Here is a review of two new Ninth Symphonies from yoday's "The Washington Post." The article is at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...040504296.html
Adding up two Ninths
By Mark J. Estren
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Original-instrument performances, long confined to baroque music, have moved into the romantic era. But as two new versions of Beethoven's Ninth show, what still matters most is a conductor's vision of a work, not whether the flutes are wood or metal or the horns natural or valved.
Philippe Herreweghe is a first-rate Beethoven conductor, but his in-studio Ninth is outclassed by Emmanuel Krivine's live recording -- and only incidentally because Krivine's uses original instruments.
The different approaches are apparent from the start. Herreweghe offers a robust, quick opening, not mysterious but emphatic. Krivine's is intense, although with less bite to the horns, and is more propulsive despite its slower tempo. Throughout the first movement, Herreweghe's clarity ties this work to the classical period, even playing down the timpani strokes. Krivine makes the timpani very dramatic, the more so because of his careful instrumental balance, especially between brass and winds.
In the Scherzo, Herreweghe's timpani are more muffled than reverberant -- clearly the conductor's intention, since the SACD has fine sound -- and the horns are quite good, although the winds are slightly reticent. The movement is effective, but a bit lacking in intensity. Krivine's Scherzo is fleet, slower than Herreweghe's but feeling faster, with lighter texture and a bouncy, scurrying quality rarely heard in this music.
The "Adagio molto e cantabile" is almost an Allegretto for Herreweghe. It is sweet and pleasant, with relaxing flow but no strong emotion. Krivine gives the movement a gentle, almost pastoral opening, an overall soothing feel and some yearning in the strings that is proto-romantic.
In the finale, Herreweghe's opening is striking, but there is little passion in the musical rejections of snippets of the earlier movements. The vocal quartet blends well, and soprano Christiane Oelze is particularly good. The chorus sings very smoothly, notably in softer sections. Krivine creates a real but brief shock as the movement opens, with especially strong timpani, and makes the "rejection" section almost regretful. The vocal quartet is very fine; bass-baritone Konstantin Wolff and tenor Dominik Wortig sing especially well. So does the chorus, which enunciates clearly and, despite being French, brings real feeling to the German words (which are provided in Naïve's booklet, but not in PentaTone's). The martial music, which can stick out oddly, here fits perfectly with the words "wie ein Held zum Siegen" -- "like a hero going to victory."
Overall, Herreweghe's performance is strong, but a touch lacking in grandeur, while Krivine's is poetic and flowing, its unforced orchestral blending perhaps partly attributable to the use of original instruments but more strongly to the conductor's skill.
Adding up two Ninths
By Mark J. Estren
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Original-instrument performances, long confined to baroque music, have moved into the romantic era. But as two new versions of Beethoven's Ninth show, what still matters most is a conductor's vision of a work, not whether the flutes are wood or metal or the horns natural or valved.
Philippe Herreweghe is a first-rate Beethoven conductor, but his in-studio Ninth is outclassed by Emmanuel Krivine's live recording -- and only incidentally because Krivine's uses original instruments.
The different approaches are apparent from the start. Herreweghe offers a robust, quick opening, not mysterious but emphatic. Krivine's is intense, although with less bite to the horns, and is more propulsive despite its slower tempo. Throughout the first movement, Herreweghe's clarity ties this work to the classical period, even playing down the timpani strokes. Krivine makes the timpani very dramatic, the more so because of his careful instrumental balance, especially between brass and winds.
In the Scherzo, Herreweghe's timpani are more muffled than reverberant -- clearly the conductor's intention, since the SACD has fine sound -- and the horns are quite good, although the winds are slightly reticent. The movement is effective, but a bit lacking in intensity. Krivine's Scherzo is fleet, slower than Herreweghe's but feeling faster, with lighter texture and a bouncy, scurrying quality rarely heard in this music.
The "Adagio molto e cantabile" is almost an Allegretto for Herreweghe. It is sweet and pleasant, with relaxing flow but no strong emotion. Krivine gives the movement a gentle, almost pastoral opening, an overall soothing feel and some yearning in the strings that is proto-romantic.
In the finale, Herreweghe's opening is striking, but there is little passion in the musical rejections of snippets of the earlier movements. The vocal quartet blends well, and soprano Christiane Oelze is particularly good. The chorus sings very smoothly, notably in softer sections. Krivine creates a real but brief shock as the movement opens, with especially strong timpani, and makes the "rejection" section almost regretful. The vocal quartet is very fine; bass-baritone Konstantin Wolff and tenor Dominik Wortig sing especially well. So does the chorus, which enunciates clearly and, despite being French, brings real feeling to the German words (which are provided in Naïve's booklet, but not in PentaTone's). The martial music, which can stick out oddly, here fits perfectly with the words "wie ein Held zum Siegen" -- "like a hero going to victory."
Overall, Herreweghe's performance is strong, but a touch lacking in grandeur, while Krivine's is poetic and flowing, its unforced orchestral blending perhaps partly attributable to the use of original instruments but more strongly to the conductor's skill.
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