Beethoven at the Peak of His Genius Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 "Fate" / No. 6 "Pastoral" / "Coriolan" Overture Arturo Toscanini / NBC Symphony Orchestra Broadcast recording from November 11, 1939. This is from Toscanini's Beethoven cycle, considered his best. It completely washes away the various myths that had clung to the works, and the straight, highly dignified, and superb performance that competes solely with the vitality of the music itself can be enjoyed with the best sound quality among the same performances. "Fate" and "Coriolan" are of course excellent, and the sharp, lively rhythmic dynamism of "Pastoral" is particularly noteworthy.