What a wonderful work this is, and yet in some ways it's a shame that it's unfinished, but i suspect that if it was finished, then the last two movements would be a let down, maybe that's why Schubert left them unfinished, actually its 'torso-ness' is its strength, there's a nice gloomy darkness to this work, especially in the first movement, it's cast in B Minor, each movement is a perfect foil for the other, i really enjoyed this Symphony today, and i played this disc a couple of years ago [6th September 2010].
Ton Koopman is Dutch, he's now 67, and he recorded this disc in 1994, he's usually a Baroque specialist, so this is a bit out of the way for him, an Erato disc with a good cover photograph of Koopman [by Frans Jansen], some very nice shadows on the right, however the left is all washed out, nevertheless it's still a good front cover.
What a great work this is, i actually enjoyed the second movement the best, there's this aching sadness to it, but at the same time there's a resolute hope there as well, a sun peeking out of the clouds, at first it alternates between sweet and sour, two themes that intertwine, .
Here's Riccardo Muti playing the second movement on YouTube.
Here's Riccardo Muti playing the second movement on YouTube.
