After a stunning Tchaikovsky
Sixth from Gergiev and his Kirov forces,
recently shown on TV, I had very high
hopes for this issue. When I saw "Live
Recording" emblazoned on the box
I was somewhat concerned that we might
get a repeat of the crazy, intrusive
"Bravo" that for me completely
ruined Gergiev’s Vienna recording of
the Fifth a couple of years ago. Live
recordings can have their attractions,
which is fine, unless some idiot, completely
convinced that he has to be the first
to start applauding, ruins the moment.
Here, I am happy to say that the offender
was either silenced, or more likely,
rehearsal ‘takes’ were substituted to
bring this performance to a close.
Having said all that,
the performance is well up to the standard
of Gergiev’s recent releases in all
but one respect: what on earth are Philips
thinking of when, as here, they release
a 42 minute CD at full price? I understand
that later on in the year, this performance
will be coupled with the other two last
symphonies of Tchaikovsky (5 and 6)
as a double disc set. Unless you are
desperate to own the current disc it
would be better to wait for the combined
release. At that stage you might consider
buying the Fifth which will probably
be split over the two discs. However,
given the applause at the end of the
Fifth, I wouldn’t bother. Since the
Pathetique has been re-recorded with
the Vienna Philharmonic, is it perhaps
too much to hope that this will also
be re-recorded with the end tidied up?
I hope so.
The record industry
is trying to get us to purchase discs
and also trying to get us to try surround
sound in SACD format. At present most
SACDs are sold at a premium price and,
in addition, if the manufacturers try
to supply half discs at higher prices,
then they are doomed. If Naxos can supply
freshly recorded SACDs at their premium
price of under a tenner, then what are
the bosses at Philips dreaming of. I
don’t believe for a moment that it would
have not been possible to record a filler
for this disc.
But back to the current
disc. The performance is superb. The
playing of the Vienna Philharmonic is
wonderful, with well blended brass and
woodwind, and those glorious strings;
just the sort of playing that suits
Tchaikovsky down to the ground. Also
Gergiev’s long experience in the theatre
shows up in this most balletic of the
symphonies. The performance shows all
of the ebb and flow which is generated
not just by the emotional content of
the work, but also by the fact that
we are dealing with a man of the theatre,
responsible for the three greatest ballet
scores ever.
Some commentators have
commented upon the fact that the Gergiev
performances don’t have the stature
of those put down by Mravinsky, and
that if they had been done by the Kirov
Orchestra they would have been more
excitingly played. This may be true,
but personally, I found the performance
here to be as satisfying as I have ever
come across.
The recording quality
cannot be faulted, with the engineers
capturing the aristocratic playing of
this great orchestra caught on the wing
under a conductor who increasingly seems
incapable of doing anything wrong. The
acoustic of the Musikverein is excellently
captured. Listeners who have surround
sound will be transported there, the
orchestra sounding vivid and lifelike.
How lucky we are to
have such performances captured on the
wing and released in such a handy format,
although in this case value for money
is poor.
John Phillips
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra/Valeri Gergiev
PHILIPS SACD 475 6196 [42’21] 
