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Sergey
PROKOFIEV (1891-1953) Scythian Suite, Op.20 (1916) [20:01]
Suite from ‘The Steel Dance’ (1927) [13:19] Alexander Nevsky, Cantata Op.78 (1938) [40:02]
Linda Finnie
(mezzo); Scottish National Orchestra Chorus
Scottish National Orchestra/Neeme Järvi
rec. Glasgow City Hall, 28-29 September 1988 (Steel Dance),
Caird Hall, Dundee, 21-23 Aug. 1987 (rest). DDD
Text and translation included. CHANDOS
CHAN10482X [73:45]
This
desirable re-release is from Neeme Järvi’s highly praised
Prokofiev cycle recorded by Chandos in the 1980s. The symphonies
from this series were all excellent, and the miscellaneous
orchestral items that acted as fillers were also of high
quality.
The
first thing to strike one is the typical in-house sound that
was a hallmark of Chandos from this period, and indeed still
is in some venues. It doesn’t suit everyone, but the mixture
of a lively, resonant acoustic with a rather bright, front-end
balance does, I think, work well in this type of music. I
did tame the treble a tad, but the climactic passages are
really tremendous, viscerally exciting but with bags of detail.
The
same thing could be said of the readings. Järvi tended in
this series towards fast tempos, and for the most part this
approach pays off. The Scythian Suitehas
a nervous edge that is thrilling. In places I miss the sheer
weight of tone and savage splendour of Gergiev’s Kirov account
on Philips, especially in the second movement, the famous ‘Enemy
God and Dance of the Black Spirits’ , but he pays more attention
to the tender moments than Gergiev, as in the lovely wind
passages of movement 3, entitled ‘Night’ – around one minute
in. All told, it’s a very convincing reading, with the Scottish
National playing their socks off and only losing out to more
famous rivals in exposed high string passages.
The ‘Steel
Dance’ of 1927 is a bit of a rarity and well worth
having. As with Scythian Suite, this was also originally
a Diaghilev ballet commission that ended up as a concert
suite, and being subtitled ‘A Ballet of Construction’,
one can pretty well guess that it suited Prokofiev’s style
from this period. The depiction of factory life and the
mechanised age is brilliantly brought to life in orchestral
language that balances brutality and atmosphere with consummate
skill. Yes, there is an air of pompous propaganda in places,
but it’s impossible not to be swept along by the rhythmic
vitality and wit of it all, especially in Järvi’s finely
gauged and superbly played account.
Alexander
Nevskyis the main work here, and the one with
most serious rivals. It’s a good rendition, very well
played and sung with an edge of rawness from the chorus
that is quite fitting. Linda Finnie’s contribution is
first rate, and my only concern is that when set alongside
the very finest accounts, of which my own favourite is
Previn with LSO forces and Anna Reynolds on an EMI twofer,
the last degree of excitement is missing. Others may
disagree, and I have to admit to being swept away by
Järvi’s spectacular rendition of Battle on the Ice,
but then this works in just about every version I’ve
heard. The Chandos recording really does help here, with
a bite and vividness that is thrilling. There is definitely
a bitter chill to Järvi’s Russian winter here, and anyone
buying this disc is very unlikely to be disappointed.
Indeed, with such intelligent couplings, a budget price
tag and with well over 70 minutes, it stands out even
in a crowded field.
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