Conductor Nikolaus Harnoncourt announced his retirement at the end of 2015. Now his very last recordings featuring the Beethoven Symphonies numbers 4 and 5 have been published.
A short time later, on March 6, 2016, Mr. Harnoncourt died in Austria at the age of 86.
This music is performed by the Concentus Musicus Wien, which Nikolaus Harnoncourt founded in 1953, and it is now is the longest existing period instrument ensemble.
This is a live-recording from two sold-out concerts at the Musikverein Vienna, considered one of the finest concert halls in the world, due to its highly regarded acoustics.
Here is Nikolaus Harnoncourt, as he rehearses and explains orchestral music:
