Beethoven "Choral" Symphony Conducted by Wilhelm Furtwängler at the 1951 Bayreuth Festival

It is indeed a daunting task to undertake one of the most historic and important live recordings of the 20th century; the 1951 Bayreuth Festival recording of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 “The Choral”, conducted by Wilhelm Furtwängler. It is made even more poignant by the fact that it was the first performance for the reopening of Bayreuth after the Second World War. Furtwängler only agreed to conduct the Ninth Symphony on very special occasions and never made a studio recording – this is by far the most significant performance of Beethoven’s masterpiece. Originally completed in 1824 and premiered in Vienna...