Charles IVES (1874-1954)
Orchestral Set No. 1: Three Places in New England
(1912-1916, rev. 1929) [19:32]
Orchestral Set No. 2
(1915-1919) [16:23]
A Symphony: New England Holidays
(1904-1913) [42:08]
Seattle Symphony Chorale
Seattle Symphony/Ludovic Morlot
rec. 11, 13 & 14 February 2016 (Set 1), 15 & 17 June 2016 (Set 2),
1 & 2 February 2017 (Holidays), S. Mark Taper Auditorium, Benaroya
Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
Reviewed as a 24/96 download from
eClassical
Pdf booklet included
SEATTLE SYMPHONY MEDIA SSM1015
[78:03]
Huzzah! At last, the third instalment in Ludovic Morlot’s Ives cycle. In a
double
review
I praised the first two albums, and would have made them Recordings of the
Year if our canny Webmaster hadn’t noticed that I was trying to sneak in
two nominations for the price of one. Levity aside, this has proved to be
an impressive series thus far; insightful, idiomatic and always engaging,
those readings seem more consistent than Sir Andrew Davis’s Melbourne ones
(Chandos). The latter improved as they progressed, though: I was lukewarm
about
Volume 1, more enthusiastic about
Volume 2, and very taken with
Volume 3.
Which brings me to Davis’s ‘Ives Weekend’, broadcast from the Barbican in
January 1996. I’ve repeatedly referred to this – I possess an off-air
recording of the entire event – as it so emphatically confirms this
conductor’s Ivesian credentials. Almost without exception, these are
powerful, pithy performances that leap off the page in a way that his
Melbourne remakes rarely do. Even the BBC Radio 3 sound is excellent,
making this an indispensable addition to the Ives archive. Faint hope, I
know, but it would be good if the Beeb made these recordings available to a
wider audience, perhaps as cover-mounted CDs on their music magazine.
In the meantime, we owe much to James B. Sinclair and Michael Tilson
Thomas, who have done much to advance the cause of this musical maverick.
My preferred recording of the two Orchestral Sets is Sinclair’s, made
with the Malmö Symphony in 2006/7 (Naxos). As for the New England Holidays, I’ve chosen as my comparative
version MTT’s Chicago one, recorded for CBS-Sony in 1986. I’ll probably dip
into the two Davises along the way.
The three parts of the first set, composed between 1912 and 1916, weren’t
conceived as a single work; in any event, the consolidated piece only
gained traction much later, when Ives was persuaded to rework it for
reduced forces; the revised score was published in 1935. The version played
by Morlot and Sinclair is the latter’s realisation for large orchestra
(listed as Version 4 in The Descriptive Catalogue); those who want
to hear the pared-down one should investigate Sinclair’s recording with
Orchestra New England on Koch 3-7025-2. As I’ve pointed out before, these
three ‘scenes’ are very specific, the images preserved - fixed, if you
will – in the darkroom of the composer’s musical imagination. Indeed, all
the pieces played here are taken from the family album.
Morlot captures the brooding character of the opening movement in the first
set very well indeed; he may seem a little measured at times, but the
upside is that there’s a decent pulse and details are crisply rendered. He
doesn’t shrink from those sudden dissonances either, the sound full and
fearless. This piece is a gallimaufry of popular and hymn tunes, not to
mention marching bands, the collisions of the second movement a veritable
riot of sound. And although Morlot has his players on a tight rein, he
manages to balance discipline with dash and daring. But it’s the finale,
underpinned by a thrilling organ pedal, that sets the seal on this terrific
performance.
In terms of colour and tempo, Morlot is closer to Sinclair than either of
the Davises, but in the first movement at least Sinclair finds a telling
degree of transparency as well. The Malmö band aren’t quite as polished as
their Seattle counterparts, but they more than make up for that with their
wonderfully idiomatic and spontaneous playing. Then again, Sinclair has an
authority in this music that’s unmistakable, and that manifests itself in a
naturally shaped and perfectly coherent performance. He’s also more refined
than Morlot, yet he never blunts that all-important Ivesian edge.
As I discovered in my recent
review
of Leonard Slatkin’s new account of Aaron Copland’s Third Symphony,
listening to rival recordings in close proximity can be very instructive. I
stand by my positive response to Morlot’s reading of the first set, but
listening to Sinclair’s soon afterwards I was struck by how
quintessentially American he and his sensational Swedes make this
music sound, and how startlingly original. And that’s why this is still the
most complete account of the piece I know; indeed, I’d say it’s not
likely to be bettered – let alone equalled – any time soon. That also goes
for the warm, spacious Naxos recording, which I prefer to SSM’s closer,
cooler one.
If anything, Sinclair widens the gap in the second set, which he presents
with all the clarity, care and expressive power that makes his Ives so
special. The first movement has the solemn, processional weight it needs,
and the second, with its contrasting metres and distinctive piano part, is
superbly articulated. As always, he brings out the sheer audacity of Ives’s
writing. That said, conductor and composer are at their most inspired in
the third movement, in which New York rail commuters and a panoply of
‘voices’ – including an offstage choir – respond to news about the sinking
of the Lusitania. Indeed, Sinclair creates a deep, gathering swell
of emotion here that’s profoundly moving.
Can Morlot hope to match that? No, is the short answer. For a start, he
brings an almost metronomic precision to his performance that underplays
the music’s innate warmth and character. Moreover, the second movement,
usually so bright and breezy, sounds slightly contrived when heard
alongside Sinclair or Davis. All of which conspires to leach that
astonishing finale of its essential feeling. In mitigation, the virtuosity
and focus of the Seattle players is pretty impressive. I did wonder whether
this unexpected fall-off in quality has something to do with the fact that,
unlike the first set, the recording of the second isn’t derived from
concerts alone.
As for New England Holidays, it’s a collage of childhood
memories framed in the composer’s inimitable style; often spare, with
snippets of popular music and other borrowings, it’s a thoroughly original
and engaging piece. Davis really underlines the stark modernity of Ives’s
writing here; he also finds a modicum of refinement behind those unruly
notes. As for those jaunty tunes, they emerge with a vigour and vitality
that I don’t always hear with Morlot. Factor in a wonderful, chamber-like
transparency to the Chandos recording and you have a very fine performance
To be fair, the Frenchman is reasonably convincing in his blend of leanness
and lyricism – especially in the first movement – but for all that his
reading is too unyielding for me, his colours curiously muted. Yes, Morlot does loosen up a little in that marvellous medley – De Camptown Races prominent in the mix – but, alas, it doesn’t last.
Davis and MTT seem to have a much surer grasp of the symphony’s
architecture, not to mention a lighter touch when it comes to its defiant
– and defining – quirks and quiddities. As with that second set, Morlot
has the letter of the piece, but misses its irrepressible spirit.
(Incidentally, this recording isn’t derived solely from concerts either.)
I’d hoped for another cracker from Seattle, and while this is by no means a
damp squib it’s still very disappointing. Even SSM’s up-to-the minute
recording must yield to its older, more atmospheric rivals, MTT’s in
particular. Indeed, in terms of both performance and sound the latter’s New England Holidays – admittedly, I’ve yet to hear his San
Francisco remake – remains my benchmark for this extraordinary work. The
Seattle album has decent liner-notes by Larry Starr and, most gratifying, a
footnote pointing listeners to Scott Mortensen’s excellent
Ives survey
for MusicWeb.
Not at all what I expected; something of a let-down after such a promising
start.
Dan Morgan
