Erich Bergel - Beethoven Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21

Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21 I.mvt Adagio molto —Allegro con brio II.mvt Andante cantabile con moto III.mvt Menuetto: Allegro molto e vivace IV.mvt Adagio—Allegro molto e vivace Conductor : Erich Bergel Orchestra : Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra 1992, Hungarian State Opera The Romanian-Gerrman conductor Erich Bergel, was born in 1930 - Rosenau, near Kronstadt, Romania to a German father (born in Luxemburg) and Spanish/Hungarian mother. Already at the age of 18 was named as the flutist of the Sibiu Philharmonic. From 1950 to 1955 he studied conducting, organ and composition at the Gheorghe Dima Conservatory in Cluj his teachers were Antonin Ciolan, Liviu Comes and Kurt Mild. Since the mid-1950's Erich Bergel appeared as a conductor. In 1959, he became principal conductor of the Cluj Philharmonic in Transylvania, but was arrested that same year for "crimes against the state". His actual "crime" was that he was performing too much religious music! He was sentenced to seven years in prison and served three and a half years before getting out in a 1962 "amnesty". Between 1962 and 1965, he recovered from his prison experience through the practice of yoga and by an intense study of Bach's "Art of Fugue". In fact, his study was so intensive, that it resulted in the writing of two separate books about that work (which were later published in 1980 and 1985 respectively). In 1965, he took over the Cluj Philharmonic once again, and, partly because of the efforts of Herbert von Karajan on his behalf, he was able to leave Romania in 1971. In that year, he also guest-conducted the Berlin Philharmonic (again, with Karajan's support), as well as many other internationally known orchestras including in Paris, Madrid, Auckland, Tokyo, Jerusalem, Los Angeles, San Fransisco, Boston, Cleveland, New York, Berlin, Vienna and Cape Town. In addition, he taught conducting and music education at the Hochschule der Künste in West Berlin. From 1971 to 1974 he was chief conductor of the Nordwestdeutschen Philharmonie Herford. In 1989 he became chief conductor for life of the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra. Erich Bergel passed away in 1998 in Rudolphing, Bavaria.