With this release, Mikhail Pletnev and his Russian National
Orchestra have almost completed their second survey of Tchaikovsky
six numbered symphonies, with only Symphony No. 3 yet to be
released.
Pletnev and his orchestra recorded their first cycle for DG in 2005; that was re-released in October
2010 as a budget-priced box set, and includes the same forces
performing the Manfred Symphony. The DG set divided the
critics: many felt that the Russian National Orchestra played
the works with an unprecedented level of refinement and nobility,
while others found the performances clinical and over-calculated.
Most everyone agreed that Pletnev and the orchestra had developed
a more homogeneous, “international” sound that squarely
rejected any distinctly Russian timbres. Deutsche Grammophon’s
recording also proved disappointing, offering a two-dimensional,
overly-bright sound picture that sounded distinctly artificial
on occasion.
I once owned the DG set, but recently gave it away; over the
years I found both the performances and recording unsatisfactory.
I own several complete cycles, including Muti/Philharmonia,
Karajan/Berlin Philharmonic, Litton/Bournemouth Symphony, and
Markevitch/LSO. Each of these sets offers consistently superior
recordings and performances. Yet I have been tracking Pletnev’s
new cycle with keen interest, hoping Pletnev’s musical
interpretations have matured, and certain that Pentatone’s
recordings would be far superior to that of Deutsche Grammophon.
My hopes for a better recording are certainly met and exceeded.
Pentatone has perfectly captured the sound of this orchestra,
and what a sound it is! The strings have a rich, velvety lushness,
a dazzling unanimity of attack, and the technical brilliance
to articulate the most difficult passages with breath-taking
ease. The woodwinds offered a well-blended ensemble sound, but
exhibit distinct personalities in their solo work. The brass
sound is also warm and full-throated, but proved a touch disappointing
because I was hoping that Pletnev might allow them the kind
of overpowering brilliance that was evident on their first releases
of Tchaikovsky’s Pathétique Symphony (Virgin
Classics, 1992) and Rachmaninov’s Second Symphony (DG,
1994). Frustratingly, the brass is tightly reined in throughout
this recording, which renders several climaxes a disappointingly
limp sound.
I remember the DG performance of Symphony No. 2 being one of
the more successful performances in that set. Sadly, the new
recording fails to improve on the earlier performance, and,
in many ways, is less convincing that their earlier effort.
It bears repeating that the orchestra displays a complete technical
mastery of the notes. The most difficult string passages are
tossed off with disarming ease. Is this music every supposed
to sound easy? Tchaikovsky was an overtly passionate man, who
lived his life with his heart on his sleeve. All of his music
- whether it has a programme or not - displays powerful emotions
and passions that, in the best performances, speak so openly
that it almost makes for uncomfortable listening. Communicating
those emotions and passions is an absolutely essential ingredient
of any successful Tchaikovsky performance. Here, that ingredient
is almost completely absent. Even the initial downbeat proved
worrisome. In the performances led by Muti and Markevitch, the
chord’s weight and intensity says “Sit up! Pay attention!
I am about to share something profound with you.” Here
it is simply well balanced. There is obsessive quality about
the main theme of the main Allegro section that builds in anxiety
and tension until it reaches a shattering climax (6:50 on this
recording). But Pletnev never creates that tension and consequently
the climax seems merely loud. The three main themes in this
movement - a few of them genuine folksongs - positively cry
out for rubato, but Pletnev allows very little, and the phrasing
sounds four-square and uninspired. The best moments are the
final bars of the movement, where the horn player imbues his
solo with a lonely, forlorn quality that is immediately matched
by the lower strings and bassoon - suddenly the players seem
to be really listening and reacting to one another. Why does
this only happen in the last 14 bars?
Things improve in the second movement, which features some delightfully
pointed woodwind playing. There are several passages where the
theme is passed between different groups of instruments, and
this give and take seems to snap the orchestra out of its auto-pilot
mode. Frustratingly, at the climax before Rehearsal G, Pletnev
again reins in the orchestral climax and the accumulated energy
and tension immediately dissipate.
The auto-pilot playing returns in the Scherzo. Muti and the
Philharmonia honour the many quick changing dynamic markings,
building a performance of robust playfulness, the orchestra
clearly enjoying the music and one another. The same cannot
be said about their Russian colleagues in this stubbornly earthbound
reading.
Pletnev and his players dispatch the final movement in record
time: 9.19 versus Muti’s 10:25, and Muti is not exactly
slow. The opening theme, played by the entire orchestra (marked
Fortissimo), should sound like a mini-Great Gate of Kiev. Here
Pletnev perversely encourages a lighter texture (and gentler
dynamic), completely negating the music’s nobility and
weight. The Allegro is played faster than usual, and Pletnev
does little to shape the music, or draw out its inherently dramatic
nature. The large climax just before the Coda is again underwhelming,
because Pletnev and his players never create a feeling of ever
increasing urgency in the lead up to it. Pletnev sets a challengingly
fast pace for the Coda, and the orchestral playing is impressively
precise until Pletnev introduces an unmarked acceleration into
the closing bars, causing even this fabulous orchestra to struggle.
In the final four measures the timpani player is typically given
room to slow into the last measure, but Pletnev just presses
the music right into the final chord. While there is nothing
in the score that indicates a ritardando, Pletnev’s headlong
rush was completely unconvincing.
The CD also includes the original first movement. Tchaikovsky
premiered this symphony on 26 January 1873 to considerable acclaim,
yet seven years later he completely revised the work, basically
rewriting the first movement with new thematic material. I am
perfectly happy to hear a composer’s first compositional
thoughts, as I enjoy a glimpse into their compositional process.
After listening to it a few times, I hear nothing that makes
me question Tchaikovsky’s judgment - his second thoughts
are indeed superior. Yet even with this fascinating extra, the
playing time of the CD adds up to a little over 48 minutes,
which means 30 minutes of wasted space on a full price SACD.
To sum up: a fabulous recording of an orchestra that should
and often does under other conductors sound terrific, yet here
they rarely rise above the routine. Pletnev must take the blame
for this, and I found his interpretative ideas about this work
maddening. The performance is non-competitive, and, to add insult
to injury, we have the insultingly short playing time. This
is all together a most frustrating and disappointing release.
David A. McConnell
Russian National Orchestra/Mikhail Pletnev
[48:12] 