This is a joyous souvenir of the 1967 Vienna Festival. You'll wish you had been there.

Clear, somewhat dry mono sound gives these 1967 performances a touch of shrillness and puts a raw edge on Henryk Szeryng's violin tone that he surely didn't have in person. Oddly, this brightness complements the performances, which have remarkable vitality and generosity of spirit. Tempos in the concerto, first movement especially, are swift, the rhythms well-sprung, and Szeryng's attack on the music is utterly fearless, even when risking the occasional sour note. The wind soloists in the Adagio show great personality even if, again, their tone isn't ideally smooth; but the phrasing of the main theme of the finale by both Kubelik and Szeryng offers an object lesson on how to inject a degree of stylish emphasis without sounding mannered. This isn't the most perfect performance, but it's extremely satisfying all the same, a vision of the music that's healthy and positive in the best sense.

Kubelik's studio recording of the Hussite Overture is one of the best available, and if anything this live recording is even more exciting. The piece surely meant a great deal to him, living in exile from communist Czechoslovakia, just as it had special significance for Dvorák himself. The composer used it as his musical calling card whenever he was invited to conduct abroad, and it seems that Kubelik and his Bavarian forces treat it much the same way. They attack the music with unquenchable gusto, and you have to hear the coda to believe just how excitingly this music can be played. Never mind the slight sonic limitations: the ear adjusts quickly enough. This is a joyous souvenir of the 1967 Vienna Festival. You'll wish you had been there.

--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Classical Music

Glazunov’s symphonies are a significant cycle within the Russian symphony, to which similar status should be accorded as the today considerably better-known symphonic cycles by his successors Prokofiev, Myaskovsky or Shostakovich. Like Camille Saint-Saëns in France or Max Bruch in Germany, Alexander Glazunov was a truly progressive, but formally conservatively thinking composer who was not willing to sacrifice the traditional symphonic form to superficial Modernism. It is now time to rehabilitate Glazunov’s symphonies. Whoever studies them intensively will discover some of the finest music of their time and particularly under the wonderful baton of the great Glazunov champion Neeme Järvi.

A remarkable record of a live performance, capturing a collection of Wagner greats and a few surprises.

This disc captures, unadulterated and unadorned, the opening night of a new production of Lohengrin at the Vienna Staatsoper. One glance down the cast-list will tell you that this is something special. It must have been even more special to have been in the theatre, for not only was Karl Böhm in the pit but Wieland Wagner himself was directing the staging, something illustrated generously in the accompanying booklet. The sound, recorded for broadcast by Austrian Radio, is in mono, which is undeniably regrettable, but it’s surprisingly good for its age. The only place where it brings real losses is in the chorus scenes, which are many in this opera. The natural point of comparison for this set is Kempe’s classic set, which shares the same orchestra, the same Lohengrin and the same Ortrud, and was recorded two years previously. The comparisons are fascinating.

The most interesting contrast, and the factor which impels this release, is the conducting of Karl Böhm. Where Kempe is rapt, Böhm is driven. Like his live Ring and Tristan from Bayreuth, he prefers fast tempi, and this drives the drama along at an exciting pace. You can tell that when you compare the timings: Böhm is more than 20 minutes faster than Kempe. In fact he achieves the feat of making this one of the very few Lohengrins on disc (perhaps the only one?) to fit each act complete onto a single CD. Yet Böhm never feels unduly rushed. Instead, the strength of his vision convinces the listener that this is an entirely appropriate view of the piece. Furthermore, he knows how to relax when he needs to, and he does so liberally, particularly for the Grail music. The Act 1 Prelude is markedly slower than what follows it. He broadens out the soundscape after Lohengrin’s arrival in the middle of the act, the excitement of the crowd giving way to a gently meditative first utterance from the knight.

That first utterance is, in fact, something pretty special. Jess Thomas is on top notch form here and he sounds sensational in his farewell to the swan in the first act, as in his declaration of love for Elsa. He is, perhaps, a little anonymous in the second act, but he is moving and remarkably sympathetic in the bridal chamber scene. In fernem Land, similarly slowed down by Böhm, unfolds at an unhurried pace and in one single-minded direction. He was an extraordinary swan knight for Kempe, and it’s exciting to hear him in the live context here. Claire Watson is also on her very finest form as Elsa. There is clarity and purity to her voice that, to my ears at least, comes close to making her the equal of Elisabeth Grümmer - high praise indeed. She is helpless and vulnerable in the first act but brims over with optimism at the start of the second, and her address to the breezes is a delight. Perhaps you don’t get quite the same sense of impending doom in the bridal chamber scene, but she summons up the correct sense of terror as that scene reaches its climax and she is full of pathos in her sense of loss in the final scene.

Kempe’s set gave us the finest Ortrud on disc in Christa Ludwig, and she is every bit as sensational here. If anything, the live event inspires her to give of herself with even more commitment. The dramatic temperature of the whole set rises when she enters at the start of Act 2. There is something darkly insidious in her vocal presence, and the way she seems to pour scorn on her husband is magnificently dramatic. She then inveigles her way into Elsa’s confidence with the skill of the greatest of con artists, and the power of her invocation at Entweihte Götter! is so great that it brings the house down, forcing Böhm to halt proceedings for about twenty seconds. She then chews up the scenery in the great crowd scene at the end of Act 2 and manages a wonderful groan of defeat when the swan is revealed as Gottfried at the very end of the opera. Her husband both on and off the stage, Walter Berry, isn’t quite the match for Fischer-Dieskau either in vocal beauty or in acting - he sounds overly gruff in the first act - but he rises to a climax at the start of Act 2 and is never less than a convincing stage presence. It’s a real treat having Martti Talvela as the King, his rich, fruity bass giving the part an extra level of character that it doesn’t always get. Eberhard Wächter is luxury casting as the Herald.

I doubt that anyone will take this as a top choice, especially not over any stereo sets, because sound quality is important in this opera. However, it’s a remarkable record of a live performance, capturing a collection of Wagner greats and a few surprises, and it will be especially interesting for anyone who knows and loves the Kempe set.

Incidentally, this whole production was double cast. The other cast that alternated with this one included the likes of James King, Gustav Neidlinger and Astrid Varnay. Having not one but two such legendary casts available for one opera in the same city seems like an extravagant dream to us nowadays, but what fun to dream it!

-- Simon Thompson, MusicWeb International

Although Wagner himself made it quite clear to King Ludwig II of Bavaria that the Flying Dutchman was among those works of his deemed fit to be performed in Bayreuth, the “Romantic Opera in three Acts” was not staged there till 1901, as the last of those ten. 1959 was a special year in “New Bayreuth”: by producing the earliest, Wieland Wagner had now presented all ten works under his own direction, in the first “Ring-free” year since the 1951 reopening – an abomination to hard-bitten old-school Wagnerians, for whom only the Ring and Parsifal genuinely belonged on the “green hill” of Bayreuth. There was once again heated discussion over the guiding principles governing the presentation of the festival – as reported, along with much else, in the well-informed and lively booklet note by Peter Emmerich. But Wieland confounded and convinced his critics with a rediscovery of his directorial idiom, described by him as “magic realism.” Musical success was achieved on the grand scale by the brilliant exponents of Senta and the Dutchman- and by the musically modern slim-line conductor, who had made his Bayreuth debut not long before in the new production of Tristan. Leonie Rysanek, whose singing gave vivid meaning to all the drama’s emotional aspects, also had the figure for the part- in her own words, she was the “slimmest Senta in the world.” With his powerful voice and darkly glowing male timbre, the inimitably elegant and empathetic George London remains without peer on this recording as elsewhere. Just as convincingly cast in its other roles, the work soon established itself in this second “New Bayreuth” staging even in its spiritual home. We would make a special point of observing that this historic audio document was captured not at the premiere performance, but during a second live recording on August 5, 1959.

Years ago it seemed that Szymanowski's music was the property of Polish musicians, as little of it ventured outside Poland. As to the violin concertos, it was Thomas Zehetmair with Simon Rattle and the City of Birmingham Symphony who broke the mold for many of us. Their EMI recording still holds a special place in the recorded literature of the composer. Yet here we have a terrific violinist accompanied by an equally superb orchestra and conductor who easily challenges that recording.

Szymanowski dedicated both of these concertos to Polish violinist Paul Kochanski, who encouraged the composer to write them and championed them until his death in 1933. He worked closely with Szymanowski on the violin parts. The First Violin Concerto shows the influence of Debussy and early Stravinsky in its exotic and rather impressionistic nature. Szymanowski based the work on a poem by Tadeusz Mici?ski, "May Night", though without any detailed musical programme. It has a nocturne-like atmosphere when it begins and then grows into something dynamic and ecstatic before evaporating pianissimo, "as if with the muted voices of the night", so described by Sebastian Strauss in his excellent notes to the CD. Where Zehetmair and Rattle brought out the Debussian elements well in their recording, Skride and Petrenko are bolder and more dynamic. Skride has a vast range of colours in her violin tone and Petrenko provides very detailed accompaniment. Both violinists are well integrated with their orchestral counterparts, but with Skride and Petrenko the listener is more aware of the intricate detail of the composition. Some of this is due to the clearer and more present recording, but mostly it is the artists whose interpretative focus is different. Both are valid approaches to the First Violin Concerto. With Skride and Petrenko I am reminded of Stravinsky's Firebird, rather than Debussy. That's not to say that the unique character of Szymanowski is in the least slighted. The concertos represent the composer at his mature best. It is interesting that stylistically he did not travel all that far sixteen years later when he penned the Second Violin Concerto, even with its allusions to the folk music of the Tatra Mountains.

There is a lesser difference of approach in the two accounts of the Violin Concerto No. 2, where the folk elements are made apparent, even if the orchestral texture is dense at times. Nonetheless, Skride and Petrenko are that much bolder and the recording allows one to appreciate the orchestral part better than with Rattle. The Oslo Philharmonic plays wonderfully throughout both works and I continue to be hugely impressed with Vasily Petrenko whose selection of repertoire continues to bring out his strengths. I am a real fan of his Shostakovich and it is now hoped he will perform more Szymanowski. As for Baiba Skride, her recording two years earlier of the Frank Martin and Stravinsky violin concertos quickly has become one of my favourite discs - especially for the Martin work which had not received its due before that. I find it amazing how quietly Skride creeps in at the beginning of Szymanowski's First Violin Concerto with a silvery tone and then can turn this into something intense and lustrous later in that work and throughout the Second Violin Concerto. With her fabulous technique I am sure we will be hearing a great deal from her as she records pieces that demand to be heard, rather than doing only the warhorses on which so many violinists today have earned their reputations. Patricia Kopatchinskaja is another such violinist who has demonstrated that doing modern repertoire well enhances one's reputation more than just playing it safe with the chestnuts of the past.

If the two concertos on this disc were not enough to convince me of her extraordinary talent, Baiba Skride supplements these with the perfect "filler", the Myths for violin and piano. Here she is accompanied on the piano by her sister, Lauma. The three Myths with their titles of "The Fountain of Arethusa", "Narcissus" and "Dryads and Pan" respectively, are clearly impressionistic with piano writing that recalls Debussy in its delicate filigree. Szymanowski composed them the year before the Violin Concerto No. 1 and some of the violin writing, in particular the high register of the opening of "The Fountain of Arethusa", can also be found in the violin concerto. The harmony in the second Myth, "Narcissus", on the other hand, is also reminiscent of Ravel. The last of the Myths, "Dryads and Pan", is virtuosic and whimsical and sounds less like Debussy or Ravel - more like the Szymanowski of the concertos. I compared this recording with another favourite, the reissued disc of these works with Isabelle Faust and Ewa Kupiec on Harmonia Mundi that I reviewed here last year. Where Faust and Kupiec are more direct in their interpretation, the Skrides show greater tonal and dynamic variety. Their tempi are also varied more than the formers. There is not all that much in it and I would not want to be without either account. The deciding factor comes down to the particular couplings. Faust and Kupiec contribute first-rate performances of Jana?ek's Violin Sonata and Lutos?awski's Partita and Subito on their CD.

For an all-Szymanowski programme, this current one will be hard to equal. Indeed, the artists have set a new standard for the violin concertos. Lauma Skride is as impressive in her role as her sister is, so a recording of Szymanowski's piano music would be welcome from her at any time.

I have reviewed many superb recordings this year, but none finer than this one. It should appear high on my list of Recordings of the Year.

– Leslie Wright, MusicWeb International

Classical Music

This is a Lohengrin for the ages.

This performance has been in circulation for years. In Fanfare 6:5 back in 1983, William Youngren reviewed the Melodram LP issue, concluding, “This is a Lohengrin to treasure for years to come, as stylish and moving a performance as I can imagine.”

I am not a believer in “best” recordings. Music is not like sports leagues, with won-lost records. Numerical ranking is a concept I find offensive when discussing great art. So I will not claim that this is the recording of Lohengrin to own. But I will claim that any Wagnerian’s library lacking this performance is seriously incomplete. This is a performance of enormous beauty and richness, one that no lover of Wagner’s music can afford to be without.

It all starts with Lovro von Mata?i?, the Croatian conductor who would be a superstar were he alive today. Because he lived and worked at the time of Furtwängler, Klemperer, Walter, Solti, Karajan, Jochum, and so many other giants, he was an under-appreciated talent. But those who know his Bruckner recordings, his wonderful live Andrea Chénier from Vienna with Corelli and Tebaldi, and his studio Pagliacci for EMI with Corelli know of his remarkable ability to combine big-picture vision with great attention to detail. Balances are perfect—something one senses right away in the opening of the Prelude—rhythmic tension and pulse are always maintained, but the overriding impression is of the music simply flowing from beginning to end with utter inevitability and with a deeply felt sense of phrase inflection. This is an unusual score, with elements of fierce drama, noble solemnity, and warm outpourings of lyricism all competing for prominence at different times. Getting that balance of competing elements right so that the score develops naturally is tricky, and many conductors have failed to successfully hold it together. This performance is as beautifully shaped as any on record.

And then there is Sándor Kónya—surely one of the great Lohengrins in the 20th century. His voice rings out when power is called for, but the overriding impression is of a sweet, warm lyrical beauty of tone that stays long in the memory after we’ve finished listening to the opera. Grümmer’s pitch seems to wander occasionally, but her voice just glows with beauty, and she sings with keen understanding of the character. It is not easy to make us believe in Elsa as a real character, but she does. Gorr is an extraordinarily powerful Ortrud, Ernest Blanc a surprisingly effective and idiomatic Telramund, Crass a strong King Henry, and Eberhard Waechter is very luxurious casting as the Herald.

While it is true that this has been around on other labels, what distinguishes this release is that Orfeo has an official relationship with the Bayreuth Festival and with the Bavarian Radio. The original masters formed the basis of Orfeo’s release, which is vastly superior to prior issues, which stem from off-the-air sources. Although there are slight hints of overload, on the whole this is well-balanced, natural monaural broadcast sound from the late 1950s. Informative and engrossing notes are also included, but no libretto. The performance, unfortunately, included the small cut in the third act that was fairly traditional at the time.

For those who love this opera, there are a few other important recordings. One is the 1943 Met broadcast with Melchior’s radiant Lohengrin, the young Astrid Varnay, and Leinsdorf’s idiomatic conducting (though it lacks the majesty and beauty of Mata?i?). The best transfer of that performance is on Naxos 8.110235. The Decca/London monaural live Bayreuth 1953 recording led by Keilberth with Windgassen and Steber is also quite lovely. I own it on Teldec 93674, and there is also a Naxos transfer. Other commercial sets worthy of exploration include the RCA Leinsdorf set with Kónya, Amara, and the glorious Boston Symphony Orchestra (RCA 50164), and Barenboim’s very moving performance with Peter Seiffert and Emily Magee and the Berlin Staatskapelle on Teldec 21484). For the person who cannot get enough of Lohengrin, Kozlovsky’s remarkable performance has been preserved on Melodiya LPs; I still await its transfer to CD (though Preiser did excerpt all of Lohengrin’s role on one disc).

As wonderful as all of those different recordings are, there is not one among them that I would call superior to this Orfeo release. This is a Lohengrin for the ages.

Henry Fogel, Fanfare Magazine

Classical Music

20 years after his international breakthrough with the Goldberg Variations, Konstantin Lifschitz is now releasing a live recording from 2012. It is a work whose Russian connections reach back via Glenn Gould and Wanda Landowska to Keyserlingk, the Russian Ambassador at the Court of Dresden in Bach's own day.

Classical Music

Re-release of a previous ORFEO bestseller, the present album contains the premiere of the new production of Don Carlo from October 1970 in Vienna. The premiere was surrounded by a great scandal, caused by the Karajan's fans, who expected their idol to conduct the new production. However, Karajan entrusted the conductor Horst Stein with the new production and though Stein had until then been the favourite of the local audience, this time he was greeted with a torrent of 'boos" which were totally unrelated to his artistic performance. The singers, by contrast, were cheered to the rafters. The house had gathered together a cast for this production that was hand-picked right down to the smallest part. The booklet offers detailed information about the scandal and indignation surrounding the premiere together with archive photographs of the stage.

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music