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Beethoven, Ludwig van: Symphony # 4 and Symphony # 7 (Philips, 1983)

This is a live recording of Carlos directing the Concertgebouw Orchester of Amsterdam in brlliant performances of what seem to have been his two favorite Beethoven symphonies. This DVD caused me to reconsider my assessment of the 4th. I now believe it to be among Beethoven's symphonies of the first rank. The articulation by the first violins in the last movement of the 4th is impressive. In the last movement of the 7th, we see, among other things, Carlos pointing to his ear and, later, tilting his head to let a player know that he had not gotten exactly what he wanted. Later in the movement, Carlos stands completely still, arms by his side, for 4 seconds. (See "Kleiber Moments," #2 and #5.) At the end of the performance of the 7th, several members of the string section take out their handkerchiefs to wipe their sweating brows. They had just been "pushed" by Carlos, perhaps as never before when performing this work.