A fascinating opportunity
to compare formats here, in the first
issue of Alsop’s Brahms cycle with the
LPO. But first, a word or two about
the performances.
The long first movement
of the Symphony - with exposition repeat
- benefits from Alsop’s decision to
let the music breathe - it can take
it - and her ability to capture every
shifting mood. There is no holding back
here on C minor angst, nor on sensitive
Innigkeit either, and the LPO seem behind
her all the way. A special mention for
the principal oboe’s contributions seems
totally in place, and not only in the
first movement; try around 2’30 in the
Andante sostenuto.
The presence of an
underlying urgency in the third movement
(Un poco allegretto e grazioso) is interpretatively
sound. Rather than just being interludic,
the struggles of the finale seem an
entirely logical outcome, so that the
symphony is bound together as one huge,
breathing entity. It is here in the
finale that Alsop really comes into
her own. The horn-calls take us from
Watford to the Wälder of Germany,
part of a structure that leads inexorably
to the work’s lively coda. I wish the
tempo for the great ‘chorale’ towards
the end were not so pulled back as here,
but there is an undeniable impact. By
the end, this reviewer was left in no
doubts as to Alsop’s Brahmsian credentials.
And the recording?
The producer and engineer is Tim Handley,
an engineer possessed of a superb ear.
Even on CD, the results are impressive.
On careful A/B comparison,
though, it is the greater spaciousness
and clarity of SACD that wins through
every time. The heartbeat-like timpani
of the opening movement are not fully
focused on CD, and there is a definite
improvement when one turns to SACD.
The brighter sound of the SACD is not
bright in the sense of glaring, more
in the sense of an opening out of perspectives
and an opening out in a second sense
of letting the detail speak. Everything
seems clearer, the strings have more
body and a gorgeous sound the LPO makes,
too!. The climaxes make their points
tellingly. Try also the second movement,
around 30-35 seconds in, where the double-bass
triplet figure is muddy on CD at least
in comparison with the SACD. In terms
of sheer enjoyment, the SACD makes a
huge difference.
The pairing of the
Tragic with the Academic Festival
overtures is sensible. Alsop’s Tragic
presents a disturbed and also disturbing
Brahms, but one prepared to let tenderness
in along with the angst. The emergence
of the chorale ‘from the mists’ at around
9’10 is a moment of pure magic and testimony
not only to Alsop’s structural grasp
but also to her ear for balance and
texture. Later on in the overture, Alsop
exhibits much daring in taking the music
to the edge, just before it disintegrates.
Perhaps around 6’04ff the woodwinds,
being more sober than usual, might raise
an eyebrow; they did mine. But this
is no run-of-the-mill filler. The punchy
opening chords have more force on the
SACD, though, and that ‘opening out’
of perspective and focus is there again.
The bass end is once more tighter.
Finally, the ever-popular
Academic Festival Overture. The
opening is a real test for clarity,
and indeed all does sound tighter on
SACD, as against a slightly muddy CD.
Upper strings have more focus yet are
less wiry on the SACD, and even the
cymbal sounds more like a cymbal. Alsop’s
ear for detail may be heard in both
media around 4’50 - just how often can
you actually hear that descending horn
line?
Alsop’s reading is
hugely enjoyable and a superb way to
end the disc. The playing time, it should
be noticed, is nice and generous also,
at 72’42.
Definitely worth hearing,
then. But if you can, do plump for the
SACD.
Colin Clarke
see reviews By
Patrick
Waller, Paul
Shoemaker, and Peter
Lawson
London Philharmonic Orchestra/Marin Alsop 
NAXOS SACD 6.110077 [72’42] 
