RECORDING OF THE MONTH
Carl Maria von WEBER (1786-1826)
Wind Concertos
Clarinet Concerto No. 1 in f minor, Op. 73, J.114 [20:24]
Bassoon Concerto in F, Op. 75, J.127 [18:13]
Horn Concertino in e minor, Op. 45, J.188 [16:09]
Concertino for Clarinet and Orchestra in c minor/E-flat, Op. 26, J.109 [9:14]
Maximiliano Martín (clarinet); Peter Whelan (bassoon); Alec Frank-Gemmill
(horn)
Scottish Chamber Orchestra/Alexander Janiczek
rec. Usher Hall, Edinburgh, 5-9 September 2011. DSD.
LINN RECORDS CKD409 [64:31]
I’m lucky enough to be a regular with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra,
and in their last
concert of 2012 their playing of this repertoire really impressed me.
The technical virtuosity of everyone involved can be taken as read; however,
when I wrote about that concert I said that the thing that made it really
special was the sense of partnership that comes when the soloists are all
principals with the orchestra. That’s true on this CD too, and the sense
of equal collaboration makes these concertos living, breathing articles rather
than mere vehicles for showmanship.
The relationship between the soloists and the orchestra, therefore, has been
thoroughly thought through, and it’s evident right from the opening
of the disc. where the strings sound like caged beasts pawing the ground as
they wait for the silky tones of the clarinet to calm the mood. Maximiliano
Martín’s clarinet has a delightful singing quality to it, not
least in his long-breathed first appearance, setting the clarinet’s
tentative opening line against the restless quality of the orchestral writing.
At the start of the development the clarinet sounds as though it is groping
around in the dark before growing into a rapid-fire dialogue with the orchestral
winds and, as the recapitulation begins, the sinister edge of uncertainty
creeps back into the music. It’s passages like this that really underscore
the tremendous sense of partnership that characterises this CD and makes the
SCO a world leader in repertoire like this. Martín’s breath control
is exemplary in the sumptuous line of the slow movement, and his colleagues
accompany him with the right combination of subtlety and character. The interplay
with the horns is particularly magical, as is the jolly spontaneity of the
finale which leads up to an irreverent final phrase.
The bassoon concerto, on the other hand, is, as the concert programme pointed
out last December, one of the few bassoon concertos that is not designed merely
to make us laugh. The ceremonial opening is majestic without a hint of pomposity
and, when the bassoon enters it offsets the triumphalism with lyrical beauty,
though it might perhaps take a minute before you convince yourself that he
isn’t just having a laugh! Peter Whelan’s fingers have to work
overtime in the fast sections of the outer movements, and there are some genuinely
comic moments in the finale, but he is at his finest in the lovely slow movement
where, again, Weber lives in the long line which Whelan allows to cast its
magic without fuss or bustle.
The two concertinos are so named because they are in single movement form,
but they still contain some very impressive music. Alec Frank-Gemill is already
a hugely impressive soloist, and he invests the horn concertino with a
sense of high drama, floating his opening line against the throbbing string
backdrop. The main theme of the not-quite-slow section moves along unfussily
before it is put through some rather surprising variations, culminating in
an extraordinary, improvisatory-sounding section that is slower and profoundly
meditative, a mood blown away by the final Polonaise. The clarinet concertino
has a very similar structure, though its mood is a little more schizophrenic.
It’s every bit as successful, though, with Martín’s playing
just as impressive as in the full-scale F minor concerto.
The other partner worth mentioning is Alexander Janiczek who is an Associate
Artist with the orchestra and appears with them regularly, both as conductor
and soloist. He, therefore, understands them very well, and this comes through
in his choice of tempi and the naturalness of his phrasing so that Weber’s
fairly regular changes of mood never sound forced or contrived but flow naturally
into one another. This disc is a real winner, and probably a top choice if
you want to explore further than Weber’s famous clarinet concertos.
David Kettle’s excellent booklet notes and Linn’s exemplary recorded
sound only help to seal the deal.
Simon Thompson
This disc is a real winner, and probably a top choice if you want to explore
further than Weber’s famous clarinet concertos.
see also review by Brian Wilson
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