★★★★☆ Karajan is intense and the Berliners immaculate, but is this really Schubert?

Schubert: Symphonies Nos. 8 and 9

As superhuman as Karajan was in his day, all musicians have their limits, their blind spots. So it's hard to know how to approach this disc, one flawless in execution and full of incredible sounds, yet seemingly removed from the sound world of the composer. Karajan seemed to miss the wistful, tuneful qualities in Schubert's music, perhaps one of the rare side effects of his incomparable intensity.

Now that the authentic movement has had significant influence in the early romantic repertoire, Karajan's thick, wholly romantic way in the Schubert "Unfinished" Symphony would be a shock to more than a few ears. It's devoid of charm, but the power is overwhelming. Since the Symphony is rather darkish anyway, one can make an argument for it. The intensity is weltering, and the cumulative effect of the orchestra's tone chilling in its translucency. This approach works best if you close your eyes and imagine you're listening to an orchestral interlude from Tristan und Isolde.
It's captivating to hear the orchestra at the height of its powers, no matter if the interpretation is atypical.

I find Karajan more problematic in the 9th Symphony, though. Here Schubert's writing is glorious, and if mystery and melancholy is stressed in the "Unfinished", in the 9th the scales are tipped towards joy and lyricism. And those are the two elements completely missing in Karajan's conducting. But Karajan isn't simply blunt, and he's not impersonal. The Berliners play with phenomenal balance, although as a previous reviewer mentions, the brass do sound a little blatty. It's a grand show, but I wish it could be more idiomatic, as impressive and the Berlin machine sounds; one feels too much of the spirit is trampled in the process.This reading leaves me feeling rather torn, then. The power of the orchestra is spell-binding, but especially in the 9th, Karajan doesn't seem Schubertian enough. But certainly there are many great qualities here. I'm somewhat arbitrarily giving this album a four star rating, but it could easily be dropped to three for its lack of charm or raised to five for the perfection of the orchestral ensemble. I'll have to to keep listening myself.