The only obvious link between the performances coupled here is
the conductor, Franz Welser-Möst. The recordings were made nearly
ten years apart, with different orchestras. As for the pieces
themselves, the first is by the implacably atheist Strauss, the
other by the deeply devout Bruckner. Nonetheless there is a strong
unseen link in the person of Richard Wagner, whose influence
is to be felt in each work, though in very different ways. In
Strauss it is principally the orchestration, with its rich string
writing, and multiple horn fanfares recalling the world of The
Ring. There is even an explicit reference to Wagner’s Magic
Fire music from Die Walküre, appropriately enough in
the episode Auf dem Gipfel (On the summit, track 14, 0:25).
In Bruckner, it is the Wagnerian harmonic language which colours
much of the music, though naturally the orchestration is also
influenced. Despite all that, though, it is still a somewhat uncomfortable
coupling, and perhaps the best one can say about the disc is that
it is undoubtedly good value, for most recordings of the Alpine
Symphony offer that work alone.
The
Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester is one of the world’s finest youth
orchestras, with young players drawn from all over Europe. By
any standards, this is a thrilling performance of the Alpine
Symphony, which has to be rated as among the more demanding
works in the orchestral repertoire. The symphony tells the story
of a party of hikers who set out to climb an alpine peak. Starting
from the Stygean gloom before dawn, we follow them on their
journey to the summit and back, encountering a violent storm
en route home. It’s an ideal subject for Strauss, for the programme
provides a ready-made structure, with ample opportunities for
graphically descriptive orchestration, while the philosophical
aspect – the journey as a metaphor for human life etc. – is
too obvious to labour.
The
playing is remarkably fine throughout, and Welser-Möst steers
the young musicians through the work with purpose and enthusiasm.
Strings produce a rich, luxuriant tone, intensely expressive
where needed, woodwind solos are characterfully projected, and
the brass playing is confident and stylish. Can you feel a ‘but’
coming? Well, there are a couple as a matter of fact; firstly,
the recording. Granted this was a live event, which took place
in the Vienna Musikverein during a tour of the orchestra in
2005. Even so, the balance is very eccentric, with sudden close-ups
of individual instruments at, for example, track 10 around 0:20
and onwards, with woodwind and first horn suddenly thrust under
our noses. Important detail in heavy brass often loses out;
take for example the powerful (should be) entry of trombones
near the beginning of track 13 – virtually inaudible. And it’s
the same story in the storm, though here it is, I have to say,
wonderful to be able to hear all the details of scoring that
are often completely lost amongst deafening percussion, organ,
wind machine and the rest.
The
other ‘but’ concerns Welser-Möst’s tempi, which are on the swift
side throughout, not necessarily a problem But in one place
- the great peroration at the centre of the work, to be found
at track 13, 1:45 - he virtually bolts forward, robbing the
music of most of its grandeur; very strange. Looking at the
score, I have to confess that Strauss is not clear here; he
simply indicates that the music is to be felt as 2 beats to
the bar, which implies a quicker tempo than that adopted by
most conductors. The acid test, though, is that the music sounds
rushed, and does not seem to me to realise adequately Strauss’s
indication of Maëstoso (majestically).
Not
a great or definitive version of this symphony, then, but an
interesting and exciting one, and of great interest to Strauss
lovers. The Bruckner Te Deum is more straightforward,
for this is a highly commendable reading. Welser-Möst paces
the work splendidly, and has not only the LPO, but a fine, young
sounding choir in the Mozart-Chor Linz. The sopranos are able
to negotiate the often cruelly high writing with apparent ease
– for example the passage at track 27 around 4:00 - though their
tone is sometimes lacking in colour. The team of soloists is
equally impressive, with Jane Eaglen and tenor Deon van der
Walt in particularly good voice.
Some
slight reservations but a worthwhile issue nevertheless, and
great value.
Gwyn Parry-Jones
