Tālivaldis ĶENIŅŠ (1919-2008)
Symphony No. 5 (1976) [20:21]
Symphony No. 8, “Sinfonia concertata” (1986) [23:44]
Aria per corde (1984) [8:27]
Iveta Apkalna (organ: No. 8)
Latvian National Symphony Orchestra/Andris Poga
rec. 15-19 March 2021, Great Guild Hall, Riga, Latvia
ONDINE ODE 1388-2 [52:32]
Tālivaldis Ķeniņš was yet another new name to me, but he has become recognised as one of Latvia’s most important composers, “an individual inclined to neo-romanticism, plain-spoken, and full of vitality, in addition to being a composer of great technical virtuosity.” A native of Latvia, he studied to become a diplomat in France, moving to Riga between 1940 and 1944 and studying composition and piano under Jāzeps Vītols. Latvia fell under Soviet rule after World War II and he emigrated in 1951, living the remainder of his life in Canada.
This is not the first release of Ķeniņš’ symphonic output but appears to be as good a place to start as any. The Fifth Symphony has its gnarly qualities but is both compact and dramatic, avoiding 1970s avant-gardism while at the same time adding a pungent edginess to that aforementioned neo-romanticism. Even the Largo espressivo third of four movements holds a powerful tension, its lyrical lines soaring towards a central apocalypse that only briefly materialises. While there are four movements listed the whole work runs into a single structure, with clear intervallic relationships and recurring rhythmic motifs even where the contrasts of mood and energy are at their widest. The final, rhythmically powerful Vivace e con fuoco balances out the energy of the dramatic opening Molto animato, a section that broadens out into a Doppio lento. Each section or movement is full of its own contrasts and shifts of atmosphere, the whole having a restless logic that reveals more of itself the more you listen.
The Eighth Symphony was Ķeniņš’ last work in this genre, and with the organ and orchestra combination it’s not long before the name of Poulenc is invoked. There are perhaps some gestural comparisons that can be made, but with heavy use of percussion and Ķeniņš’ irrepressible feel for energy and intense drama there is really not much of a comparison with Poulenc to my ears, at least when it comes to the first movement. Ķeniņš was himself an excellent organist, and the solo part is both technically demanding and makes excellent use of the instrument’s registers, both in blending with orchestral sonorities and in rising above them. I’ve come across organist Iveta Apkalna a few times before, most memorably in her Bach/Glass solo recording for Oehms Classics (review), and so we know we are in safe hands with this symphony. From the enigmatic eloquence of the central Chorale, in which the spirit of Poulenc indeed comes to the fore, to the wild final Toccata, this is a remarkable symphony that you will certainly want to hear more than once. It is summed up in the booklet as a work that “lends itself to analysis but not to description… From the storms of the first part and some longed for unattainability, through the second part’s luminous chorale to the finale of the third part with its eight double and triple beats, it concludes with a single beat and transcendence.”
With excellent performances and sonics this is already a recording to add to one’s wish list, and we are also treated to an added work, the Aria per corde which was originally composed for quintet, but appears here in its version for string orchestra. “Honegger’s influence is palpable in this fairly sombre cantelina that has the sense of being touched by eternity.” This is a fine and moving conclusion to an often spectacular and always fascinating programme.
Dominy Clements
Previous review: Hubert Culot
