Klaus Tennstedt rose to international prominence late in his conducting career, and his last two decades yielded the bulk of his recorded legacy. The label for the
London Philharmonic Orchestra,
Tennstedt's own orchestra in the 1980s and early 1990s, has released many important concert recordings from this time, such as this pairing of the Coriolan Overture and the Symphony No. 5 in C minor of
Ludwig van Beethoven, a valuable addition to
Tennstedt's discography, which is surprisingly small when it comes to
Beethoven's works. The symphony was recorded by BBC Radio in 1990 at the Royal Albert Hall, while the Coriolan Overture was recorded in 1992 at the Southbank Centre's Royal Festival Hall in London, so the different venues account for the differences in audio quality. The overture has a fairly dry sound, while the acoustics for the symphony are more resonant and create a bigger presence for the orchestra, which plays with a rich and powerful sound, in keeping with mainstream interpretations of
Beethoven of the time. This is a fine recording that fans of
Tennstedt and traditionalists will appreciate, and the LPO label has performed a valuable service for this beloved conductor.