It’s wonderful to see an elite orchestra like the
Staatskapelle Dresden under such a renowned conductor as Christian
Thielemann releasing a programme of neglected works from the pens of Busoni,
Pfitzner and Reger. At the time of these recordings Maestro Thielemann was
chief conductor-elect of the Staatskapelle Dresden. All three composers were
based in Germany and were popular in their lifetime but are known more today
by reputation than by actual concert performances.
Congratulations are in order to the enterprising Profil label for
releasing this disc recorded live across a pair of concerts from the
Semperoper in 2011 at Dresden. Nine days after this Dresden recording of the
Busoni and Pfitzner scores I reported at a concert at the Berlin
Philharmonie with Maestro Thielemann and the Staatskapelle Dresden in which
the same pair of scores were performed in a programme with the Brahms
Symphony No. 1.
At the Staatskapelle Dresden chief conductor Thielemann has been
exploring forgotten works from the period of development just prior to and
after the First World War; the era of change from the late-Romantic to the
modern era. Thielemann was surprised by the vast variety of works the
orchestra had played in the concert seasons around 1900/30. It seems hard to
imagine today in 2013 that the music of Busoni and Pfitzner had in Germany
been considered “
aesthetically incompatible” and rarely
appeared together on concert programmes. Whatever the respective views of
each composer whether it be on political or religious grounds, Thielemann
holds the view that a composer’s opinions, no matter how odious, are
not perceptible in the music and it is the music alone that interests him.
The first work on the disc Ferruccio Busoni’s
Symphonic
Nocturne for orchestra from 1912/14 was intended as a study for the
opera
Doctor Faust, his magnum opus. Considered a radical work at the
time of composition, the score quickly fell into obscurity. To illustrate
this, according to the Brockhaus list of concert programmes Furtwängler
during his tenure as principal conductor with the Berliner Philharmoniker
(1922/54) gave no performance of the
Symphonic Nocturne. In fact he
conducted only one Busoni score during that entire period. Given the finest
advocacy by Thielemann and his Dresden players, the
Symphonic
Nocturne is revealed as a beautifully crafted, nocturnal tone painting,
evocative of shadowy and mysterious woodland glades. I was struck by
exquisite work from the Dresden strings matched by such sensitive horn
playing. At the Berlin performance of the score that I attended, Thielemann
who clearly greatly admires Busoni’s
Nocturne, took the
audience by surprise by stating that they were going to repeat the score and
they played it again in the city where it had first been premiered in 1914
under the composer’s baton. The booklet notes state that Thielemann
did the same at this Dresden performance. Here the sound engineers have
edited out the audience applause.
During the 1920s/30s Hans Pfitzner’s scores were regularly
found on concert programmes. Pfitzner’s difficult relationship with
the National Socialist regime in Germany ensured diminished opportunities
for performances. After the war and up to his death in 1949 his music never
really received the same attention again. Pfitzner composed his
Concerto
for piano and orchestra in E flat major, Op. 31 in 1922 - a product of
his time teaching at the Prussian Academy in Berlin. It was premiered in
1923 in Dresden by the Staatskapelle Dresden with Water Gieseking as soloist
and the composer conducting. I noted that Furtwängler who frequently
programmed Pfitzner scores conducted the
Concerto with the Berlin
Philharmonic again with Gieseking as soloist at the Alte Philharmonie in
1923 and in 1934. A substantial score cast in four movements
Pfitzner’s concerto is played here by Florida-born pianist Tzimon
Barto. Opening in vigorous virtuosic style , rather in the manner of Brahms
and Tchaikovsky, the writing soon develops a certain reserve, eschewing
frothy showmanship. Clearly this is ‘love music’ poignant and
passionate; if held somewhat in check. Maybe Pfitzner is depicting a love
affair that could not be. Here the mellifluous oboe, so beautifully played,
weeps a sensitive lament. Full of nervous vitality the second movement
Scherzo pleads to be victorious yet the writing ensures that the
soloist’s emotions are moderated. I was struck how the appealing
melodies, especially the one at the opening, reminded me of Brahms. A
plaintive horn joined by woodwind against an achingly beautiful and soft
cushioning of strings opens the slow movement. Barto enters tentatively with
an ever so gentle melody creating a safe and comforting atmosphere where
everything is at peace with the world. In the exuberant
Finale the
piano is joined by the full orchestra for an uplifting climax, but before
long the rather reticent and somewhat self-conscious mood returns.
Thielemann assuredly brings this fascinating score to a rousing and powerful
climax greeted with an enthusiastic audience reaction.
Described by The Max Reger Foundation of America as, “
a
progressive early modernist composer” Max Reger was not as
controversial a figure as Busoni and Pfitzner. Consequently his music has
not been tainted in the same way. The three movement
Eine romantische
Suite (
A Romantic Suite), Op. 125 comes from Reger’s time
as court conductor in Meiningen where he had the use of the Hofkapelle.
It seems appropriate that the Staatskapelle Dresden is playing
A
Romantic Suite as Reger’s association with Dresden goes back a
long way. It was Dresden general music director Ernst von Schuch who
conducted the premiere at Dresden in 1912. Reger prefaced each of the three
movements with poems by Joseph von Eichendorff and originally intended to
give each movement the titles of the poems before settling on neutral music
markings. Later Reger revealed titles for each movement to his publisher:
Notturno: ‘A moonlit night in Thuringia’,
Scherzo:
‘Elfin Dance!’ and
Finale:
‘Helios -
sunrise!’ Exuding a convincing ethereal nocturnal atmosphere a dense
blanket of strings dominates the opening movement with languorously flowing
lyricism. Marked
Vivace this is not a madcap
Scherzo and under
Thielemann the pace could hardly be described as lively. With an air of
reserve both in mood and tempi the performance actually feels surprisingly
stately if maybe a touch tongue-in-cheek. There's a variety of woodwind
figures that feature prominently over lush strings. The
Molto
sostenuto writing feels highly romantic and intensely passionate with
Thielemann allowing the attractively luxuriant orchestration to wash over
the listener. Variations in both tempi and weight add to the interest with
the ending of the work feeling gloriously ecstatic.
Recorded live in 2011 in the splendid acoustic of the Semperoper in
Dresden the engineers have provided well balanced clear sound that reveals
plenty of detail. Unfortunately the Reger performance wouldn’t fit on
a single disc so a two disc set was needed.
Part of the Profil’s continuing Edition Staatskapelle Dresden,
the overall presentation of this vol. 34 is mightily impressive. The booklet
notes are impeccable with a number of fascinating photographs. In
penetrating and persuasive performances by the Staatskapelle Dresden this
release on Profil contains three fascinating and rewarding early twentieth
century works that deserve to be heard more often.
Michael Cookson
