BELA BARTOK: Concerto for Orchestra – Houston Symphony Orchestra/ Leopold Stokowski, conductor – Classic Records HDAD (2 discs; CD + DVD – one side DVD-Audio, either 192K 2-channel or 96K 3-channel; other side DVD-Video either 96K 2-channel or Dolby Digital 3-channel) HDAD 2028, 34:31 [Distr. by Naxos] *****:
Second only to Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring in importance in the history of 20th century orchestral music, Bartok composed his brilliant Concerto for Orchestra in 1943. He was living in New York City while plagued by illness and dire poverty. It was commissioned by Serge Koussevitzky who conducted the Boston Symphony Orchestra in its premiere performance. The Concerto’s significance was recognized almost immediately and its success might have helped to mitigate some of Bartok’s financial difficulties but the composer was gravely ill and he died in 1945. Bartok’s greatness as a composer took several more years to be fully appreciated but by the 1960s musicologists such as Donald Grout were hailing his music along with Stravinsky’s as being the most likely to stand the test of time.
This performance featuring the Houston Symphony Orchestra conducted by Leopold Stokowski was originally released on the Everest label in 1961. Stokowski’s interpretation of the Concerto is free and expressive. His mastery of musical rhetoric and orchestral color are fully in evidence and contribute to his bringing this music to energetic life. Stokowski discovers what might be described as Romantic era expansiveness in the Bartok Concerto. It is in sharp contrast to the celebrated Pierre Boulez versions of the Concerto on Sony and DGG with their modernist rigor and musical angularity. The Everest Stokowski is more sinuous than Fritz Reiner’s dramatic recording on RCA Living Stereo SACD [and 3-channel vs. only 2-channel on the Reiner version…Ed.]. The larger-than-life persona of Leopold Stokowski adds even more personality and immediacy to this performance.
This recording was originally made on 35mm magnetic film which accommodated three channels, each of which was as wide as standard ¼-inch recording tape. The use of this more robust recording medium yielded less background noise. The base material of the 35mm film was five times thicker than that of conventional tape permitting a recording of greater sonic intensity without distortion. To celebrate this special recording technique Classic has been releasing two-disc sets that feature the original recording remastered in stereo on standard CD along with a two sided DVD-10 or HDAD containing remastered two channel 24 bit/192 kHz and three channel 24 bit/96 kHz DVD-Audio recordings on one side and two channel 24 bit/96 kHz and three channel Dolby Digital AC-3 DVD Video recordings (playable on any standard DVD player) on the other.
The remastered stereo CD sounds clear and bright with a warm presence that is quite appealing. The wide dynamic range of this recording can be attributed to the 35mm magnetic tape used in the original session. The second disc features an easy menu system to access the various versions of the piece. The DVD video side of the HDAD offers a slightly coarser three channel Dolby AC-3 version of the original. The two channel 24 bit/96 kHz incarnation is a recording of an almost silky finesse and clarity, reminiscent of the original but more spacious and airy. The DVD-Audio side offers a sonically clear 24 bit/192 kHz two channel recording that is the most lifelike of all five choices. The three channel 24 bit/96 kHz version gains in airiness at the cost of the impressive warmth of the two channel one. This intriguing package combines a fine performance with a wide variety of choices and makes a splendid addition to any Bartok collection. [You’re lucky you can still hear a fidelity improvement of 192K over 96K; with my rolled-off high end hearing I’ll stick with 3-channel 96K…Ed.]
— Mike Birman
