A fleet and deeply felt performance
Otto Klemperer (conductor) Philharmonia Orchestra Warner Classics 404 3382
There is nothing chilly about this honest but deeply felt realisation of the score
The Third is the most difficult of the Brahms Symphonies to bring off, which may explain the small number of wholly successful recordings. Even the great Arturo Toscanini never really ‘cracked’ it – though if you do want to hear him, make sure it’s the live Philharmonia recording and not his regimented NBC Symphony Orchestra account. Others fall just short of the top spot for omitting the important first movement repeat – as well as Bruno Walter (see right), these include John Barbirolli and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, who are otherwise on simply glorious form, and William Steinberg’s superb account with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, though their performance is so compelling that one can almost forgive said omission.
If you want a full but not over-cushioned Brahmsian sound, you won’t do better than to go for Riccardo Chailly’s live 2013 set of the symphonies with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, beautifully recorded on their own turf. Their Third is painted in glowing colours appropriate for a work often characterised as autumnal.
Leading the field, though, is Otto Klemperer in his 1957 Kingsway Hall recording with the Philharmonia. Contrary to expectations – his tempos were usually on the sluggish side – Klemperer doesn’t hang about, and throughout all four movements the music flows quite swiftly. He divides his violins to dramatic effect and observes the exposition repeat. He could also be a cool customer, but there is nothing chilly about this honest but deeply felt realisation of the score, even though it veers more towards the Classical rather than the Romantic end of the musical spectrum.
This is essentially a symphony for winds and the peerless Philharmonia woodwind choir needs no encouragement to sing out. A review of the stereo LP even complained that the opening bars were too full of
oboes, but in fact the overall orchestral balance is pretty good. The original sound quality was perhaps rather acerbic but in its present refurbished form has both clarity and warmth.
Brahms’s Third was a work close to Klemperer’s heart and he performed it in what turned out to be his final concert in 1971. This is available on disc in hazy, ‘off-air’ mono sound and probably of interest mainly to Klemperer completists. The earlier account is in a higher league altogether, with conductor and orchestra captured at their peak and leaving all comers in its shadow.