Recorded during live concerts in 2006, this SACD continues the excellent Philadelphia Orchestra-originated series of recordings which have all been live concerts released as multichannel SACDs. His Fifth is regarded by some as a noisy “war symphony,” but it is obvious from the date above that it was created before WWII began. The work is blatant and flashy, with an exuberant final movement which some critics feel was meant by Shostakovich to have a satirical subtext, since he was struggling to write in a style that would not win him further rebukes from the Soviet cultural authorities.
There are more emotional/violent interpretations of the work – from Bernstein and Stokowski, for example – but none can equal the rich and transparent surround sonics of this live recording. Polyhymnia International were responsible for the recording, and they don’t stint on the surround channels; the rich sound of the orchestra’s massed strings seems even better than it did under Ormandy. Eschenbach’s serious and more controlled interpretation of the symphony makes it take on a higher stature, without losing any of its impact.
Shostakovich became interested in the poetry of Alexander Blok while he was recovering from a heart attack. He determined to set seven of them for mezzo-soprano, accompanied on the various songs by either violin, cello or piano; with all three instruments participated in the final song. The original dedicatee was Galina Vishnevskaya, Rostropovich’s wife. The songs variously concern troubled nights, sleep, a storm, and the importance of music in life.
– John Sunier
