Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #37140 in DVD
• Released on: 2007-05-29
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: AC-3, Classical, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 97 minutes

Customer Reviews

Emotive and exciting Concert!
The 70th anniversary of Israel Philharmonic could not be better celebrated. The participation of two great soloists, as Pinchas Zukermann and Daniel Barenboim and the presence of Zubin Meta in the podium guaranteed the whoe success.

Zukerman began the concert with the well known Bruch's First Violin Concerto. The soloist gave us a warm and thoughtful performance as he uses to make. Then Meta conducted Ravel's La Valse with average results.

And finally, the jewel of the crown made its appearance. Daniel Barenboim performed a majuscule version of Brahms Piano Concerto Op. 15, with amazing results, specially in the glorious slow movement.

Particularly emotive was the final surprise, that by obvious considerations I won't tell you, if not the surprise had not sense.

Brilliant Barenboim amazing Brahms

Daniel Barenboim shows why he is the greatest pianist of his generation--perhaps (who knows?) of any generation. If music is, above all, about the throb of our hearts and the awe we feel with the sense of agony and innocence expressed in this Mehta/Berenboim interpretation of Brahms' Piano Concerto Number I, then this finale will blow you away. The 70th Anniversary Concert is one of the great moments of modern (TV/DVD) history. Don't miss it!
--Matthew Ash

not a dvd guy but this is good
I'm not a classical music DVD guy; I'm wedded to my headphones. But my wife got this for me for Christmas and I love it.

First of all, it has two of my favorite pieces of music: Bruch's violin concerto and Brahms' first piano concerto. The other piece, Ravel's Valse, I am not very familiar with, and wasn't overwhelmed by. Now a lot of music has to grow on you, and that might, but the other two pieces are fantastic.

(I trust people who know more than me that they are fantastic in the formal, technical aspects. Actually I've studied the score of the Brahms piece a little, and I have a little understanding of it, but my love for these two pieces of music has more to do with the pure romantic joy of hearing them than any deep understanding. If you listen closely to either one and are not moved deeply, get to a hospital before it is too late.)

Bruch's is surely among the greatest violin concertos. It seems he didn't write much else of note, though I do not know why his Scottish Fantasy isn't more well-known. I have heard numerous recordings of this many times, because it is one of the pieces of music that my wife and I both love, and did not expect to be surprised, but Zukermann did wrinkle it a little in ways I appreciated.

The recording of Brahms' 1st piano concerto was everything I hoped for. I want to listen to it again a few times and then I will comment further on it; the first time over, however, I was very pleased. The very pretty tone of the piano's high notes particularly impressed me. Someone did some nice work with the mics to bring that out.

The camera work was surprisingly good. I guess I had not appreciated what a classical DVD could be. From the very beginning of Bruch's violin concerto, when the flutes provide an introduction to the violin, I realized this would be a treat. The sparkling keys of the flutes, the beautiful wood of the violins, the swaying of the musicians with the music, the visible commucation between the conductor and his orchestra, Barenboim's fingers bounding all over the piano--live performances have a sonic warmth that I'm not persuaded comes through recordings, but if you have better speaker system than I do (surround sound or whatever and all that) it would probably be a lot closer than I get in my house--but visually I found this much better than attending a live performance. Basically, not only is the music great, but watching it is simply a lot of fun.

Like I said, these are two of my favorite pieces of music, and I may be more enthusiastic than someone who is not so passionate about these particular works. Nevertheless such a person needs to find out what all the excitement is about.

Highly recommended.