Harnoncourt goes so far as to say that the two versions of the Schumann
d-minor symphony are in fact two different works.  I wouldn't agree with
that, and it's not hard to hear why Schumann ultimately made the revisions
he did.  As is the case with his Bach cantata recordings, I think that
Harnoncourt's musicology is more valuable than his conducting.  I would
recommend against his Schumann cycle, and recommend various outings by
Munch, Karajan, and Norrington for starters.  I got Bernstein's set from
the library this week, and having listened to #2 it seems like it's going
to be better that a lot of what Bernstein recorded.

Aaron J. Rabushka
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