Antonín DVOŘÁK (1841-1904)
Symphony No. 8 in G, Op. 88 [36:50]
The Noon-Day Witch, Op. 108 [13:00]
Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95, From the New World [45:10]
In Nature’s Realm, Op. 91 [14:31]
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra/Seiji Ozawa
rec. live, May 1991 (Opp. 91, 95), April 1992 (Opp. 88, 108), Großer
Saal, Musikverein, Vienna
NEWTON CLASSICS 8802003 [49:50 + 59:40]
What ever happened to Seiji Ozawa? Since taking over the Vienna State Opera
in 2002 (a job which ends this year), Ozawa has nearly fallen off the map
of new recordings. Over the last eight years, I can find only a handful of
new Ozawa albums, most of them collaborations with young pianists like Yundi
Li (Prokofiev and Ravel concertos), as well as a Takemitsu disc and a small
collection of concert DVDs. A quick search of MusicWeb International finds
little trace of the conductor over the last few years. Ozawa, who turns 75
at the beginning of September, is still featured in many reissues, but his
patience for, or marketability in, the recording process appears to have faded.
Thus the fact that these recordings of Dvořák’s last two
symphonies, featuring the Vienna Philharmonic, are in fact live tapings from
1991 and 1992. The Eighth, from April of the latter year, is given a good
performance, full of pastoral ambience and terrific wind playing. Ozawa does
not really emphasize the sharp rhythms of the symphony, or go out of his way
to make them seem quirky. Quirky, sharp rhythms do not have to be fast, by
the way: a few years ago, I would have listened to this recording of the scherzo
and wished it were faster, but now I wish it were slower.
What Ozawa does, by contrast, is to make the music very attractive. The Vienna
Philharmonic are natural allies; the first movement is gorgeous and bucolic,
the second highlighted by a very subtly pretty flute-clarinet duet, and the
finale is fast from start to finish (occasionally too much so) with excellent
playing by all. There are about fifteen seconds of applause.
The first disc also includes a brisk performance of the superb symphonic poem
The Noon-Day Witch. The music is performed with great energy and clarity
(always a winning combination), and the Viennese orchestra shines as usual.
At 4:21 one can hear a motif played on cellos which will reappear prominently
in The Wild Dove. What is missing is the element of grotesquerie or
sheer storytelling panache brought to this music by a conductor like Charles
Mackerras. The superb orchestration is rendered beautifully, but not indulgently;
the entrance of the witch is eerily done by the violins, but at a tempo which
seems curt. The recorded sound, on the other hand, is terrific, giving prominence
to the percussion which becomes thrilling at the coda. This time there is
no applause.
The Ninth Symphony continues the trend from the first disc: Ozawa makes no
obvious mistakes but creates no singular insights either, and the Vienna Philharmonic
play wonderfully. I should single out for praise the scherzo, given with special
fervor, and for criticism the opening, on which there are a few seconds of
applause while Ozawa walks onstage. Why were these preserved for us?
In Nature’s Realm gets the best performance of the set; the beauty
of the Vienna Philharmonic and the swifter-than-usual tempi from Ozawa making
the piece sound fresh, breezy, and bright. I can hear highlighted all sorts
of orchestral detail which I had not heard before (from Kubelík, Ančerl,
Gunzenhauser, or Netopil), like the violin pizzicatos in the fifth minute,
or the excited trumpets at 9:15.
I am left with the conclusion that this is a set recorded very well, played
very well, and conducted without error, which nevertheless fails to rise (except
in the case of In Nature’s Realm) to the very best of the competition.
Otmar Suitner’s Staatskapelle Berlin reading remains my favorite Eighth,
and Kubelik, Szell, and Mackerras are among the names I’d mention for
the Ninth. Ozawa’s readings, though, are respectable and enjoyable,
with admirable dedication to presenting the orchestration with clarity, and
this is certainly better than, say, the recent Marin Alsop discs. Maybe the
best thing about this set, though, is the excellent booklet. After reading
David Gutman’s excellent essay, I feel like a much better-informed listener
to this music.
Brian Reinhart
Not challenging the best, but nothing wrong here either