The Philly Schumann set- conclusions?

Discussions of this around a month ago seemed more shaped by excitement than by familiarity with the recordings. Now that people have had a chance to listen to them, what are the conclusions? How do they compare to the other Shumann recordings you are familiar with?

Who's the conductor?

I saw Sawallisch conduct all four of the symphonies this past season and was extremely impressed for the most part. The excitement comes through in the live recordings for the first two symphonies much better than it does the third and fourth. I'd say symphonies one and two are competitive with the better recordings I've heard of both. I wouldn't make that same statement about the last two symphonies, which have their high points (the coda of the finale in the 4th symphony is electrifying.....I'll never forget that moment when I saw it live either), but also plenty of stretches that sound rather ordinary. The sound quality is fine to me, but I'm nowhere near an audiophile (I listen to a lot of historic recordings). In the final analysis, if you have Sawallisch's Dresden set, you probably don't need this one. But if anyone is in the market for another recording of the first two symphonies, and the $50 price tag isn't a turn-off, then by all means, grab it. I still haven't gotten around to listening to the third disc in the set that has the violin concerto, Manfred Overture and some songs by Clara. As much as I enjoyed these performances live, and on CD for the first two symphonies, I wish the orchestra would have put out a more diverse set of live Sawallisch performances from his decade in Philly. I've attended so many great performances that he led (Shostakovich 5th, Symphonie Fantastique, maybe the best Brahms' 4th I've ever heard, Beethoven's 3rd and 6th symphonies, and many more that aren't coming to mind at the moment). Yes, he's a great Schumann conductor, but he has already made what is arguable the best available cycle of the four symphonies. Part of the reasoning behind the Schumann set may be that the Orchestra's board wanted to stick to live recordings made in the new hall. The other performances I cited above were mainly at the Academy of Music.

Sawallisch.

The only symphony I've heard from the set is #4, of which the finale is so lackluster, I was stupified to hear the thunderous applause at the end.

I agree Ray. These are, perhaps, the best Schumann performances on record!! But, allow me to mention also Mitropoulos' live recording of the 1st with the VPO/Salzburg as issued by ORFEO. Have you heard the opening bars played this way before?

Best,