Olivier MESSIAEN (1908-1992)
Turangalîla-Symphonie (1946-1948, rev. 1990)
Tamara Stefanovich (piano), Thomas Bloch (ondes Martenot), Nationaltheater-Orchester Mannheim/Alexander Soddy
rec. live, 11-12 November 2019, Mozartsaal, Rosengarten Mannheim, Germany
OEHMS CLASSICS OC472 [78:23]
It seems like not so very long ago that recordings of Olivier Messiaen’s Turangalīla-Symphonie were a rarity, but even given its colourful orchestration and significant use of the Ondes Martenot this is a work that every leading orchestra should have as part of its skill set, even if it remains less common in concert programmes. The choices on CD now are numerousē and so this version with the Nationaltheater-Orchester Mannheim conducted by its General Director of Music Alexander Soddy enters a competitive market.
Recordings of this work thrive on spectacular recording production, and this one is very good indeed. There is a wide stereo soundstage and excellent detail on significant instruments without destroying the illusion of a concert-hall ‘live’ experience and the natural blend of instruments required for that effect. You can follow the score and pick out everything very nicely, and the gritty low buzz of the Ondes Martenot can be heard as well as its ethereal melodic lines and dramatic glissandi, but the presence is not so close as to make you feel you are being battered around the head by all that brass and percussion, the bass drum thwacks from which are of course deep, loud and satisfying to hungry woofers. Cymbals are effective but don’t cover the entire orchestral sound with splash at tuttis. Thomas Bloch was a student of Jeanne Loriod, Messiaen’s Ondes Martenot player as was her sister Yvonne his pianist, so we can be sure he very much knows the ropes in this work. Pianist Tamara Stefanovich also deserves a mention, taking her part as an orchestral member with needle-sharp accuracy as well as she does as an eloquently expressive soloist.
This live performance is excellent, with bags of visceral excitement and exotic atmosphere. Alexander Soddy doesn’t rush, allowing Messiaen’s harmonies and colours to take their effect, but nor does he drag or linger. Turangalīla is long enough, but the timings here are within expected parameters. This is a hair under one minute over Esa-Pekka Salonen’s Sony Classics recording, and around two minutes longer than Riccardo Chailly on Decca with the Royal Concertgebouw orchestra and Yan Pascal Tortelier with the BBC Philharmonic on Chandos, but there are no overblown movements and everything is paced with a sense of natural flow and more than enough dramatic contrast. I spotted one or two very minor slips in the playing, but nothing that will prove annoying on repeated listening. There is certainly no audience noise, and the applause at the end came as a bit of a shock, the quality of the whole if not its exciting atmosphere letting us forget the live provenance of this recording.
There are too many comparison discs these days for the average person to keep up with them all, and ranking them in order of preference is pointless in something that is in any case very subjective. Here are a few to be aware of: Hannu Lintu on the Ondine label (review) is a little more ‘up front’ in terms of recorded balance, which creates marginally more impact and delivers a chamber-music feel to the solos and ensemble sections. Sonorities, performance and recording are all superb here, and if a high-definition view of Messiaen’s score as if from an aerial photograph is what you are looking for then this is excellent. The detailed perspectives do create some odd effects from time to time however, and as a spiritual experience this recording has a few too many seams showing to truly transport us into another plane. André Previn on EMI/Warner Classics (review) is a must-have bargain if you can find it, though I have a feeling this twofer is currently only available as a download. Seiji Ozawa on RCA (review) is still good and has plenty of passion and drive, but the 1967 recording can’t compete with the more recent generation of versions in terms of detail and the CD transfer doesn’t do the analogue quality of the sound many favours. Esa-Pekka Salonen on Sony Classics is also good, and while not particularly admired by Rob Barnett in his review it at least avoids blowsy sentimentality. Riccardo Chailly on Decca cannot be ignored, both for the excellence of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and the Concertgebouw acoustic, which seems made for such large scale noises. This may not be everyone’s favourite, but it does convey the feeling of a dramatic and special event, which with their efficiency and microscopic detail some fail to do these days. The Hyperion recording conducted by Juanjo Mena (review with links to two other MWI reviews) became a top choice when it appeared in 2012, which for some reason now seems an awfully long time ago. I will go with the consensus here, not having this disc in my collection. As for not having a disc in our review collection, we’re missing out on Antoni Wit with the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra on the Naxos label, which is the bargain basement choice in terms of price but gives away little if anything in terms of recording and performance to the big names in the catalogue.
My only real criticism for this release is in the packaging. The booklet is made oversize, to fit outside the standard jewel case but inside its cardboard sleeve. The fit here is too tight, and even if you manage to extricate everything without damage you’ll have a hard job getting it all back in.
To conclude, you can shop around for a Turangalīla-Symphonie, and finding a good one need not be difficult. There is much beauty, ardor and powerful intensity to be found in this recording, and while it might not be quite as white-hot as others at certain moments it certainly stands up well enough on its own terms. The sense of joy in the Final is palpable and suitably manic; Messiaen’s review of his material in this last movement reminding us of how good it all was. I’m pushed to make this an absolute top of the heap winner just as I would be to make such a decision for any recording of this work, but wherever it lands it’s going to be a contender and unlikely to be buried any time soon.
Dominy Clements
Previous review:
Dan Morgan
