Beethoven's 5th (Nikisch recording)

The 1913 recording of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony by the Berlin Philharmonic conducted by Arthur Nikisch has been regarded as the first complete recording of a full length orchestral work, attributed by Joseph Szigeti as the first recording of Beethoven's "Fifth". The recording was widely distributed and has been described as having marked an "epochal" change in the music industry.^[1] In fact the first recording of Beethoven's "Fifth" was three years earlier, by Friedrich Kark and the Odeon Symphony Orchestra in Berlin in 1910.^[2] Both the Kark and Nikisch recordings were cut in performance and the first fully and wholly complete recording of Beethoven's Fifth was only made by Albert Coates around 1920. ^[3] Another Fifth by François Ruhlmann and an unnamed orchestra on Pathé 5024 has been variously dated as early as 1912, or possibly 1916.

References

^ Peter Tschmuck, Creativity and Innovation in the Music Industry, 2012. p. 42: "A few more orchestral recordings by Columbia and Gramophone followed, but it was the first complete recording of Beethoven's “Fifth Symphony” by the Berlin Philharmonic conducted by Arthur Nikisch in 1913 that was epochal."
^ Matthew Guerrieri - 2012 "Beethoven's Fifth had been a soundtrack for the recording industry's technological milestones—the 1910 Fifth by Friedrich Kark and the Odeon-Orchestcr had been the first complete symphony put on record, while RCA Victor had introduced the long-playing.."
^ American Record Guide 1942- Volumes 9-10 - Page 229 "Szigeti attributed the first complete recording of the Beethoven Fifth to Nikisch. In our footnote we said that the score was cut in the performance, and added that the first complete recording of the symphony was made by Coates around 1920"

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[1] Peter Tschmuck, Creativity and Innovation in the Music Industry, 2012. p. 42: "A few more orchestral recordings by Columbia and Gramophone followed, but it was the first complete recording of Beethoven's “Fifth Symphony” by the Berlin Philharmonic conducted by Arthur Nikisch in 1913 that was epochal."

[2] Matthew Guerrieri - 2012 "Beethoven's Fifth had been a soundtrack for the recording industry's technological milestones—the 1910 Fifth by Friedrich Kark and the Odeon-Orchestcr had been the first complete symphony put on record, while RCA Victor had introduced the long-playing.."

[3] American Record Guide 1942- Volumes 9-10 - Page 229 "Szigeti attributed the first complete recording of the Beethoven Fifth to Nikisch. In our footnote we said that the score was cut in the performance, and added that the first complete recording of the symphony was made by Coates around 1920"

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