This is the fifth volume in the superb Chandos series, begun
in 2003, of Polish composer Mieczysław Weinberg's complete
symphonies. Previous instalments have all received a warm reception
on this site: see volume
1, volume
2, volume
3 and volume
4. Chandos have also released a disc of concertos - see
review.
The last two mentioned were, like the present release, recorded
by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra under Thord Svedlund, who
put in another commendable performance here.
This is the first recording of Weinberg's Symphony no.3. Begun
in 1949, the symphony was the first of Weinberg's to run into
trouble with Andrei Zhdanov's new anti-formalism crusade, the
so-called "Zhdanov Doctrine", by which Soviet composers were
required, on pain of persecution, to produce music for the people
- which meant straightforward works that ideally drew on folk
material. The bright, optimistic, almost pastoral first movement
of the Third Symphony sets the right tone, enhanced by the inclusion
of a Belarusian folksong tune - although the sudden segue into
a more ethereal coda adds an element of mystery. Despite Weinberg's
efforts, the work in its original form failed to impress the
authorities and the Moscow premiere was postponed when the composer
'discovered errors that he wished to correct.' One of the changes
he made for the premiere which eventually took place a full
decade later was to move the third-movement scherzo to second
place. Like a livelier, shorter version of the first movement
in character, the scherzo, an Allegro giocoso with a brief Andante
interlude, further imitates the first movement with its own
folk tune, this time Polish, and an enigmatic coda, condensed
and imaginatively orchestrated.
For its first three minutes the third movement sounds like part
of a Scandinavian suite for strings, something both orchestra
and conductor seem to appreciate here, but from folk-like beginnings
the passion soon begins to build, only to finally find release
and ultimately tranquillity towards the end. The opening bars
of the Allegro vivace final movement shatter that peace with
a semi- or more likely pseudo-heroic fanfare, and an immediate
launch into a martial theme redolent of those employed by Shostakovich,
Prokofiev and numerous other Soviet composers under the watchful
eye and ear of Big Brother. Nevertheless, in a movement Weinberg
revised heavily, he does his best to subvert his own music with
various twists and turns in the second half, which gives a delicious
foretaste of his marvellous Fourth and Fifth Symphonies - for
more of which see volumes 1 and 2 in this Chandos series.
In 1964 Weinberg extracted four suites from his ballet The
Golden Key, which relates the unlikely adventures of Burattino,
who leads his fellow puppets in a revolt against the cruel puppet
master. Weinberg created the suites on musical grounds with
little further regard for the story. The music is consequently
varied and fairly light-hearted, despite the occasional grotesquerie
of the tale. The music is not unsurprisingly reminiscent of
Prokofiev - mainly Cinderella, but also at times Romeo
and Juliet and The Tale of the Stone Flower. Yet
the seventh movement, 'The Lesson', is pure Shostakovich, who,
incidentally, almost got to write a ballet on the story himself
in 1943, with only the intervention of typhoid fever causing
the idea to be shelved, according to the liner-notes.
The recorded sound on this SACD is very good, without quite
being perfect: there is a hint of muddiness to the strings in
places, and the odd creak or intake of breath - but nothing
of any real consequence. It is a pity that the disc is so short
- it is hard to believe that at least another suite from The
Golden Key could not have been fitted into the thirty minutes
of empty space. On previous volumes Chandos have been much more
generous - presumably this is a blip rather than the start of
a downward trend! The CD booklet is the usual attractive package
from Chandos: glossy pages, discreet photos, full technical
information etc., and with decent notes on the works once again
by David Fanning.
There is still plenty more to look forward to from Weinberg.
An excellent discography of his symphonies by Michael Herman
is available on MusicWeb International here.
Although its last update was February 2011 at the time of writing,
meaning that this first recording of Symphony no.3 is not listed,
the discography does show that most of the symphonies, including
those for chamber orchestra and the sinfoniettas, have thankfully
now been recorded. How many symphonies Weinberg wrote seems
at a casual glance to be as variable as the weather - anything
from 21 to 27, depending on source. The New Grove Dictionary
is usually the most reliable general musicological resource
- though it still erroneously gives the composer's first name
as "Moisey" - and it lists 21 full symphonies - from no.1, op.10
of 1942 to no.21 op.152 of 1991; with a further 4 chamber symphonies,
from no.1, op.145 of 1987 to no.4, op.153 of 1992; and two sinfoniettas
- no.1, op.41 of 1948 and no.2, op.74 of 1960. Over to Chandos!
Byzantion
Collected reviews and contact at reviews.gramma.co.uk
And a review from Rob Barnett
This latest CD volume from Chandos makes for another outstanding
contribution to their unique survey of Weinberg’s symphonies
and pleasure is diffused only slightly by the short playing
time.
The playing by the Gothenburgers is exemplary. This is early
Weinberg - at least the Third Symphony is. It's a 30-plus
minute, four movement, B minor piece written in 1950 and revised
in 1959. The first movement sports a tickling forward-pressing
motif. This is clothed sweetly, at first, but the atmosphere
becomes gradually more determined and warlike-heroic with a
sideways glance at Shostakovich's Leningrad. It's extremely
exciting and might be thought of as comparable to the first
symphonies of Sviridov and Dvarionas among others. It is not
as belligerent as these other examples; certainly the sweet
oboe pastoral (I 6:20) is far more gentle than anything found
in those other works. Something of dancing snowflakes in this
but also of warm pine forests. A chill sets in towards the end
of the movement. There's a playful sprinting and flittering
allegro giocoso and this can be contrasted with a potently sustained
and meditative gloom. There’s tenderness in the Adagio
(III) which is almost as long as the first movement. The clarinet
solos have a plangently woody bubble and the theme seems a byway
off the Volga Boatmen’s Song. This ends in a becalmed
murmur from the strings. The finale returns to the implacably
sturdy fast-pulsed mood of the heroic first movement. This is
a splendidly rich recording with a nice throaty roar to the
brass.
This revised version of the Symphony was premiered by Aleksandr
Gauk conducting the All-Union Radio and TV Symphony Orchestra
in Moscow on 23 March 1960.
The Golden Key was a ballet written in 1954-55
to a fairy fable scenario by Aleksey Tolstoy (1882-1945). In
this format the music was premiered on 10 June 1962. Two years
later Weinberg extracted for suites of which this is the last.
The music is full of Petrushkan character, gawky, winningly
elegiac (tr. 6 with its oboe singer), impudently Respighian
(tr. 7) and ruthlessly driven (The Rat). The final Pursuit movement
combines iterative obsessional onrush with an innocence absent
from the assaults of the Symphony’s first and final movements
Every part of this production shouts quality. The notes are
by David Fanning whose knowledge of the music and the era must
be second to none. Svedlund knows the Weinberg works well having
already recorded many of them so he is a reliable and inspired
guide
If you enjoy Russian music of the mid and first half of the
last century then you need to hear this. It's by no means garish
poster material and its depth and accessible grip may surprise.
Rob Barnett
Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra/Thord Svedlund 
[49:41] 
