First Anniversary! Shostakovich Symphoniy No. 5 - Mercury Records - SR90060 - Stanislaw Skrowaczewski conducting the Minneapolis Symphony

As discussed on my main page, this new part of my blog is a way of celebrating our first anniversary.
I am no musical critic, so do not expect an in-depth analysis of the piece, or the interpretation, or a comparison between several versions.
I just want to share with you the music I enjoy listening to.
No need to say, it will usually be records or CDs that are best reproduced thru my own HiFi system, for extra enjoyment!

Shostakovich Symphoniy No. 5 - Mercury Records - SR90060 - Stanislaw Skrowaczewski conducting the Minneapolis Symphony

I thought I would start with a composer that I have only recently discovered, listening to my favourite radio station in my car: ABC Classic FM.












(BTW, you can listen to it on the Net; here is the link:http://www.abc.net.au/classic/audio/streaming.htm)
I find Shostakovich quite a diverse musician, with a lot of humour and sarcasm, given the fact he was living and composing soon after the Communist revolution in Russia, and certainly didn't have the freedom to compose anything that was not following the line of the Party.

But to his credit, he manages to write some beautiful music.
His 5th Symphony is certainly a good example of his talent.
This version was recorded in 1961 in Minneapolis and reissued in 2006 by Speakers Corner Records:
www.speakerscornerrecords.com

The recording is one of the first stereo recordings by Mercury, so much so, that there was a mono version available at the time! It has a very good tonal balance and wide dynamic range. Very good for such an oldie!
Some of the credit goes to Speakers Corner Records obviously for cleaning the master tapes and recutting a metal master.
Use your favourite search engine to find videos of their processes on YouTube.

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