REVIEW: WEBER Wind Concertos CKD409 [BW]: Classical Music Reviews

CD/DOWNLOAD REVIEW

The Scottish Chamber Orchestra are going from strength to strength in their recordings for Linn; some have come very close for me to being definitive, and this is as successful as any to date. I liked the SCO with Robin Ticciati in Berlioz’ Symphonie Fantastique – others were even more enthusiastic, with Dan Morgan and Simon Thompson both making it Recording of the Month – review and review.

Their Mozart symphony recordings with Sir Charles Mackerras were an all-round success: Nos.38-41, CKD308: Recording of the Month – review – and February 2009 Download Roundup; Nos.29, 31-2, 35-6, CKD350 – review and April 2010 Download Roundup – Recording of the Month. With Alexander Janiczek at the helm I greatly enjoyed their performance of Mozart’s Colloredo Serenade and Divertimento K521 on my first encounter with them (CKD320 – January 2009 Download Roundup), so it’s hardly surprising that the new recording is such a delight.

Another reason for my lack of surprise at placing this new Linn recording at the top of the tree is that I’m by no means the first to sing its praises – it’s already received top rating or something very close from at least three reviewers in music magazines and one radio CD review.

The only reason that I can think why this wouldn’t feature as a top choice for anyone in search of Weber’s concertos for wind instruments would be a preference for the Chandos album which features the second clarinet concerto in place of the bassoon concerto, with Michael Collins playing the clarinet and conducting and Stephen Stirling as horn soloist. Michael Cookson thought that a fine release (CHAN10702 – see review). Weber completists may like to note that Chandos have just squared the circle as it were by offering the bassoon concerto, with Karen Geoghegan as soloist, on a release which offers the two Symphonies and the Berlioz orchestration of the Invitation to the Dance (CHAN10748: BBCPO/Juan Menja).

I began with the expectation of comparing the new recordings of the two clarinet works with Collins on Chandos and with what have come to be generally regarded as the two benchmarks for these works. The latter two offer both clarinet concertos, the concertino and the orchestrated version of the Clarinet Quintet: Sabine Meyer (EMI Great Recordings 5679882 – review and review – or Sabine Meyer spielt Weber, identically coupled on EMI Electrola Collection 6020962, both mid-price) and Martin Fröst (BIS BIS-SACD-1523 – review). These remain the top choices for anyone requiring Weber’s complete output for the clarinet concertante. I hope to get around to reviewing them in a future Download News. The Meyer is especially good value as a download in 320kb/s mp3 from sainsburysentertainment.co.uk at just £4.99 for the Electrola reissue, while the Fröst comes in mp3, 16- and 24-bit sound from eclassical.com as well as on SACD.

Maximiliano Martín’s performances, however, of the first clarinet concerto and the concertino are so good and he’s so well supported by the SCO and Alexander Janiczek as to stand their ground against all comers. They capture both the sheer fun of the music – there’s plenty of that – and the more reflective moods. I hope that Martín will also give us the second clarinet concerto and the quintet or its orchestrated version soon.

Much as I’d have liked to have had those other two clarinet works, I certainly can’t complain about the performances of the bassoon and horn works which separate the clarinet concerto and concertino here. Not even Richard Strauss comes closer than Weber to rivalling the Mozart horn concertos and Alec Frank-Gemmill makes a very strong case for Weber. He shows us what Flanders and Swann might have made into another success. Peter Whelan makes an equally strong case for the bassoon concerto as a rival to Mozart’s. A good question for a quiz night: name any composer other than Vivaldi, Mozart and Weber who wrote a solo bassoon concerto.

I can’t think of the word ‘bassoon’ without thinking ‘buffoon’ and there’s plenty of buffoonery here, especially in the perky finale, but Whelan also brings out the reflective, rather plangent mood of the slow movement.

The Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Alexander Janiczek offer ideal accompaniment throughout and the recording is equally admirable.

Both those Chandos recordings come in CD form and as a download in mp3, 16-bit and 24/96, giving the Linn recording the edge in that the physical disc is available as an SACD and as up to 24/192 Studio Master download format. As I don’t yet have a DAC that can cope with 24/192, I listened to the recording in better-than-CD 24/96 format. That should give a fair indication of what to expect from the SACD stereo layer of the equivalent disc. I’ve been able to compare some recent Linn releases, though not this one, in both formats. It’s very good indeed.

David Kettle’s notes in the booklet, which comes as a pdf document for downloaders, are very valuable. They round off an excellent release which should be strongly appealing to all but those seeking all the clarinet concertante works on one disc. For that they will need to turn to Meyer or Fröst, with Meyer clearly replacing as bargain of choice the worthy performances of the two clarinet concertos and concertino on Naxos 8.550378.

Brian Wilson

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