(no subject)

I think I've made a discovery. Not much of one, of course, but I had never previously listened to the conductor Hans Knappertsbusch, and this afternoon I listened to his accounts of Beethoven's Third and Bruckner's Fourth in succession, and was struck dumb. Such grandeur and dignity, and incredibly beautiful sound. It helps that the orchestra is the Wiener Phil at the height of its excellence, but Knappertsbusch has such a distinctive touch that it is impossible not to ascribe the excellence of these performances to him first and foremost.