standards above all in the Mozart, Wagner and Strauss repertoire. In this extraordinarily extensive activity, he set his stamp on the ensemble, whose guest performances confirmed its international ranking. Even in his first year in Dresden, he made recordings in the Semperoper, which always had to be especially prepared for the purpose. They included numerous individual symphonic works and items from opera, as well as lavish projects that were technically difficult to record at the time.