MusicWeb International One of the most grown-up review sites around 2024
60,000 reviews
... and still writing ...

Search MusicWeb Here Acte Prealable Polish CDs
 

Presto Music CD retailer
 
Founder: Len Mullenger                                    Editor in Chief:John Quinn             

Some items
to consider

new MWI
Current reviews

old MWI
pre-2023 reviews

paid for
advertisements

Acte Prealable Polish recordings

Forgotten Recordings
Forgotten Recordings
All Forgotten Records Reviews

TROUBADISC
Troubadisc Weinberg- TROCD01450

All Troubadisc reviews


FOGHORN Classics

Alexandra-Quartet
Brahms String Quartets

All Foghorn Reviews


All HDTT reviews


Songs to Harp from
the Old and New World


all Nimbus reviews



all tudor reviews


Follow us on Twitter


Editorial Board
MusicWeb International
Founding Editor
   
Rob Barnett
Editor in Chief
John Quinn
Contributing Editor
Ralph Moore
Webmaster
   David Barker
Postmaster
Jonathan Woolf
MusicWeb Founder
   Len Mullenger


Support us financially by purchasing this from

Alexander ZEMLINSKY (1871-1942)
Die Seejungfrau (The Mermaid) [47:36]
Sinfonietta [21:35]
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra/John Storgårds
rec. Helsinki Music Centre, September 2014
ONDINE ODE1237-5 SACD [69:25]

Zemlinsky commenced work on Die Seejungfrau (“The Mermaid”) in 1892. It was originally envisaged as a single-movement symphonic, and very programmatic, work, based, as it was, on the Hans Christian Andersen story. As work on the piece progressed, it became more of large-scale “Fantasy for Orchestra”, as it was billed at its first performance; more of a general mood-picture inspired by the story and less a programmatical re-telling of this in music. This SACD recording by the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra under conductor John Storgårds brings out most beautifully the lush, rich, luxuriant harmonies of the work, as if both conductor and orchestra are revelling in the sumptuous opulence of the orchestration. Recorded at the Helsinki Music Centre, the sound has a warmth that suits the work extremely well, resulting in a splendidly lavish and generous performance, in which the conductor neither rushes, nor falls into the trap of indulging too much and consequently dragging. This particular recording also has the great benefit of including a four-minute slow and atmospheric passage entitled “In the realm of the Mer-Witch”, suppressed by the composer and so not heard elsewhere.

Die Seejungfrau is twinned on the disc with the Sinfonietta, composed in 1934 after Zemlinksy’s relocation to Vienna (after fleeing Nazi Germany). The Sinfonietta is presented here in a version for chamber orchestra, the arrangement made by Roland Freistizer in 2013, of which this is the world premiere recording. It is a good arrangement but I do always in such circumstances miss the richness of the original version. It is a far leaner work than the plush and exuberant Die Seejungfrau, with a terser sound-world – economical, more angular and harsher in tone, yet there is still a yearning quality and a beauty of sound that links it to his earlier works. The performance here can yet again be highly recommended – full of humour, passion and radiance in the appropriate places. This rendition can therefore be fully recommended, as, most certainly, can the gorgeous, luscious performance of Die Seejungfrau.

Em Marshall-Luck

Previous review: Nick Barnard

 

 



Advertising on
Musicweb


Donate and keep us afloat

 

New Releases

Naxos Classical
All Naxos reviews

Hyperion recordings
All Hyperion reviews

Foghorn recordings
All Foghorn reviews

Troubadisc recordings
All Troubadisc reviews



all Bridge reviews


all cpo reviews

Divine Art recordings
Click to see New Releases
Get 10% off using code musicweb10
All Divine Art reviews


All Eloquence reviews

Lyrita recordings
All Lyrita Reviews

 

Wyastone New Releases
Obtain 10% discount

Subscribe to our free weekly review listing