This is a straight reissue of
the original 1992 release, just
busting it down to midprice -
Telarc hasn't even bothered changing
the catalogue number. The program
as such is effective, and I'm
surprised it doesn't turn up more
frequently. The performances,
as with so many other repertoire
entries, are a matter of swings
and roundabouts, with the roundabouts
- to extend the metaphor - finally,
and unfortunately, getting the
upper hand.
The Da Capo Catalog of Classical
Music Compositions lists
the Trittico botticelliano
as for "small orchestra,"
but I'm not convinced. The musical
gestures and the sheer scale of
the writing are not dissimilar
to those of the Roman Trilogy,
implying a bit heftier sonority,
particularly in the strings, than
a chamber-sized group can comfortably
produce. Still, it's mostly such
ensembles that record the piece,
and López-Cobos's Lausanne Chamber
Orchestra makes a plausible case
for itself, at least on a casual
hearing. The opening flourishes,
simple as they are, make a splashy,
Pines of Rome-like effect,
and it's nice to hear the woodwinds
begin their second theme tenderly
before picking up the syncopated
impulse more conventionally. The
central Adoration of the Magi,
however, provokes reservations:
the luscious woodwinds at the
start are too uniformly loud,
setting the tone for a movement
that, attractive as it sounds,
fatally lacks the needed air of
mystery. In the third movement,
the violins' rhythmic ostinato
becomes a bit monotonous, though
it sets off the long spinning
lines nicely.
The Ancient Airs and Dances
come off best in full-sounding
tuttis paced by firmly
accented strings, which boast
consistently clear, airy textures.
And an easy grace captures the
spirit of the composer's Baroque
source material. But, strangely,
those woodwinds that played too
loudly in the Trittico
are here pale and reticent (obviously
not a problem in Suite 3, for
strings alone). More damaging
is a lack of real alertness in
the playing. In the opening Balletto
of Suite 1, notice the string
chording behind the oboe solo;
it isn't loose, exactly,
but neither are the attacks precisely
together. The B section of the
Gagliarda flows sweetly
and serenely, but amorphously,
with no clear sense of destination.
The off-the-beat figures in Suite
3's closing Passacaglia
lack thrust and point.
The sound, of course, is excellent.
But Marriner's EMI accounts of
all these pieces (the Ancient
Airs with the Los Angeles
Chamber Orchestra, the Botticelli
triptych with St. Martin's) remain
the choice. For an alternative
Ancient Airs, I'd pass
over Dorati's tense Mercury account
in favor of digging up Ozawa's
DG, probably available only on
vinyl: the Japanese conductor
hasn't the most light-fingered
touch, but, compared to what we
hear elsewhere, the Boston Symphony,
truly, is the Rolls-Royce of ensembles.
Stephen Francis Vasta
Respighi
website
Lausanne
Chamber Orchestra/Jesús López-Cobos 
