Johannes BRAHMS (1833-1897)
Symphony No.2 in D major Op.73 (1877) [37:34]
Broadcast commentary [1:30]
Ludwig van BEETHOVEN (1770-1823)
Symphony No.3 in E flat major Op.55 Eroica - scherzo (1803) [3:34]
Wolfgang Amadeus MOZART (1756-1791)
The Marriage of Figaro K492 - overture [3:36]
German Dances K600 Nos.1, 2, 4 and 5 [7:36]
German Dance K602 No.3 [1:40]
German Dances K605 Nos 2 and 3 [3:23]
German Dances K571 - Nos 1, 5 and 6 [4:36]
Contredances K609 - Nos 1, 2 and 4 [3:42]
Max REGER (1873-1916)
Variations and Fugue on a theme of Mozart, Op.132 - Theme and variations 1,
6 and 7 (1914) [9:54]
Orchestra of the State Theatre, Stuttgart
Staatskapelle Dresden (Brahms)
Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra (K571, K609)/Fritz Busch
rec. 1919 except, Brahms, recorded live in Berlin February 1931; Mozart K571,
recorded Copenhagen October 1948 and K609, recorded Copenhagen January 1951
GUILD GHCD 2371 [77:01]
Guild has been reissuing live and studio recordings made by Fritz Busch at
a welcome rate. With this one they reach right back to the conductor’s
first forays into the recording studios. I wasn’t at all au fait with
the c.1919 series of discs made with the Orchestra of the State Theatre, Stuttgart
- or what was then the Orchester des Württembergischen Landes-Theaters.
They are the usual kind of thing; extracts from major symphonic repertoire
- in this case the scherzo from Beethoven’s Eroica - and a series
of Mozart’s German Dances, followed by a filleted version of Reger’s
Mozart variations. Regrettably, Guild doesn’t provide either matrix
or issue numbers - a bit of a blot, though they are unfortunately hardly alone
in this respect these days.
The recording is invariably boxy and there are the expected battalions of
lower brass reinforcements to cover for the string basses, which didn’t
record well and were too far from the acoustic horn - I should have mentioned
that these are all acoustic discs. Still, it’s good to hear this body
of musicians, one that doesn’t sound too weedy in number, and enjoys
corporate sonority; there’s amplitude in the violins, for instance,
confidence in phrasing too, even though this was probably their first experience
of recording at all. Conductor and players certainly dig into a Busch speciality,
the overture to The Marriage of Figaro, though there’s a disparity between
the dynamism of the upper string voices and the brass reinforcements retarding
the rhythm. This brass-heavy quality afflicts the Mozart Dances the most.
The ‘bonus’ features include two sets of Dances recorded in 1948
and 1951 in Copenhagen, and provide a sense of continuity as well as being
interesting to hear.
In the Reger we hear the Theme itself, phrased very tenderly, and then variations
1, 6 and 7, enough to be aware of Busch’s obvious sympathy for the idiom
and his sensitively moulded concern for phrasing and especially dynamics -
the clarinets and harp are happily audible, doubtless due to placement near
the horn, but also because of Busch’s ear for balance. In the summer
of 1919 Busch had become chairman of the Max Reger Society, a position he
held until 1930. Both he and his brother Adolf were fervent promoters of the
composer’s music.
The most important music here, however, is one of the very first preserved
German orchestral radio recordings. It was made in Berlin on 25 February 1931.
Busch directs the Dresden State Orchestra in Brahms’s Second Symphony.
Two different recordings seem to have been in existence of this performance.
This one has come down on tape, presumably dubbed from a disc original. Hänssler
Profil has already released its version, which is without applause and broadcast
commentary - both of which Guild includes. There is quite a lot of swish in
this rare survivor and constricted sound, and hum, with one or two dropouts
too. That said, whilst it would be trying for a general listen, for those
interested in Busch it’s clearly a must to hear his volatile phrasing,
and his powerful conception going at full tilt in this concert.
It completes a necessarily specialised programme of broadcasts and acoustic
recordings, with those Copenhagen recordings added to bring the total timing
almost to the maximum. Good notes complete the package.
Jonathan Woolf
A necessarily specialised programme of broadcasts and acoustic recordings.