Artist(s): Conductor – George Szell
Orchestra – The Cleveland Orchestra
Recording Info: Producer – Howard H. Scott
Recorded by Columbia October 24 & 30, 1959, at Severance Hall, Cleveland, Ohio
1 Andante 10:29
2 Allegro Marcato 7:39
3 Adagio 11:35
4 Allegro Giocoso 9:04
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Szell's Prokofiev
Szell's Prokofiev 5 has all the features you expect: well-drilled playing, attention to detail and full-throttle engergy. Whether you always wish to hear the piece this way is up to you; others have brought a heavier, more "Russian" weight to it. The recording was never a sonic blockbuster and isn't here either, but the sound has a more depth and presence than the Sony CD.
Astonishing virtuosity, but...
Just because you can play a piece damn fast, doesn't necessarily mean that you should. Needless to say, Szell and the Cleveland could play at any speed they liked... I find the results confusing, some movements work better than others. In particular, the music often seems just too hard-edged and breathless for its own good. It just doesn't breathe when it really needs to. At other times, like the end of the final movement, the results can be astonishing, exciting and revelatory. You choose...Needless to say, the Epic sound is not too good - thick and muddled. A pity.

Astonishing virtuosity, but...
Just because you can play a piece damn fast, doesn't necessarily mean that you should. Needless to say, Szell and the Cleveland could play at any speed they liked... I find the results confusing; some movements work better than others. In particular, the music often seems just too hard-edged and breathless for its own good. It just doesn't breathe when it really needs to. At other times, like the end of the final movement, the results can be astonishing, exciting and revelatory. You choose...Needless to say, the Epic sound is not too good - thick and muddled. A pity.
Virtuoso tour-de-force
There are loads of classic versions of this work by conductors as diverse as Karajan, Reiner, Rozhdestvensky and, very recently, Vasily Petrenko and the Oslo PO in DSD512. George Szell programmed it twice at the Salzburg Festival with the Vienna SO and the Concertgebouw (both on Orfeo). Very importantly, given the first and seconds often have different parts, Szell uses antiphonal violins and the Cleveland’s ensemble is immaculate so the rhythmic precision of the five different time signatures in five bars starting at 1.25 is exemplary, as, at speed, are the pairs of eighth notes, and partly syncopated woodwind parts at the start of the Scherzo, although rather strangely - as on the official CDs - the oboe solo in bars 6 to 8 is missing. His tempi are fast and he meticulously observes every marked change (of which there are plenty). This works because of his sense of concentration and totally uncompromising view of the score, where the weight of attack and the way he builds chords can be intimidating, which make the finale a virtuoso tour-de-force. And yet his phrasing in the Adagio is quintessentially Eastern-European, the Cleveland string sound is glorious and the downward scales and arpeggio at 6.49 are startlingly precise. The sound has plenty of clarity, definition, weight, projection and an excellent dynamic range, while the timbres of the instruments are best preserved in the DSD256 download and the official ‘remasterings’ sound like audio junk in comparison.
Superb Szell, excellent sonics, and a great transfer by HDTT
A perfect match of music, conductor and orchestra, this is one of the great Prokofiev Fifth recordings. And now in excellent sound quality. When I compare to the CD (which is not bad), there is just no contest - the HDTT transfer is sonically far superior. When this was recorded, the Cleveland Orchestra was at its peak, a world class orchestra. And there are few interpreters the equal of George Szell when it comes to the music of Prokofiev. He crafts a wonderful performance with clarity and precision. His style is to move this music along swiftly - perhaps better to say fleetly. There are no mysterious drawn-out passages with Szell and that may not be your cup of tea. While there are other recordings of the Fifth that I totally enjoy, this performance by Szell and the Cleveland suits me quite nicely. It is a classic in the catalogue. In sum, superb Szell, excellent sonics, and a great transfer by HDTT.
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