BRAHMS: Symphony No. 2; Alto Rhapsody; Three Schubert Songs – Nathalie Stutzmann, contralto/ Monteverdi Choir/ Orch. Revolutionnaire et Romantique/John Eliot Gardiner – Soli Deo Gloria

by | Aug 1, 2009 | Classical CD Reviews | 0 comments

BRAHMS: Symphony No. 2; Alto Rhapsody; Three Schubert Songs – Nathalie Stutzmann, contralto/ Monteverdi Choir/ Orch. Revolutionnaire et Romantique/John Eliot Gardiner – Soli Deo Gloria SDG 703, 73:59 ***** [Distr. by Harmonia mundi]:

In the early 1980s when the authentic instruments, historically-informed performance movement was gathering steam, the common observation made by those who thought that the whole idea of an "authentic performance" was an exercise in self indulgent futility was "And what’s next, Mozart played on period instruments?" Well that was exactly what came next and John Eliot Gardiner was the guiding spirit behind that accomplishment. His performances of the Mozart Piano Concertos played by Malcolm Bilson on fortepiano and of the operas have stood the test of time. Beethoven, Schumann and Berlioz soon followed, accompanied by considerable acclaim as well as some attendant controversy.

So these historically informed performances of the Brahms Symphony No. 2 in D major, of the Alto Rhapsody and of three Schubert songs, two of which were arranged for orchestra by Brahms, should come as no surprise. That such a thing as a period performance of Brahms even makes sense musically is a valid question. One could argue, for instance, that any performance of Brahms by the Vienna Philharmonic is a period performance to some degree. Many of their instruments are hand made especially for orchestra members. Passed down through the years as a musical legacy, some of them are more than one hundred years old and are contemporaneous with the composer. Are these not authentic performances? Certainly their tradition of playing Brahms is a venerable one, making any live traversal of a Brahms symphony by the VPO something of a necessary experience for every lover of the composer’s orchestral creations.

What Sir John offers us in this second installment of his ongoing series of the Brahms symphonies is something different. He is searching for the subtleties that reveal the composer’s true intentions. When played on period instruments that feature thick gut strings, four natural horns, rotary-valve trumpets, leather-headed kettle drums and those gloriously reedy 19th Century woodwinds, one hears an entirely different Brahms. The textures are lighter but the sonority is slightly darker. This creates such a powerful sense of emotional ambiguity that one responds as if witnessing a newly cleaned Renaissance painting. There were several moments when I experienced chills as I suddenly "got it." The sense that this was what the composer probably intended, a particular effect or certain shading in the orchestration is palpable throughout this recording of a live performance.

Gardiner utilizes the detailed performance notes of conductor Fritz Steinbach (1855-1916). Steinbach was a favorite of Brahms and the recipient of many unnotated performance instructions by the composer. Tempo markings, questions of dynamics and of technique are now essentially answered by the composer himself. Tempi are flexible a la Furtwangler – a conductor Sir John admires – while phrasing is more balanced. The orchestra is a full-bodied one, containing 62 members. The Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique was built to play the music of the Romantic era and they do it with an under-stated élan; stormy one moment then succumbing to the deepest melancholy the next. This is truly a revelatory performance that removes a century of stylistic and technical accretions that have robbed us of hearing this music in the way that the composer intended.

The sublime Alto Rhapsody is beautifully sung by contralto Nathalie Stutzmann whose dark voice beautifully matches Goethe’s brilliant poetry. The three Schubert songs are also well performed by the splendid Monteverdi Choir. The first of the songs, Gesang der Geister uber den Wassern D714 (Song of the Spirits Over the Waters) also features Goethe’s poetry as well as a wonderfully poignant arrangement by Brahms. All of the music on this superb CD reveals some aspect of Brahms’ musical personality. This is a recording of a live performance. It features middle-distance miking that captures the orchestra beautifully. The sound stage is wide and fairly deep without a trace of annoying artifacts such as audience noise or extraneous sound contributed by equipment. Voices are slightly recessed but clear. This CD will be one of the gems of your Brahms collection if you approach it with an open mind. Strongly recommended.

– – Mike Birman

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