An exhilarating Ninth to remember
is left reeling by this new recording of Beethoven’s masterpiece Michael Tanner
Beethoven
Symphony No. 9 ‘Choral’; Fantasia for Piano, Chorus and Orchestra in C minor, Op. 80* Christiane Karg (soprano), Marianne Beate Kielland (mezzo-soprano), Werner Güra (tenor), Florian Boesch (baritone); *Kristian Bezuidenhout (fortepiano); Zurich Singakademie; Freiburg Baroque Orchestra/pablo Heras-casado Harmonia Mundi HMM902431.32 79:54 mins This disc will provoke fiercely opposed reactions. For anybody – and it used to be all serious musiclovers – who regards Beethoven 9 as not only a monumental masterpiece, but an affirmation of the values inherent in European civilisation, to be performed on such occasions as the demolishing of the Berlin Wall, this account is likely to seem a negation, even when we’ve endured Hogwood, Norrington and their ilk. Yet it goes beyond them in dismantling the Ninth, not in the remarkable speed at which it all moves, but in the intensity with which every last player invests his part in its fury and wildness. I hadn’t heard Pablo Heras-casado and the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra before, but there is evidently an exceptionally close relationship between and among them, and the effect is devastating. It is hard to believe that a slow movement which only lasts 12 minutes can be as moving as this one, or that a scherzo which sounds like a congregation of jackdaws can be so exhilarating and alarming as to involve one in the work as completely as some of the great ‘historic’ recordings do, but listen and be amazed.
It seems a pity that after that the disc should be completed with a performance of the Fantasy Op. 80 for piano, chorus and orchestra, which always sounds as if it’s by a mediocre composer emulating the Ninth but Kristian Bezuidenhout gives it all he’s got.
PERFORMANCE ★★★★★
RECORDING ★★★★★
It is hard to believe a slow movement can be as moving as this
Symphony No. 13 ‘Babi Yar’ Oleg Tsibulko (bass); Choir of the Popov Academy of Choral Art; Kozhevnikov Choir; Russian National Orchestra/kirill Karabits Pentatone PTC 5186 618 58:13 mins Shostakovich’s 13th Symphony is one of those fiercely intense works that seems to communicate its messages even more urgently under concert conditions.
Nevertheless, this beautifully engineered studio recording under Kirill Karabits has all the necessary adrenaline to keep the listener fully engaged. Karabits is particularly effective in negotiating the tricky changes of tempo in the opening ‘Babi Yar’ movement and ensures that the tension is sustained right to the very end in the emotionally shattering climax of the closing bars. Bass Oleg Tsibulko and the Russian National Orchestra are certainly put through their paces in the ensuing movement ‘Humour’ which is taken at a manically fast tempo that seems entirely appropriate to the menacing subtext of Yevtushenko’s poem.
Thereafter, the grim realities of daily life in Stalinist Russia (‘In the Store’ and ‘Fears’) are depicted with stoic dignity. Finally in ‘A Career’, there is a palpable hint of optimism, the quietly reflective strings and celesta bringing the symphony to a poignant conclusion.
In the last resort, perhaps, this performance doesn’t quite grab you by the throat in the manner of the recent live Chicago Symphony Orchestra recording under Riccardo Muti, but the new release certainly benefits from the fine singing of Tisbulko and the more authentic vocal timbres of the combined Russian choirs. Erik Levi PERFORMANCE ★★★★
RECORDING ★★★★★