RECORDING OF THE MONTH
Felix MENDELSSOHN-BARTHOLDY (1809-1847)
Symphony No.3 in A minor, Op.56 Scottish (1829-42) [39:54]
Symphony No.5 in D minor, Op.107, Reformation (1829-30) [29:37]
Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra/Andrew Litton
rec. February 2007, Grieg Hall, Bergen, Norway
BIS-SACD-1604 [70:15]
I am new to this series of recordings, but this disc represents the last
in a set of three which covers all of Mendelssohn’s symphonies (see review of
No. 2), celebrating
the 200th anniversary of his birth in 1809.
Both of these works have an easy-sounding and relatively sunny disposition,
which hides considerable difficulties in their genesis. Started in 1829 in
Scotland, the cover image for this disc is an engraving of the Grass Market
in Edinburgh, one of the places Mendelssohn stayed during his trip through
what was then considered a romantic wilderness suitable for artistic reflection.
The symphony was only completed by 1842 however; some 12 years after the Reformation symphony.
The reason for its lower opus number is that Mendelssohn was dissatisfied with
the latter work, and refused to allow its publication during his lifetime.
As has been stated already, the lightness of touch which has made Mendelssohn
such a refreshingly attractive voice among composers of this period is very
much in evidence with these symphonies, and Andrew Litton gets excellent results
from the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra.
We have heard a few ‘period’ recordings of these pieces in recent
years, and a trend towards smaller orchestral footprints from bands such as
the Swedish Chamber Orchestra in their Schumann symphonic cycle with Thomas
Dausgaard. This recording from BIS does not fall into these categories by any
means. This is not to say that Litton’s approach is anything less than
supple and idiomatically appropriate, and I know of several quarters which
will welcome the warmly expressive strings in the playing here. Vibrato is
also a quality in the woodwind, but my hat goes off to all of the Bergen
players for impeccable intonation, and to the flute and other woodwinds for
their expressive
and thankfully non wide-and-wobbly vibrato. The weight of voicing is also
very accurately placed at all times, and a superlatively good balance provides
both
detail and an overall orchestral texture in the tutti sections. This
transparency of texture is an inherent quality in Mendelssohn’s orchestral
writing, but I also have the feeling that we might owe a debt of gratitude
to the kind of clarity obtained by Roger Norrington for his early 1990s recordings
on Virgin Classics with the London Classical Players. In this way, Litton’s
readings of these pieces fall somewhere between Norrington’s lithe cleanliness
and Claudio Abbado’s more emotionally communicative performances captured
through the London Symphony Orchestra on Deutsche Grammophon. Yes, Litton
is clarity, dynamism and expressively warm playing personified, but he does
tend
to enhance the classical origins and early romantic context of these pieces.
He draws superb results from the Bergen orchestra and brings out all of the
rugged Beethovenian character in the Reformation symphony, but does
steer an uncontroversial path which while wonderful for repeated listening
and reference, may not have you in palpitations of excitement on first hearing.
I’ve read dismissive remarks on these performances as ‘middle of
the road’, but extremes of interpretative license are not what we are
likely to be looking for in Mendelssohn. He has his pious moments, and high
octane passion and emotional hubris are not really ‘hot’ elements
in this music, at least not to today’s jaundiced ears. There are some
intriguing forward-looking moments as well. Listen to those calm string passages
between 2:22 and 3:05 in the first movement of the Symphony No.5:
Charles Ives’s The Unanswered Question? Not far off, and to
my mind such spine-tingling moments lift this recording above the run-of-the-mill.
Add the
sheer quality of the playing into the mix, and we have a winning combination.
The SACD qualities of the recording are a nice enhancement, as usual opening
out the aural picture and giving a real sense of location and involvement.
Still attempting to put my finger on some marginal reservations, I suppose
it might come down to these performances being very much ‘studio’ in
nature. Looking at the booklet, I don’t get the feeling that the impassioned
photo of Andrew Litton in full action on the back is taken from these sessions
or this music. One has a sense that the players might respond with just that
extra ‘edge’ with a live audience rather than just the familiar
if marvellous acoustic of the Bergen Philharmonic’s home concert hall,
but this might as well just be my imagination looking for weaknesses which
aren’t really there at all. Conductors and record producers just can’t
win can they? Anything other than highly polished performances and we reviewers
start moaning about blemishes; and the closer things come to perfection the
more we’re likely to hit on a lack of that last nth of emotional
content and excitement. Fear not in this case however: if you are looking
for ‘perfect’ symphonic
Mendelssohn then this disc has to come somewhere near, if not at the very
top of the list.
Dominy Clements