While many collectors obviously remain happy with the three famous numbers from Rosamunde (alongside the Overture, actually written for Die Zauberharfe)—the Ballet Music Nos. 1 and 2 and the Entr'acte in B flat, which include two of Schubert's most magical and imperishable inspirations—there is a place in the catalogue for the full score. This has hitherto been occupied, on and off, over two decades by Haitink's excellent Concertgebouw LP performance which still sounds well.
Now Kurt Masur provides a digital replacement of the finest musical and technical quality and my only real concern is that the acoustic of the new Leipzig Gewandhaus (like the Concertgebouw before it) is rather too resonant for scoring expressly designed for the theatre. Even on CD the bass is diffuse and the choral items could also have benefited from a sharper focus. Yet the warm ambience is otherwise attractive and gives the woodwind and delicate string traceries a translucent presence. Certainly detail is most believable within the characteristics of the hall and in that respect the CD offers the usual marginal improvement in definition, although a direct comparison with the high-level chrome cassette showed that to be excellent too, and only fractionally less clear. The consistently fine playing and singing (Elly Ameling has the right simple eloquence, and the chorus of spirits, showing affinities with Mozart's Die Zauberflote as well as Weber) make this an outstanding issue. I especially enjoyed the second Entr'acte with its engaging hint of melodrama, clearly appreciated by the performers. A clear first choice for this repertoire whether on CD, LP or the equally fine tape.'