The Staatskapelle Berlin is dedicated to all of Schumann’s symphonies in a stirring and impressive manner under the baton of its chief conductor Daniel Barenboim. With this recording, Barenboim once again professes to be a big fan of the composer, who historically played an important role in the development of classical music and who is considered to have paved the way for the works of Mahler and Wagner, for example. The recordings took place in the Berlin State Opera and the Berlin Philharmonic. After 1977 and 2003, this is Barenboim’s third complete recording of Schumann’s symphonies.
UHQCD stands for Ultimate High Quality Compact Disc and is a joint development of the Japanese CD replication company Memory-Tech and the Audio Quality CD Company from Hong Kong. Unlike conventional CDs, UHQCDs are not pressed from polycarbonate, but cast from a photopolymer and cured with UV light. Another layer of high-purity polycarbonate is applied to protect the softer photopolymer from scratches. The combination results in a significantly reduced reflection of the laser light inside the CD and an unrivaled precise edge transition between pits and lands of the CD. UHQCDs are 100% compatible with regular CD players. Musically, the sound is strongly reminiscent of analog master tapes.
