With the “Philips Early Years” edition of this set gone, probably forever, MHS offers the only way to acquire the essential collection of George Szell’s recordings with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam. Every single performance is worth owning. The Sibelius Second always has been one of the two or three best versions of the piece; Szell’s Mendelssohn Midsummer Night’s Dream hasn’t quite the razor-sharpness of his Cleveland recording, but it gains in sheer warmth; the same holds true for Beethoven (though for Szell’s ultimate Fifth you’ve got to hear his live version with the Vienna Philharmonic on Orfeo). His Mozart Symphony No. 34 is incomparable, his Schubert Rosamunde music freshly, radiantly Romantic. It’s worth joining the Musical Heritage Society for this release alone.
