This excellent disc includes some of Schnittke's most accomplished violin
works. His pieces are not instantly accessible - their eclecticism can be
disconcerting - but his fragmented use of many familiar forms and stylistic
ideas is easy to follow (the concerto and sonata on this disc both remain
rooted strictly in a classical form). However, these polystylistic structures
are complicated further by Schnittke's flexible 20th-century approach to
tonality - these in turn causes the harsh dissonances that are at first apparent.
Schnittke's use of 'polystylism' poses an interesting philosophical argument:
he argues that, in the modern age, 'our concepts of time and space have undergone
drastic transformations' and therefore the 'idea of the universal character
of culture, of its integrity, seems particularly apt'. Schnittke has a point:
in an age of rampant globalisation and international communication, a degree
of cultural fusion is bound to occur, and his composition can be seen as
a statement of this.
With this in mind, the Violin Concerto No. 3 does not seem especially
avant-garde; the wind textures of the first movement Moderato often
resemble Strauss, and dissonance is caused mainly by the violin line grating
against the orchestral harmony. The Agitato second movement feels
appropriately uncomfortable, and the forceful, unsettled temperament always
pushes the piece forward. The writing becomes intensely anguished as it dissolves
into the third movement, Andante, which is the focal point of the
Concerto; the opening drone notes of the soloist are deeply haunting, and
are precursors to the dark, foreboding ending, where Schnittke reveals an
altogether more ominous compositional voice. The Moscow Tchaikovsky Symphony
Orchestra are immaculate throughout, and Michail Kukushkin elicits from them
an enchanting sense of subtlety and nuance. The same can be said for soloist
Levon Ambartsumian, who echoes and leads with integrity, sensitively alternating
between the solo and accompanimental voices that Schnittke's writing demands.
After such a volatile work, Sonata No. 2 (thoughtfully subtitled 'Sensa
tempo') is something of a contrast. This was Schnittke's very first polystylistic
experiment, and it contains a range of searing contrasts and unexpected
(gimmicky?) dissonances - isolated moments that seem almost designed to shock
and provoke the listener. An enforced struggle between harmony and disharmony
ensues; this is Schnittke's metaphor for the conflict between the musical
styles of the past and present respectively, and it is significant that the
sonata never finds a conclusive centre in one tonality or another. Schnittke
takes this concept further by introducing themes of Liszt (the B-A-C-H motif
which Liszt adapted), and Beethoven (from Variations, Op.35) then tainting
them with atonality, in order to '[rule] out the possibility of pure harmony
in today's disjunct world'.
It is unfair to judge a violinist on the harsh sonorities of Schnittke alone,
but the virtuosic playing of violinist Levon Ambartsumian (b.1955) is
outstanding. As a prodigy of the former Eastern Bloc, Ambartsumian's reputation
is confined mainly to Eastern Europe, and although since 1988 he has toured
in Europe and taken residence in the USA, he is largely unknown in the West.
On this disc, his sound is often intense, suiting the harshness and dissonances
of the writing, yet he also finds room for moments of tenderness. The virtuoso
requirements of the sonata and A Paganini are faultlessly executed
with apparent ease.
A Paganini is a witty and mischievous piece with which to end the
disc. A juxtaposition of harsh chords and snatches of melody from the 24
Caprices of Paganini, it is a nightmarishly dissonant take on the great violin
maestro's devilish composition, and an appropriately unnerving note on which
to end.
Simon Hewitt Jones
See also review of Shostakovich CD, Phoenix PHCD 151, conducted by Levon
Ambartsumian. SOON
Levon Ambartsumian, Violin
