Mieczysław – who? I hear you ask. As well you might,
because until a few years ago this Polish composer’s work remained
largely unknown and unrecorded. That’s all changed recently; Ian
Lace declared Naxos’s first volume of symphonic poems a late-Romantic
‘treasure trove – see review
– and Rob Barnett has welcomed Gianandrea Noseda’s recording of
the ‘Rebirth’ symphony and other orchestral pieces (see review).
Not surprisingly the Polish label Dux is promoting this composer,
although I do feel that this review disc is very poor value at
just over 44 minutes. Sensibly the Noseda recording Chandos coupled
the symphony with several other pieces, making for a much more
substantial disc all-round.
Karłowicz,
who was born in Lithuania, spent much of his life in Germany
before coming to rest in Warsaw. He was hardly a prolific composer,
but then he died when he was just 32, buried under an avalanche
in the Tatra Mountains. Stylistically he is probably closest
to Scriabin, although other commentators have mentioned Bruckner
and Richard Strauss as well. Whatever influences one may divine
in this piece one thing is certain: Karłowicz was a late-Romantic
assailed by the usual spiritual and philosophical crises and,
typical of the breed, he had no qualms about providing detailed
programmes for his works.
Unfortunately these
florid texts are reflected in his orchestral writing. The opening
Andante finds the artist in a damaged world, yearning for a
better future and the promise of renewal. This dialectic is
familiar enough in fin-de-siècle art and music, but curiously
this symphony lacks all sense of creative or existential angst;
indeed, any narrative that exists here is obscured by impenetrable
clouds of orchestral puffery. The recording, taken from a live
performance in 2004, is similarly afflicted, utterly devoid
of drive or imagination. Even the hints of renewal in this movement
– cruelly dashed – have none of the glow or incandescence one
associates with the likes of Mahler, particularly in his epic
‘Resurrection’ symphony.
And therein lies
the rub. Mahler’s symphonic edifices can shoulder the added
weight of prolix programmes but Karłowicz’s ambitious musical
structure is much less sturdy. I haven’t heard Noseda’s account
of the symphony – a good five minutes swifter overall – but
I sense that Salwarowki and his Warsaw band just aren’t terribly
convinced by this work.
The Andante, with
a slow-burning build-up to the first climax, certainly has a
clearer narrative – more of a palpable sense of doubt and hesitant
hope – but where Mahler, Bruckner and Scriabin amplify these
sentiments with music of originality and power Karłowicz
seems unable to match his lofty aspirations with music of equivalent
ambition. That said, there are some affecting passages
in this movement; what a pity that the dialogue, once initiated,
falls victim to its limited vocabulary.
The Vivace gives
welcome lift to this sagging symphony, but alas it’s all too
brief and too late. Given that this is a hallucination – in
part at least, according to Karłowicz – and that all is
soon lost in a ‘whirlpool of love and revelry’ – the composer’s
words, not mine – one might expect some perfumed, Scriabinesque
writing. No such luck; instead we are greeted with one stale
blast after another. And the final Allegro maestoso is little
better, its quasi-religious chorales a poor substitute for genuine
apotheosis and impending illumination. That final chorale, heralded
by portentous timps, signals a conventional end to an equally
conventional work. Not surprisingly the applause – abruptly
faded after just a few seconds – is less than ecstatic.
Perhaps there is
more to this symphony than Salwarowski lets on, although I must
say I remain unconvinced. Short on inspiration and playing time
this is a drab recording of a dreary symphony. If you must persist
with Karłowicz then try the symphonic poems. Alternatively,
sample Noseda’s version of the symphony on Chandos; at least
it’s much better value.
Dan Morgan
Warsaw Philharmonic
Orchestra/Jerzy Salwarowski 
