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Beethoven, Richard Strauss and Ravel: Anja Harteros (soprano), Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra: Mariss Jansons (conductor), SBC, Royal Festival Hall, 29.3.2009 (GD)

Beethoven: Symphony No.3 in E flat, Op 55
Richard Strauss: Four Last Songs
Ravel: Daphnis et Cloe – Suite No 2


It seems odd to begin a concert with the ‘Eroica’.  Surely this complex and hugely dramatic masterpiece is a concluding work for any concert in which it is included? And I could not detect any narrative, thematic thread in the programme. If (say) that other late Strauss composition Metamorphosen for 23 solo strings, had  been included, with its quotations from the Eroica's marche funèbre, then a more interesting and informative narrative cross-over could have been achieved. Ideally, as the late Gunter Wand understood, the Eroica, as a locus classicus of Western symphonic tradition, works very well with formative symphonies which precede and succeed it:  a relatively neglected  Haydn symphony (say one of the ‘Sturm und Drang’ symphonies like the magnificent C major No 48 ‘Maria Theresia’) for example, and Bernd Alois Zimmermann'a wonderfully condensed commentary on the Austro-German symphonic tradition,  the ‘Symphony in one movement’ (1951).

Jansons is one of today's most celebrated conductors, and as chief conductor of two of the worlds first class orchestras -  the Amsterdam Concertgebouw orchestra, and tonight's  Bavarian Radio Symphony - he has a virtually unparalleled opportunity to develop his  directorial talents. And talent he certainly has,  as was amply demonstrated by his mostly superb earlier work, and orchestral training  with the Oslo Philharmonic.  Since he has branched out into more prestigious terrains however,  I have not always been convinced of his talents as a symphonic conductor; particular the Austro-German classical tradition. A recent concert  he gave in London with tonight's orchestra was marked by superb playing, as would be expected with this orchestra in this traditions, but I noted a distinct lack of architectural/structural grasp in the programmed Bruckner symphony. It is possible to be too critical of Jansons in this respect of course; with the death of Gunter Wand very few conductors have this ability now. Wand's  sense of structural line -  a total grasp of the whole symphonic structure  - seemed to be intrinsic to the training and culture of conductors from the earllier tradition; one can think of people like Klemperer, Bohm, Kleiber, Busch, Abendroth, to name only a few.

In its own terms though this ‘Eroica’ was full of fine things, not least consistently superb playing. Jansons deployed quite a large, traditional compliment of strings with 6 double-basses and wisely divided his violins to really stunning antiphonal effect  and the orchestral clarity he achieved surpassed many ‘period’ renditions I have heard recently. Of particular excellence was the detail that Jansons drew from the woodwinds, brass and horns - with several horn interpolated emendations, particularly in the last movement -  which did not seriously compromise the overall orchestral balance. Jansons managed the first movement's chromatic E flat twist at the start of the development section well but by the time we arrived at the development's climax, Tovey’s ‘clash of shadowy harmonies’, a distinct decline in structural suspense was apparent, not helped by a slight, but out of place, ritenuto (poco rit). And although the movement's coda was well contoured, Jansons underplayed the all important gradual crescendo triplet figure in timpani and trumpets which initiates the coda proper.

As is customary today,  the great C minor funeral march was taken more at andante pace than the marked ‘Adagio assai’, which of course  is totally in keeping with today's trend of strict adherence to the composer's metronome markings. These often conflict with the literal markings,  or more accurately, with current notions of an adagio.  Additionally, as is also customary,  Jansons did not take  care to balance  or phrase the opening appoggiatura in the bass so that it coheres with the other 32 notes in the basses. And  as with a recent performance under Vänskä, the great double fugue that initiates the movement's second episode, lacked that terrifying “Aeschylean’ drama, to borrow a phrase from Weingartner, a drama certainly realized when Toscanini, Klemperer, an indeed Weingartner conducted the marcia funebre in the past. The  four in a note timpani figure which initiates the march's fragmented coda was superbly articulated however.

The concluding scherzo and finale mostly came off with great precision and brio. The horns in the trio of the scherzo sounded magnificent in their raucous burnished, very German tone; German hunting music anticipating ‘Der Freischutz’.  It was only in the big peroration of the finale's  Promethean theme that Jansons allowed the tension to sag slightly but the superb playing almost made up for this. Jansons wisely did not whip up the blazing E flat coda, but though this was impressive, it lacked that last ounce of fire and energy heard in the greatest performances. Even so, this was an admirable “Eroica’ proving Jansons developing skills as an interpreter of the great Austro-German symphonic tradition.

Strauss’s ‘Four Last Songs’ needs a mesmerising singer and conductor if it is to sound convincing. Strauss wrote the work in 1948 at a time when Germany and much of Europe were in a state of devastation from the Second World War. Strauss, who had an intimate relation with Nazi elite knew the horrors of mass genocide and total war very well but all he could compose in response to this was a nostalgic look back to an idealised Germany. Although the work is clearly written with great skill, to my mind it irritatingly repeats past formulae with absolutely nothing new to say to later composers like Stravinsky, who held Strauss and his work in contempt. Tonight's performance did very little to add new insight into the work, or to alter my reservations about its shortcomings.

Miss Harteros's initial entry in the first song 'Frühling' (Spring) was marred by excessive vibrato, and when she reached her top A,  her vocal line was exposed to raw distortion. Throughout the cycle Miss Harteros had various problems with her tessitura; problems of pitch and on more than one occasion singing completely out of tune. In the two reflective middle songs (Strauss wrote them in no specific order) 'September', and 'Beim Schlafengehen' (Going to sleep) Miss Harteros seemed incapable of sustaining the vocal line, with no vocal 'arco'  joining up  sequences to produce the mellifluous vocal 'aura' so essential to Strauss's mature vocal style. In the final song 'Im Abendrot' (At sunset) there was some relief with Harteros's nice 'sotto voce' phrasing

One might think that Jansons (who has conducted much Strauss) would be today's ideal accompanist for these songs. But despite some predictably fine orchestral playing he conducted them in a straightforward, even bland manner, often missing Strauss's delicate filigree of subtle orchestral nuances and shading. How completely different all this was from the broadcast performance of the the work's premiere in 1950 (not long after the composers death) at the Albert Hall with Flagstad and Furtwängler and the superb original Philharmonia, recently remastered in very listenable sound. Listening to this when I arrived home, with Flagstad's first entry in 'Frühling' marked out by a rich superbly contoured vocal line,  I was transported into a totally different musical dimension. 

Ravel's 'Daphnis et Chloe, Suite No 2' was given a virtuosic performance. From the opening gradual crescendo of daybreak's nature sounds, with Daphnis before the magical Nymphs grotto, to the rhythmic thrust and precision of the concluding 'Danse générale' Jansons achieved a lucid orchestral balance making all strands of the instrumental texture clearly audible. What a superb percussion section! This Daphnis did not quite have the sense of inevitable narrative unfolding heard with Monteux (who premiered the ballet in Paris in 1912), or more recently from Boulez. but as a concert performance, it was hugely enjoyable.

Jansons was generous with encore material. First we heard a beautifully lyrical rendition of 'Solveig's Song' from Grieg's 'Peer Gynt' in the orchestral version, showing off the range and diversity of the orchestra's marvellous string section. Then, he gave us  the 'Wild Bears' from Elgar's 'Wand of Youth' Suite No 2, with real panache from the brass and percussion. Before he played the Elgar,  Jansons turned to the packed audience and in that wonderfully thick accent of his, explained something to the effect that this piece was particularly suitable for a British audience.  I am not sure whether or not he meant 'suitable' in the sense that Elgar was a British composer, which seems  obvious enough,  or in the sense that wild 'bear markets' might be currently more than relevant to certain senior gentlemen from the British banking fraternity.

Geoff Diggines


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