About this Artist

• Biography

Editorial Reviews

Recorded for Telarc between 1986 and 1990, Charles Mackerras and the Prague Chamber Orchestra's recordings of Mozart's complete symphonies have always been admired for their style, strength, and sensitivity. Reissued here in 2008 as a 10-disc set, those qualities are still obvious. Mackerras, surely one of the most versatile of contemporary conductors, clearly has a thoroughgoing understanding of Mozart's manner. From the first to the last symphonies (and this set contains not only the 40 numbered but also the 7 un-numbered symphonies), Mackerras stresses the score's elegance, wit, charm, and clarity. And the Prague Chamber Orchestra likewise wholly grasps Mozart's matter. The strings are suave, the winds characterful, the brass blended, and the timpani muscular. Some listeners have argued that Mackerras puts perhaps too much power into his interpretations, that his first 20 symphonies are aptly light and delightful, but that his next 15 get progressively more forceful, and that his last six are far closer to early Beethoven than may be strictly appropriate. Still, with Mackerras' superb conducting and the Czech musicians' superlative playing, this set is surely one of the best of its kind and anyone interested in the composer should at least sample it. Though recorded in the early days of digital, Telarc's sound is rich, deep, and creamy. James Leonard, All Music Guide

Customer Reviews

• Listener Rating:
• Ratings: 3