Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Passacaglia for orchestra, Op. 1
2. Entflieht auf leichten K�hnen, for chorus, Op. 2
3. Songs (5) from Der siebente Ring, for voice & piano, Op. 3: No. 1, "Dies ist ein Lied"
4. Songs (5) from Der siebente Ring, for voice & piano, Op. 3: No. 2, "Im Windesweben"
5. Songs (5) from Der siebente Ring, for voice & piano, Op. 3: No. 3, "An Bachesranft"
6. Songs (5) from Der siebente Ring, for voice & piano, Op. 3: No. 4, "Im Morgentaun"
7. Songs (5) from Der siebente Ring, for voice & piano, Op. 3: No. 5, "Karl reckt der Baum"
8. Lieder (5) nach Gedichten von Stefan George, Op. 4: l. Eingang
9. Lieder (5) nach Gedichten von Stefan George, Op. 4: ll. Noch zwingt mich treue
10. Lieder (5) nach Gedichten von Stefan George, Op. 4: lll. Ja Heil und Dank
11. Lieder (5) nach Gedichten von Stefan George, Op. 4: lV. So ich traurig bin
12. Lieder (5) nach Gedichten von Stefan George, Op. 4: V. Ihr tratet zu dem Herde
13. Movements (5) for string quartet, Op. 5: No. 1, Heftig bewegt
14. Movements (5) for string quartet, Op. 5: No. 2, Sehr langsam
15. Movements (5) for string quartet, Op. 5: No. 3, Sehr bewegt
16. Movements (5) for string quartet, Op. 5: No. 4, Sehr langsam
17. Movements (5) for string quartet, Op. 5: No. 5, In zarter Bewegung
18. Pieces (6) for orchestra, Op. 6: No. 1, Etwas bewegte
19. Pieces (6) for orchestra, Op. 6: No. 2, Bewegte
20. Pieces (6) for orchestra, Op. 6: No. 3, Zart bewegte
21. Pieces (6) for orchestra, Op. 6: No. 4, Langsam marcia funebre
22. Pieces (6) for orchestra, Op. 6: No. 5, Sehr langsam
23. Pieces (6) for orchestra, Op. 6: No. 6, Zart bewegt
24. Pieces (4) for violin & piano, Op. 7: No. 1, Sehr langsam
25. Pieces (4) for violin & piano, Op. 7: No. 2, Rasch
26. Pieces (4) for violin & piano, Op. 7: No. 3, Sehr langsam
27. Pieces (4) for violin & piano, Op. 7: No. 4, Bewegt
28. Songs (2) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 8: l. Du, der ich nicht sage
29. Songs (2) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 8: ll. Du, machst michallein
30. Bagatelles (6) for string quartet, Op. 9: No. 1, Massig
31. Bagatelles (6) for string quartet, Op. 9: No. 2, Leicht bewegt
32. Bagatelles (6) for string quartet, Op. 9: No. 3, Ziemlich fliessend
33. Bagatelles (6) for string quartet, Op. 9: No. 4, Sehr langsam
34. Bagatelles (6) for string quartet, Op. 9: No. 5, Ausserst langsam
35. Bagatelles (6) for string quartet, Op. 9: No. 6, Fliessend
36. Pieces (5) for orchestra, Op. 10: No. 1, Sehr ruhig und zart
37. Pieces (5) for orchestra, Op. 10: No. 2, Lebhaft und zart bewegt
38. Pieces (5) for orchestra, Op. 10: No. 3, Sehr langsam und ausserst zart
39. Pieces (5) for orchestra, Op. 10: No. 4, Fliessend, asserst zart
40. Pieces (5) for orchestra, Op. 10: No. 5, Sehr fliessend
41. Little Pieces (3) for cello & piano, Op. 11: No. 1, Massige
42. Little Pieces (3) for cello & piano, Op. 11: No. 2, Sehr bewegt
43. Little Pieces (3) for cello & piano, Op. 11: No. 3, Ausserst ruhig
44. Songs (4) for voice & piano, Op. 12: l. Der Tag ist vergangen (Volkslied)
45. Songs (4) for voice & piano, Op. 12: ll. Die geheimnisvolle Fl�te (Li Tai Po/Bethge)
46. Songs (4) for voice & piano, Op. 12: lll. Schien mir's als ich sah die Sonne
47. Songs (4) for voice & piano, Op. 12: lV. Gleich und gleich

Disc 2:

1. Songs (4) for soprano & orchestra (or piano), Op. 13: l. Wiese im Park
2. Songs (4) for soprano & orchestra (or piano), Op. 13: ll. Die Einsame (Wang Xen Yu/Berhge)
3. Songs (4) for soprano & orchestra (or piano), Op. 13: lll. In der Fremde (Li Tai Po/Bethge)
4. Songs (4) for soprano & orchestra (or piano), Op. 13: lV. Ein Winterabend
5. Songs (6) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 14: l. Die Sonne
6. Songs (6) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 14: ll. Abendland l
7. Songs (6) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 14: lll. Abendland ll
8. Songs (6) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 14: lV. Abendland lll
9. Songs (6) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 14: V. Nachts
10. Songs (6) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 14: Vl. Gesang einer gefangenen Amsel
11. Sacred Songs (5) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 15: l. Das Kreuz
12. Sacred Songs (5) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 15: ll. Morgenlied
13. Sacred Songs (5) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 15: lll. In Gottes Namen aufstehn
14. Sacred Songs (5) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 15: lV. Mein Weg geht jetzt vor�ber
15. Sacred Songs (5) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 15: V. Fahr hin, o Seel'
16. Canons (5) on Latin Texts for voice, clarinet & bass clarinet, Op. 16: No. 1, "Christus factus est" (for Maundy Thursday)
17. Canons (5) on Latin Texts for voice, clarinet & bass clarinet, Op. 16: No. 2, "Dormi Jesu" (from Das Knaben Wunderhorn)
18. Canons (5) on Latin Texts for voice, clarinet & bass clarinet, Op. 16: No. 3, "Crux fidelis" (for Good Friday)
19. Canons (5) on Latin Texts for voice, clarinet & bass clarinet, Op. 16: No. 4, "Asperges me" (for Maundy Thursday)
20. Canons (5) on Latin Texts for voice, clarinet & bass clarinet, Op. 16: No. 5, "Crucem tuam adoramus" (for Good Friday)
21. Traditional Rhymes (3) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 17: l. Armer S�nder, du
22. Traditional Rhymes (3) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 17: ll. Liebste Jungfrau, wir sind dein
23. Traditional Rhymes (3) for soprano & ensemble, Op. 17: lll. Heiland, unsre Missetaten
24. Songs (3) for soprano, E flat clarinet & guitar, Op. 18: l. Schatzerl klein
25. Songs (3) for soprano, E flat clarinet & guitar, Op. 18: ll. Erl�sung
26. Songs (3) for soprano, E flat clarinet & guitar, Op. 18: lll. Ave Regina
27. Songs (2) for chorus, clarinet, bass clarinet, celesta, guitar & violin, Op. 19: l. Wei� wie Lilien
28. Songs (2) for chorus, clarinet, bass clarinet, celesta, guitar & violin, Op. 19: ll. Ziehn die Schafe
29. String Trio, Op. 20: Sehr langsam
30. String Trio, Op. 20: Sehr getragen und ausdrucksvoll
31. Symphony, Op. 21: Ruhig schreitend
32. Symphony, Op. 21: Variotionen
33. Quartet for clarinet, saxophone, piano & violin, Op. 22: Sehr m��ing
34. Quartet for clarinet, saxophone, piano & violin, Op. 22: Sehr schwungvoll
35. Songs (3) from 'Viae inviae' for voice & piano, Op. 23: l. Das dunkle Herz
36. Songs (3) from 'Viae inviae' for voice & piano, Op. 23: ll. Es st�rzt aus H�hen Frische
37. Songs (3) from 'Viae inviae' for voice & piano, Op. 23: lll. Herr Jesus mein
38. Concerto for 9 instruments, Op. 24: I. Etwas Lebhaft
39. Concerto for 9 instruments, Op. 24: II. Sehr Langsam
40. Concerto for 9 instruments, Op. 24: III. Sehr Rasch
41. Songs (3) for voice & piano, Op. 25: l. Wie bin ich froh!
42. Songs (3) for voice & piano, Op. 25: ll. Des Herzens Purpurvogel
43. Songs (3) for voice & piano, Op. 25: lll. Sterne, Ihr silbernen Bienen

Disc 3:

1. Das Augenlicht, for chorus & orchestra, Op. 26
2. Variations for piano, Op. 27: Sehr m��ig
3. Variations for piano, Op. 27: Sehr schnell
4. Variations for piano, Op. 27: Ruhig flie�end
5. String Quartet, Op. 28: M�ssig
6. String Quartet, Op. 28: Gem�chlich
7. String Quartet, Op. 28: Sehr fliessend
8. Cantata No. 1 for soprano, chorus & orchestra, Op. 29: l. Z�ndender Lichtblitz
9. Cantata No. 1 for soprano, chorus & orchestra, Op. 29: ll. Kleiner Fl�gel, Ahornsamen
10. Cantata No. 1 for soprano, chorus & orchestra, Op. 29: lll. T�nen die seligen Saiten
11. Variations for orchestra, Op. 30
12. Cantata No. 2 for soprano, bass, chorus & orchestra, Op. 31: l. Ba�: Schwiegt auch die Welt
13. Cantata No. 2 for soprano, bass, chorus & orchestra, Op. 31: ll. Ba�: Sehr tiefverhalten
14. Cantata No. 2 for soprano, bass, chorus & orchestra, Op. 31: lll. Chor: Sch�pfen aus Brunnen des Himmels
15. Cantata No. 2 for soprano, bass, chorus & orchestra, Op. 31: lV. Sopran: Leichteste B�rden der B�ume
16. Cantata No. 2 for soprano, bass, chorus & orchestra, Op. 31: V. Chor: Freundselig ist das Wort
17. Cantata No. 2 for soprano, bass, chorus & orchestra, Op. 31: Vl. Chor: Gelockert aus dem Scho�e
18. Movements (5) for string quartet, Op. 5: No. 1, Heftig bewegt
19. Movements (5) for string quartet, Op. 5: No. 2, Sehr langsam
20. Movements (5) for string quartet, Op. 5: No. 3, Sehr bewegt
21. Movements (5) for string quartet, Op. 5: No. 4, Sehr langsam
22. Movements (5) for string quartet, Op. 5: No. 5, In zarter Bewegung
23. Fuga (Ricercata) a 6 voci for orchestra (arr. from Bach's Musical Offering)
24. German Dances (6) for orchestra (arr. from Schubert): Movement 1
25. German Dances (6) for orchestra (arr. from Schubert): Movement 2
26. German Dances (6) for orchestra (arr. from Schubert): Movement 3
27. German Dances (6) for orchestra (arr. from Schubert): Movement 4
28. German Dances (6) for orchestra (arr. from Schubert): Movement 5
29. German Dances (6) for orchestra (arr. from Schubert): Movement 6

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #199625 in Music
• Released on: 1991-02-08
• Number of discs: 3
• Format: Import

Amazon.com essential recording
This collection presents all Webern's works with opus numbers in chronological order, allowing listeners to scrutinize the inner workings of this influential composer's intense, compressed style from the lush Passacaglia to the starkness of his late vocal works. A broadcast recording of Webern conducting a group of Schubert Dances makes a lively bonus. --Jed Distler

Customer Reviews

The original and still the best
Boulez's seminal original recordings of Webern are still important today. They capture the extraordinary distance this composer travelled from his tonal opus 1 passacaglia, though the atonal expressionism of the opus 5 and opus 6 pieces, the extreme compression of the opus 9 bagatelles, the contrapuntal abstraction of the mid-period songs to the serial masterpieces of his later years. These pieces still divide concert audiences today--I've been to Webern performances where half the audience was electrified and the other half clearly wanted to be elsewhere--but their historical significance cannot be denied. I believe their musical significance cannot either: close on a dozen of these works are amongst the finest pieces the 20th century has to offer. This set of performances, dating from the late 1960s and early 1970s and largely recorded under the direction by Pierre Boulez, has long since been regarded as being as close to definitive as one can get. I wouldn't go so far--there are occasional less impressive performances (such as the saxophone quartet) amongst the very fine ones. However, as complete sets go, I find the performances here largely superior to Boulez's more recent traversal on DG.

Technically, this set is not a Complete Works. It only includes those works that Webern published with an opus number, with the addition of the composer's wonderful orchestral transcription of the Ricercare a 6 from Bach's Musical Offering, and an old recording of Webern conducting his orchestrations of Schubert's German Dances. There are more works included on Boulez's rival set on DG--at twice the price--but most of what you gain are juvenilia.

And, for those who remain unconvinced that they'd like Webern, check out http://www.antonwebern.com -- a website that has free streaming mp3s of several of the recordings on this set. Listen to a few of them a few times (though skip the opus 16-18 songs, some of his driest works), and then decide.

Boulez's Webern -- brilliant modern miniatures
All 31 works that Webern gave official Opus numbers on 3 discs, conducted by Boulez (not Kolbe!), with the Juilliard Quartet and the London Symphony Orchestra, and a superb booklet with commentary and lyrics -- so why only 4 stars? My objection is the strictly chronological presentation, and the fact that I am not won over by Webern's vocal works -- I would vastly prefer grouping the music by form. Everything is brilliantly performed, and Charles Rosen, who accompanies sopranos on piano on several pieces, plays with sparkling luminosity. But the reason I sought out this collection is because I wanted to hear Boulez's versions of Webern's masterpieces, the "Symphony (Op. 21)" and "Variations for Orchestra (Op. 30)," as well as the string trios and quartets. Here these instrumental works are mixed among the lieders, Webern's many vocal works, and I find this frustrating. I prefer hearing the instrumental pieces grouped together, as on the Dohnanyi or Sinopoli discs of orchestral works (see my reviews of both), or the Schoenberg or Emerson Quartet's discs of the string trios and quartets (see my reviews of both). Unfortunately there is not a Boulez disc comparable to the Dohnanyi (on London) or Sinopoli (on Teldec). So it's either this Sony box or the several more recently recorded discs on DG, unless of course you are a total Webern fanatic and want the Ultra-Complete box with all the numbered AND un-numbered pieces...

It's really hard to fault this excellent Webern collection. Obviously if you have a more catholic appreciation of Webern's music than I (including the vocal works), my criticism is irrelevant. If you are a completist on a budget, this is a clear choice over the more expensive box. But if you are looking for an introduction to Webern's music, the best of which is some of the best of the 20th century in my opinion, I suggest that you begin with 1) Dohnanyi and the Cleveland Orchestra, and 2) the Schoenberg Quartet.

[There is a mistake on the site. Pierre Boulez is the conductor, not Helmuth Kolbe. Careful inspection of the box reveals that Kolbe was the engineer...]

Aged well
It is hard to believe that the originals of these recordings are about 30 years old or so. The sound is very clear and precise without having a dry recorded-in-the-living-room sound. In fact, the Six Orchestral Pieces sounds clearer and sharper than some more recent recordings that I've heard. I do wish though that the accompanying booklet would comment more on the emotions and poetic themes in Webern's music. It is not all just about permutations of series. In fact, dwelling on these mathematical aspects of the music helps to perpetuate a stereotype about Webern's music having no emotional component at all. Anyone who listens sympathetically, however, most realize that the emotions in the music are intense indeed -- even overpowering to the sensitive and open-minded listener.