Jacques OFFENBACH (1819-1880)
Overture: Orphée aux enfers (Orpheus in the Underworld) (1858) [10:24]
Overture: La Belle Hélène (The Beautiful Helen) (1864) [8:35]
Overture and ballet: Le Voyage dans la lune (Journey to the Moon) (1875) [17:25]
Overture: La Fille du tambour-major (The Drum-Major's Daughter) (1879) [5:54]
Intermezzo and Barcarolle: Les Contes d'Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann) (1881) [5:12]
Overture: Barbe-bleue (Bluebeard) (1866) [3:08]
Overture: Le Mariage aux lanternes (Marriage by Lantern-Light) (1857) [5:25]
Overture: La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein (The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein) (1867) [6:04]
Overture: Vert-Vert (1869) [8:59]
Overture: La Vie parisienne (Parisian Life) (1866) [5:33]
Orchestre de la Suisse Romande/Neeme Järvi
rec. 23-24 June 2015, Victoria Hall, Geneva, Switzerland
Reviewed as a 24/96 Studio Master download from
The Classical Shop
Pdf booklet included
CHANDOS CHSA5160 SACD [77:45]
Neeme Järvi, whose Chandos recordings with the (Royal)
Scottish National Orchestra in the 1980s were universally acclaimed,
has turned his attention to lighter music these days. I’ve reviewed
his Chabrier,
Saint-Saëns
and Suppé,
shared between the RSNO and the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande; Järvi
was appointed artistic and music director of the latter in 2012. These
recent albums seem rather variable, primarily because I find Järvi a
tad brusque at times. Indeed, I’ve even gone so far as to suggest
he’s not the powerhouse he once was; perhaps this Offenbach collection
will change that perception.
We kick off with an invigorating account of the overture to the celebrated
Orpheus in the Underworld, which ends with a high-kicking
rendition of the famous Can-Can. The OSR are wonderfully alert
and the recording has plenty of space and sparkle. Bass is quite taut
and the percussion is nicely rendered. I cut my teeth on Karajan’s
early digital recording of these perennially popular pieces, but it
sounds rather fierce and regimented now. That said, they’re still
exciting performances.
Järvi’s account of the overture to The Beautiful Helen
is well blended and it’s surprisingly supple – for him.
The stereo spread is very convincing and there’s a lovely bloom
to the sound that I haven’t heard from Chandos in a while. Also,
those rousing brass passages are bracing but not too bright, while the
quieter ones are nicely detailed. One of Offenbach’s less familiar
works, the so-called ‘fairy opera‘ Voyage to the Moon,
is represented here by the overture and ballet music. What glorious
fanfares in the overture, and how ear-pricking the timp rolls that follow.
As for the ballet music it’s artfully sprung and attractively
pointed.
Any caveats thus far? Apart from the fact that not all these arrangements
– mostly by unknown hands – are of equal quality and interest
Järvi’s Offenbach isn't always as genial as I’d like. Never
mind, he more than makes up for that with performances of impeccable
style and shape. The overture to The Drum-Major's Daughter
mixes martial rhythms with moments of real tenderness. It’s all
capped by the kind of chatterbox-chastening finale that had me laughing
out loud. Järvi scales and paces this one to perfection, inviting a
round of applause even before the curtain rises. These well-drilled
players seem to be enjoying themselves as well.
Offenbach’s masterly opéra fantastique, The Tales
of Hofmann, premiered in Paris in February 1881, is represented
by the intermède (intermezzo) and Barcarolle; both
get a decent if somewhat low-key outing here. As for Karajan’s
Bluebeard it’s one of the more memorable tracks in his
collection. By contrast Järvi’s account has a softer centre, and
he’s firm rather than obsessive in matters of rhythm. The short
overture to Marriage by Lantern-Light – a revised version
of the earlier Mathurin’s Treasure – is one of
the more obscure and less ‘showy’ pieces here; it has a
certain charm nonetheless.
While Järvi’s performance of the overture to La Grande-Duchesse
de Gérolstein seems a tad reticent after Karajan’s more brilliant
one it’s no less compelling for that. What the OSR lack in sheer
élan – the Berlin brass in particular are hard to beat
– they make up for in lovely detail and rhythmic flair. Ditto
in the effervescent overture to Vert-Vert, which climaxes in
a runaway finale that had me reaching for the Repeat button. The last
bon-bon in this well-filled box, Antal Doráti’s
arrangement of the overture to La Vie parisienne, is certainly
one of the tastiest.
A melt-in-the-mouth confection, attractively played and presented; Järvi
père is back on form at last.
Dan Morgan
twitter.com/mahlerei
