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Title: No matter what else anyone says, here's the truth....
Review: First Truth: Arturo Toscanini was a great conductor of the NBC Symphony Orchestra--back in the forties. It is easy to hear his very mature readings of Beethoven barely pushing through your speakers when you listen to this recording. However...Second Truth: Unfortunately, though the remasterers did all they could, I would not recommend the poor sound quality of this CD to anyone. Unless you are a Toscanini fan (why?), there are way too many other good versions of Beethoven's symphonies, especially the ninth (Bernstein is good, Szell is better...), to buy these scratchy five discs. The setting of Schiller's Ode to Joy in the last movement of the ninth sounds more like "Shriller's Ode to Noise." Your CD player hearkens back to a dirty record player in a barrel; this sounds nothing like digital or "Living Stereo," and the sound inadequacies make this set impossible to recommend....
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