In February 2018, the Wiener Symphoniker and their Music Director Philippe Jordan present the second CD in their first complete recording of the Beethoven symphonies. With his Fifth Symphony, Beethoven created a true symphonic icon. It is as universally known above all thanks to its powerful opening bars. Its parallels with its predecessor, the Fourth, are less prominent than those with, for example, its successor the Sixth. Nevertheless, the Fourth features many ideas that would only be fully elaborated in the Fifth. \u201cThe connection\u201d, Jordan emphasises, \u201cis more a matter of the spirit of the works, but is no less important for all that.\u201d
\nAs with the first, enthusiastically received first CD, this recording was made live in the Golden Hall of the Musikverein as part of an acclaimed cycle during 2017. International critics were especially pleased with Jordan\u2019s approach, which combines Wiener Klang, the distinctive Viennese instrumental style, with a contemporary and pared-back interpretation while incorporating insights from historically informed performance and original tempi. But for Jordan, the content is the main focus: instead of venerating Beethoven the monument, he wants to show him in a \u201cmore natural, direct and human\u201d way.<\/p>\n
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