CD reviews - July 2015

Canadian pianist Louis Lortie has reached the fourth volume of his recordings of Chopin’s piano works, and for this latest release he again uses Nocturnes to vary the programme of the disc’s main genre focus, in this case the Waltzes.  He also doesn’t present the waltzes in chronological or numerical order, but favours a more logical order in terms of key relationships, so that the disc makes for a pleasurable programme for the listener.  Of all his genres, the Waltzes might initially appear to be the least profound – in fact Chopin only thought eight were worthy of publishing as proper ‘works’ in his lifetime.  Included here however are eleven further Waltzes published posthumously – of these, one (B150, which opens the disc) is considered spurious, and a further one (B46) is now considered to be probably by one of Chopin’s students. Lortie’s performances here emphasise the dance qualities of these short miniatures, of which only a couple top five minutes, and most are around two minutes long. He has a lightness of touch, even in the more virtuosic moments, such as in Op. 70 No. 1, never letting the rapid figurations get bogged down in any way. He uses rubato (a pulling about of the tempo) appropriately but never indulgently, and the tempi of the faster examples (such as the famous ‘Minute Waltz’, Op. 64 No. 1, and the Grande Valse Brillante, Op. 18) are perfectly judged.  However, the downside of this focus on the dance means that one or two of the slower Waltzes feel slightly rushed – the darker A minor Waltz, Op. 34 No. 2, marked ‘lento’, for example, needs a bit more time to emphasise the mournful, mysterious outer sections.  Yet there are moments where the poignancy and delicacy of Chopin at his most deceptively simple really shine through. The five Nocturnes on offer here, towards the end of the programme, pick up on the darker atmosphere, particularly in Op. 32 No. 1, whose simple lyrical opening leads through darker moods to a strange, dramatic recitative ending.  The disc ends in a brighter mood, however, with the lilting ballad-like Op. 37 No. 2. A most interesting presentation of the Waltzes, with Lortie once again showing himself to be a thoughtful and insightful performer.

Chopin, F. 2015. Louis Lortie plays Chopin, Volume 4: Waltzes, Nocturnes. Louis Lortie. Compact Disc. Chandos CHAN 10852.

British conductor Sir Andrew Davis lives in Chicago where he conducts the Lyric Opera, but he must spend a lot of time in the air, as he also conducts the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the BBC SO and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, and it is with the last of these that he has released a live recording of an all-Strauss programme.  The disc opens with a lively performance of the swashbuckling tone poem, Don Juan. They performed this when they visited the Proms in London in 2014.  It was well-received then, and Davis certainly brings out the detail of this imaginatively (and challengingly for most instruments) scored piece here, letting the music tell the story, making this a great disc opener.  This is followed by Strauss’ sublime Four Last Songs, with soprano Erin Wall.  Her voice is beautifully rich without being too heavy or dark, and September is particularly enchanting here. The rest of the disc is given over to Also Sprach Zaruthustra, his most ambitious tone poem.  Despite the somewhat episodic writing here, the work has symphonic proportions, and Davis shows that he fully understands the architecture, giving perfect sense to the frequent changes of mood.  The orchestra are on fine form, and as in the Don Juan, they rise to the challenges of Strauss’ writing. The final sequence of alternating wind and strings quiet chords are perfectly placed – all the more impressive in a live recording.  As the first of a promised Strauss cycle of recordings, this certainly bodes well.

Strauss, R. 2014. Richard Strauss: Don Juan, Four Last Songs, Also sprach Zarathustra. Erin Wall, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis. Compact Disc. ABC Classics ABC 481 1122.

Chandos have gathered together their recordings of Sir Malcolm Arnold’s (1921-2006) nine Symphonies in a box set re-release.  The recordings include the first six symphonies performed by the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by the late Richard Hickox, and the final three from the BBC Philharmonic under Rumon Gamba.  Arnold’s music was somewhat unfairly dismissed by many in his lifetime, with many not able to separate his more substantial and ‘serious’ output from his more popular works, particularly his extensive filmscore output.  Yet the symphonies, which span most of his career from 1949 when the Symphony No. 1 was composed, right through to 1986 when he finished the Symphony No. 9. The early symphonies show influences of Sibelius and Mahler, yet very soon Arnold develops his own particular style, and the symphonies become progressively darker, and more disturbing, somewhat reflecting Arnold’s own difficult mental health.  It is perhaps not surprising that the Symphony No. 5, the most disturbing, labelled by one critic as ‘a study in disintegration’, was apparently Arnold’s favourite. His mental health deteriorated significantly in the early eighties, and he pretty much stopped composing altogether from 1982 to 1986, and it was only thanks to the help of his companion and carer, Anthony Day, that he was able to regain his creative inspiration to compose the Symphony No. 9. It is a particularly desolate creation, and it struggled to receive a first performance, owing partly to the delay in its completion, but also to its stark, bare scoring.  Yet it is a work of remarkable if uncomfortable intensity, and in many ways makes perfect sense in the context of the progression through the symphonies, which makes this box set particularly powerful.  The recordings are exemplary throughout, with the LSO under Hickox perhaps achieving a tad more intensity than Gamba and the BBC Phil – it would have been great to hear Hickox perform the ninth. This is an important digitally remastered collection, and hopefully will add further to the belated reappraisal of this troubled and misunderstood composer.

Arnold, Sir M. 2015. Complete Symphonies. London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic, Richard Hickox, Rumon Gamba. Compact Discs (4). Chandos CHAND 10853(4) X.

(Edited versions of some of these reviews first appeared in GScene, July 2015)

CD Reviews - August 2013

Pianist Peter Donohoe has begun a cycle of Prokofiev’s (1891-1953) Piano Sonatas with the first five, out of a total of nine.  They range from an early student work, unashamedly romantic in the style of Tchaikovsky, through to the fifth, a rather introspective and refelective work, and the only one of the nine to be composed outside Russia.  Whilst the Sonatas 6-8, his ‘War Sonatas’, are widely considered to be his greatest piano works, these first five show a remarkable journey from the early romantic work through to the lively challenges posed by the Fourth Sonata, and the strange expressive harmonic world of the Fifth Sonata.  Donohoe recorded the ‘War Sonatas' no fewer than 23 years ago, to great acclaim at the time.  Now he has returned, this time to record the full set.  He is a great British pianist, with a remarkably sensitive approach to even the most virtuosic of repertoire, and this combination makes this recording particularly enjoyable.  Prokofiev certainly needs virtuosic command, but the expressive side of his music, most notable here in the slow movement of the Fourth Sonata, is often given less careful attention.  Donohoe brings this first volume to a subtle and enigmatic close with the final movement of Fifth Sonata’s surprisingly quiet conclusion – almost as if in anticipation of the next volume to follow soon.

Prokofiev, S. 2013. Prokofiev Piano Sonatas, Volume I : Nos. 1 to 5. Peter Donahoe. Compact Disc. Somm SOMMCD 249.

Jean-Efflam Bavouzet continues his survey of Haydn’s (1732-1809) Piano Sonatas, with Volume 5 once again containing 6 sonatas spread across the composer’s output, with the earliest, No. 15 from 1760, through to Nos. 54-56 from 1784.  No. 12 is also here, although its authenticity as a genuine Haydn sonata is under considerable doubt – but whoever composed it, it probably originated even earlier in 1755.  However you look at it, though, this disc once again shows the extraordinary range and constant flow of invention that Haydn demonstrated over such a long period.  Highlights here for me are the lively finale of No. 37, a dance-like minuet and trio of variations, the startling harmonic jump in the finale of No. 54, and the strangely unsettling and destabiliising rhythmns of No. 56.  Once again, Bavouzet demonstrates incredible precision and command, at the same time as bringing this music alive with a sense of fun and enjoyment throughout. 

Haydn, F. J. 2013. Piano Sonatas, Volume 5. Jean-Efflam Bavouzet. Compact Disc. Chandos CHAN 10763.

Clarinettist Michael Collins is back with Volume 2 of British Clarinet Sonatas, once again joined by Michael McHale on the piano.  Here are five works, ranging from 1949 to 2010.  The earliest is Arthur Benjamin’s (1893-1960) Le Tombeau de Ravel, a ‘tombeau’ (memorial tribute) in itself to Ravel’s Le Tombeau de Couperin.  This sequence of miniature waltz time sections ends with a wonderful climax reminding one of Ravel’s La Valse.  Sir Malcom Arnold (1921-2006) is perhaps finally gaining the status he deserves, after a lifetime of battling against being seen as a ‘light’ film composer.  His Sonatina is not a hugely substantial work, but contains delightful jazz infusions, a beautifully lyrical slow movement, and a wildly virtuosic finale.  Edward Gregson (b.1945) has written five Tributes to particular composers (including Poulenc and Bartók), composed for specific clarinettists, including Emma Johnson, and Collins himself.  The other works here are Arnold Cooke’s (1906-2006) Sonata, a substantial four movement work with influences of Hindemith evident, with whom Cooke studied, and finally, a delightful Sonatina by Joseph Horovitz (b. 1926), full of lyricism and bouncy syncopation.  Collins, ably accompanied by McHale, is the ideal advocate for works that sadly seldom receive an airing.

Various. 2013. British Clarinet Sonatas, Volume 2. Michael Collins, Michael McHale. Compact Disc. Chandos CHAN 10758.

Violinist Arabella Steinbacher has combined an old favourite, the Violin Concerto No. 1 by Max Bruch (1838-1920), with Erich Korngold’s (1897-1957) Violin Concerto, and the Poème for Violin and Orchestra by Ernest Chausson (1855-1899).  These are all full-on romantic works, and a whole disc of such music could be rather overpowering, were it not for the fact that Steinbacher takes a cleaner, more measured approach than one might expect.  That is not to say that she is at all reticent in her playing – on the contrary, in the slow movement of the Korngold, for example, she extracts every ounce of romantic lyricism, with a beautifully singing tone throughout.  It’s just that somehow she saves the high romanticism for the ‘right’ moments, rather than wallowing throughout.  Interestingly, if you listen to just one of the works here (perhaps the Bruch in particular), you might be left wanting more, but listening to the disc as a whole the end result is just right – satisfying without feeling like you’ve over-indulged on too much dessert. The Orquestra Gulbenkian, conducted by Lawrence Foster, provide tasteful and solid support.

Various. 2013. Korngold - Violin Concerto, Chausson - Poème, Bruch - Violin Concerto No. 1. Arabella Steinbacher, Orquestra Gulbenkian, Lawrence Foster. Hybrid Super Audio Compact Disc. Pentatone PTC 5186 503.

Finally, more piano, this time Brahms, from Irish pianist Barry Douglas.  He’s on the second volume of Works for Solo Piano by Brahms, with three of the Ballades, three Intermezzi, a Rhapsody and the Sonata No. 3.  He is taking the approach of splitting and mixing up Brahms’ sets, creating interesting programmes as a result.  I have to say I am so used to hearing the Intermezzi in their respective sets, that it takes a little getting used to hearing them separated in this way.  However, once I got used to not hearing what I expected on the next track, I actually really enjoyed the juxtopositions here – particularly the sense of building towards the great Sonata at the end of the disc.  Douglas plays with great sensitivity, and avoids a heaviness that can creep in with Brahms at his most dramatic.  In fact this whole disc builds beautifully to the heart-stopping Rückblick before the joyous chorale-like closing finale of the Sonata.  The sign of a great pianist is being able to say something new with familiar repertoire, without resorting to distorting interpretations, and that is what Douglas achieves here.

Brahms, J. 2013. Works for Solo Piano, Volume Two. Barry Douglas. Compact Disc. Chandos CHAN 10757.

(Edited versions of these reviews first appeared in GScene, August 2013).