Claude DEBUSSY (1862-1918)
Images pour Orchestre (1905-1912)*[35:55]
Jeux (1912-1913) [17:32]
Nocturnes - À Georges Hartmann (1897-1899)** [24:13]
La mer - Trois Esquisses symphoniques (1903-1905) [23:58]
Prélude à l'aprês-midi d'un faune (1891-1894) [10:14]
Marche écossaise sur un thème populaire (1890) [6:32]
Printemps - Suite symphonique (1887) [15:12]
Two movements fromL'Enfant prodigue - Scène lyrique (1884,
rev. 1907-1908) [7:04]
Berceuse héroïque - pour rendre Hommage à S.M. le Roi
Albert 1er de Belgique et à ses Soldats (1914) [4:34]
*Katherine MacKintosh (oboe d'amore); Katherine Bryan (flute)
**Women of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra Chorus/Timothy Dean;
Royal Scottish National Orchestra/Stéphane Denève
rec. 10-12 October 2011, 7-9 February 2012, Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow, UK
CHANDOS CHSA 5102 (2) [77:04 + 68:22]
Now this really is a competitive field; we already have sets of Debussy’s
orchestral music from Jean Martinon (EMI), Ernest Ansermet (Decca), Bernard
Haitink (Philips) and Jun Mārkl (Naxos). The first three are deserving
classics, and the fourth - a 9-CD box that includes music orchestrated and
arranged by other hands - has some good things in it (review).
I’ve also had the pleasure of hearing a high-resolution download from
Universal/Linn of Ansermet’s Debussy; I marvelled at his way with this
music, and at the skill of Decca’s engineers and re-mastering team (review).
Stéphane Denève hasn't made much of an impact on me, although
I do admire his recording of pieces by Guillaume Connesson (Chandos CHSA 5076).
From that it’s clear this conductor has a strong, even forceful, musical
style that may not make him an obvious choice for Debussy. As for the RSNO,
they’re in fine fettle at the moment, their collection of Saint-Saëns
- with Neeme Jārvi - very welcome indeed (review).
Given the hype surrounding M. Denève I approached his Debussy with
some caution. For quick reference I dug out Haitink, Ansermet and Mārkl
and pressed play.
The first disc opens with Images, of which the lovely ‘Gigues’
gets a strong, no-nonsense reading. The sound is reasonably detailed and weighty
although - in stereo at least - it strikes me as a trifle ‘flat’
compared with other recordings from this team and venue. By contrast Haitink
is much more upfront, and his control of dynamics is more subtle and intuitive.
As for the RSNO, they play very well; in fact, they’re every bit as
poised and polished as their Dutch counterparts. The first part of ‘Ibéria’
is especially fine, the perfumed night of the second warm and sensuous. The
rocking rhythms of the third, ‘Le matin d’un jour de la fête’,
are nicely sprung - I love those gentle bells - and ‘Rondes de Printemps’
is immaculately done.
Everything is in its place, so why do I feel so disengaged? Listening to Haitink
I had my answer: for all his technical prowess Denève lacks the Dutchman’s
fine shading and his remarkable ear for Debussian textures. Few composers
beckon one into their sound-world as seductively as Debussy, and it’s
that sense of complete surrender I miss in Denève’s otherwise
impressive Images. That said, Jeux starts well enough - the
playing is very nimble and precise - but it’s not long before I’m
wool-gathering again. A quick comparison with Ansermet and Haitink just confirms
Denève’s cool proficiency at the expense of essential wit and
warmth.
This is most disconcerting, especially when the playing is of such quality.
Just sample Nocturnes and I doubt you’ll hear more seamless and
elegant performances of these pieces anywhere. Denève shapes ‘Sirènes’
beautifully, and the women’s chorus is ideally distant and most atmospherically
recorded. This really is gorgeous; now if only one could marry this orchestra
and singers with Haitink’s unaffected musicianship this would be a truly
splendid set of Nocturnes.
The second CD begins with La mer, one of Debussy’s most astonishing
creations. As ever Denève is up against stiff competition here, not
least from Ansermet and, more recently, Lan Shui and the Singapore Symphony
Orchestra (review).
The latter - helped by a top-notch Super Audio recording - really brings out
the shimmer and sparkle of this piece. Ansermet is only slightly less beguiling,
and as good as the vintage Decca sound is Chandos do the composer proud. I
just wish I could say the same about Denève; his meticulous attention
to detail is impressive, but what should be a complex, living seascape remains
stubbornly one-dimensional.
The Prélude à l'aprês-midi d'un faune was one of
the least appealing items in Märkl’s big box; unlovely and unsubtle
it’s an object lesson in how not to play this miraculous piece. Even
though I’m not a great admirer of Herbert von Karajan his first DG recording
of the Prélude is Desert Island fare. Ansermet isn’t far
behind, the detail of that high-res download making it seem every bit the
seminal 20th-century work it is. Both conductors shape and project
the music superbly, each revealing a sure sense of its structure. By contrast
Denève’s Prélude is surprisingly recessed, much
of the finer detail lost in the orchestral murk. The broad brush-strokes are
clear enough, but ultimately it’s all too contrived.
Actually that's a pretty good description of Denève’s Debussy
as a whole, a criticism that one could hardly level at Martinon, Haitink or
Ansermet. He’s not alone in this, for I find Vasily Petrenko’s
Shostakovich (Naxos) is similarly proficient yet lacking in substance and
insight. Denève’s Marche écossaise is crisp and
clear-eyed, while Printemps - in Henri Büsser’s orchestration
- is at once sumptuous and delicately scored. It’s full of ear-pricking
touches, yet it’s oddly uninvolving. Ditto the two movements from L'Enfant
prodigue, the ‘Air de danse’light but ultimately charmless.
Comparing Haitink’s and Denève’s Berceuse héroïque
might tilt the balance in the latter’s favour but not by much. The Frenchman
certainly has the better recording and he does coax fine sounds from his players.
Regrettably I can’t say more than that, as the end result is inexplicably
bland. Which isn’t unexpected after more than two hours of the most
uncommunicative Debussy I’ve heard in ages. Even this SACD isn’t
up to the usual standards of the house; the Prélude is especially
opaque.
Outwardly brilliant, inwardly dull. Perplexing.
Dan Morgan
http://twitter.com/mahlerei
Outwardly brilliant, inwardly dull. Perplexing.
see also reviews by Dominy Clements (June 2012 Recording of the Month) and Simon Thompson (July 2012 Recording of the Month)
Masterwork Index: La
mer