For Arturo Toscanini, apparently, it was all about that bass:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-1KtSOwLXE

Toscanini was as notorious for his rafter-rattling temper tantrums as he was for his alleged fidelity to the score. The man was driven by demons in his quest for perfection. His evident frustration with the inability of his players to deliver existed in parallel with an over-stated humility in the face of his own limitations. Here was a perfectionist living in an imperfect world, and Toscanini spared no one, not even himself. His intensity was electric. There were times when conductor and orchestra seemed to skirt, on two wheels, the very mouth of the Abyss.

It would be unrealistic to expect to capture lightning in a bottle every single time. But it happened with Toscanini surprisingly often. Join me today on The Classical Network for the most hair-raising recording of Beethoven’s “Eroica” Symphony you will ever hear. Toscanini flays the NBC Symphony Orchestra to the limits of endurance in this legendary performance, given on October 28, 1939. This is not an “Eroica” for every day, and it is certainly not an “Eroica” for the weak of heart. Those with pre-existing medical conditions are advised to turn off their radios following my salute to Haydn Wood.

Everyone else, hang on tight, as we celebrate the birthday of Arturo Toscanini – and Béla Bartók, for that matter – from 4 to 7 p.m. EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.