Between them, the brothers Fischer divided up the Hungarian composers. Ivan Fischer got Bartók and Liszt. Adam Fischer got Haydn. Adam, needless to say, got the better end of that deal: there's more to Haydn than a dozen Bartóks or a hundred Liszts, more brilliance, more energy, more wit, more tenderness, more power, more profundity, more humanity, more of everything that makes a composer or a man great. In this recording of the Overture to La fedeltà premiata and his Oxford and Surprise symphonies with the Österreichisch-Ungarische Philharmonie, Adam Fischer turns in richly characterful, wonderfully alive, and deeply human performances as fine as any ever recorded. His Oxford is full of strength and intelligence, his Surprise is delightfully amusing and affecting, and his La fedeltà premiata is charmingly sassy and sweet. The Österreichisch-Ungarische Philharmonie lives up to its name, that is, a blend of Austrian refinement and Hungarian fire that bring out the best in the dual empire. Impossibly, Musikproduktion Dabringhaus und Grimm's hybrid multi-channel super-audio sound is even better than its digital sound, that is, a blend of the translucent and the luminous.
© TiVo