Cura, temporarily abandoning the stage, directs the
Warsaw orchestra in a fast and powerful performance. This is brightly
recorded by Avie. Cura's engineers have the listener floating freely,
weaving and diving from section to section in a way which may not be
very natural but which grips the attention. In fact his grasp and focus
is impressive; the more so in a work that has its longueurs. If you
are averse to Previn's classic version on EMI with its smeared and haloed
romantic aura then this is for you. This performance is full of vivacious
temperament and fairly flies along. Not quite Golovanov (Boheme) but
certainly close. Cura makes many telling points along the way and the
fact that his foot is down on the gas pedal matters not a bit. I have
heard several recordings of this work recently. Janssons with the St
Petersburg sounds more natural but lacks the same rush as Cura. Kurt
Sanderling and the Philharmonia are so much broader, are recorded more
naturally but are nowhere near so excitingly presented. Svetlanov's
battered and cut 1960s recording is perhaps the closest in urgency to
Cura's. I really enjoyed this Avie version. It is closest to the full-blooded
Russian approach. Some might find it shockingly quick but provided you
do not insist on the viscously protracted you may well find yourself
wanting more Rachmaninov from Cura.
Cura certainly rediscovers the furies in Rachmaninov's
music. I think I have at last found the man and the orchestra to make
the perfect Symphonic Dances. The Dances were superbly
recorded by Kondrashin with the USSRSO back in the 1960s. The work sounds
astounding in that Melodiya recording but has been unerringly and repeatedly
fouled up when transferred to CD. Time to let Cura and Varsovians loose
on that score coupled with the Third Symphony. There is a precondition.
And that is that whatever Cura and the orchestra were on before they
made this current recording they are treated to it again.
Non-existent background notes. Effective monochrome
photo sequence showing Cura with the orchestra rather than in Karajan-like
isolation.
Great Rachmaninov playing in a furious and tender version
of the Second Symphony. A performance you imagined but never dreamed
you would experience.
Rob Barnett
Sinfonia Varsovia/Jose
Cura