Historically informed performances of the symphonies of Franz Joseph Haydn are increasingly available, albeit on an irregular basis, but it's surprising to find that two of the symphonies have received their first period instrument recordings on this 2016 release from Decca. While period versions of the Symphony No. 78 in C minor and the Symphony No. 80 in D minor have been recorded before, notably by Roy Goodman and the Hanover Band, the only other available period versions of the Symphony No. 79 in F major and the ...
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Historically informed performances of the symphonies of Franz Joseph Haydn are increasingly available, albeit on an irregular basis, but it's surprising to find that two of the symphonies have received their first period instrument recordings on this 2016 release from Decca. While period versions of the Symphony No. 78 in C minor and the Symphony No. 80 in D minor have been recorded before, notably by Roy Goodman and the Hanover Band, the only other available period versions of the Symphony No. 79 in F major and the Symphony No. 81 in G major are in concert footage of Christopher Hogwood and the Academy of Ancient Music on YouTube. This double CD of recordings by Ottavio Dantone and the Accademia Bizantina are part of a projected Haydn symphony set, so these somewhat overlooked pieces at least have coverage for the sake of the collection. But the sound of Accademia Bizantina is not especially distinctive for a period performance, insofar as the strings are fairly bland and homogeneous in tone, lacking...
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