If George Gershwin had written a piece called A Bohemian
in New York then there might have been some logic to this
coupling, but nothing in the booklet notes even attempts to
link these two works. Never mind. Not quite as popular as the
Cello Concerto, Dvorák’s Violin Concerto is still
a work with plenty of competitive recordings around. Names which
spring to mind are Tasmin Little with her impressive and quite
poetic recording amongst a feast of concertos on a 2CD EMI set
with the Bruch Concerto No. 1, Scottish Fantasy,
and Lalo’s Symphonie Espagnole. Also on EMI is Kyung-Wha
Chung with Riccardo Muti which is a tad heavier than Little
but in that respect gaining in Slavic weight and passion, and
nicely paired with Bartók’s Rhapsodies 1 and 2. Paired
with Dvorák’s Piano Concerto, James Ehnes with his fine
high tones soaring above the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra in good
form on the Chandos label is also not to be ignored. In other
words, plenty of choice and less loopy programming is to be
had, but having marvelled at Liza Ferschtman’s Beethoven (see
review)
there was nothing for it but to Czech out her Dvorák, ahem.
This is indeed a fine recording, but the Beurs van Berlage acoustic
does render the Netherlands Philharmonic into something a little
spongy and generalised. The Muti/Philadelphia combination certainly
has more impact, and BBC/Noseda greater detail. When the strings
and timpani come together on this Dutch recording there’s lots
of growling, and everything orchestral just seems a little too
far away to be really distinct. That said, the proportion between
the soloist isn’t too unnatural sounding, with Ferschtman’s
violin set realistically in the acoustic and not too forward
for comfort. Indeed, it is for her playing that you will want
this recording, and she doesn’t disappoint. Tender phrasing
and drama both intensely quiet and lyrical as well as in full
flight are all features of a fine performance. The witty little
touches in the first movement about 7 minutes in are one of
many points of nice detail, with good contrast of bowing weight
allowing the music a certain amount of freedom in a piece which
is pretty relentless for the soloist. There is a nice blend
of lines at the beginning of the Adagio ma non troppo,
though again it might have been nicer to hear the colours of
the woodwinds more distinctly. Ferschtman’s double-stopping
is terrific, easily outplaying the horns after about 3 minutes,
but Tasmin Little is the player who holds my interest more in
this movement, expressing greater levels of poetic charm where
Ferschtman is more objective. The sprightly Finale is
neat and tidy here rather than something which makes you want
to leap out of your chair and do a joyful jig.
An American in Paris played by the Victor Symphony Orchestra
and conducted by George Gershwin in 1929 is a fine romp, full
of humour, imaginative pictorial playing and ribald oafishness
to go along with the urbane good humour and Milhaud-esque contrasts,
the whole thing coming in at a total timing of 15:46. Later
recordings generally take a broader view of the work, and a
recording which has been reliably enjoyable over the years is
one whose character belies the apparently straight-laced names
of the performers, the English Chamber Orchestra conducted by
Steuart Bedford on the Classics for Pleasure label. Juicy low
tuba parps and plenty of verve to go along with a rather resonant
acoustic picture make this just one of many fine recordings
with which the Netherlands Philharmonic has to compete.
They do well enough, but the generalised orchestral sound is
again something which prevents instant involvement. These are
excellent players and everyone gets stuck in, but this ain’t
an all-out winner. The character of the performance is just
that, a performance which you would enjoy greatly in the concert
hall, but as a recording it doesn’t really fire the imagination
– the swagger isn’t that of a distinct personality and the car
horns are percussion-section-professional rather than street-fright-frenzy.
The nocturne in the seventh minute does have a nice atmosphere,
and there is a fine Damon Runyon loose-boned slouch to the big
theme around 8 minutes in. This is the kind of recording one
can warm to because of the qualities in the music, but in the
end it doesn’t quite hack it when compared to Leonard Bernstein’s
1960 recording with the Colombia Symphony Orchestra for instance,
or even a bargain choice of James Judd with the New Zealand
Symphony Orchestra on the Naxos label, which just seems to hang
together that much more interestingly, daring to swoop and dive
in genuine Hollywood style rather than posting each section
up like a fridge magnet vignette.
SACD sonics may tempt you with this CD, but while it helps there
is no escaping the vague mismatch between the NPO’s massed forces
and an empty Beurs van Berlage Yakult Zaal. There’s nothing
really bad about any of this release and I’ve been happy to
make its acquaintance. The problem is it has had the effect
of reminding how good some of my old favourites are rather than
firing me with enthusiasm for the artefact itself, rich in superb
individual qualities as it is.
Dominy Clements
Liza Ferschtman (violin)
[52:30] 
