Symphony No. 2 in C minor (1871-2, ed. Haas) [57:25]
Carl Maria von WEBER (1786-1826)
Euryanthe: Overture (1822-3) [8:59]*
Invitation to the Dance (1819; arr. Berlioz, 1841) [10:32]*
Vienna Philharmonic/Horst Stein
rec. Sofiensaal, Vienna, December 1973, *October 1977
DECCA ELOQUENCE 442 8557 [77:06]
As a noted Bayreuth Wagnerian of the 1970s, Horst Stein could be
expected to have a good feeling for Bruckner. The two symphonies he
recorded for Decca - there's also a Sixth - bear this out. His approach
is workmanlike rather than galvanic or glamorous, but his firm line
and sense of purpose convey a rugged, unaffected integrity. He lays
out the broad melodies in a glowing cantabile while maintaining
a solidly weighted sonority.
The result, with the Vienna Philharmonic contributing full-bodied,
variegated playing, is pleasing in a general way. If you know the
music well, though - or if you're following it with a score - you
may notice a lack of consistency in the handling of various musical
matters.
The very start of the symphony, for example, displays the conductor's
fine sense of orchestral texture: Stein draws both the 'cellos' theme
(mezzo forte) and the horns' counterpoint (piano) in
sharp relief against the strings (also piano), to good effect.
Some more simply layered passages, however, aren't as carefully defined.
In the same movement, the trombones, of all instruments, have to fight
their way through the tutti at 8:02. What should be a clear,
open sonority at 8:41 of the slow movement sounds a bit cloudy.
In other passages, an upward "marking" of dynamics, with numerous
piano passages creeping towards mezzo forte, doesn't
serve any apparent purpose. The strings don't sound quite sorted out
at 4:20 of the first movement, nor the first time around theTrio
of the Scherzo - on the repeat, Stein highlights the interplay
of string lines nicely.
The conductor also has a fine feel for "atmosphere" - note the hushed
mystery at the start of the first-movement development - but other
such opportunities, as at 1:19 of the slow movement, elapse unacknowledged.
In that same movement, the decorated restatement of the first theme
at4:52 is spacious and tender, but its unfolding later on,
building the movement's climax, seems slightly rushed. General pauses,
especially in the Finale, don't always get their full value.
The Weber items, recorded four years later, are fine, but a different
production team captures a "longer" resonance in the Sofiensaal, producing
boomy bass and rendering the textures gummy and opaque.
As for the symphony, its handsome playing and recording and its forthright
musicality have their undoubted appeal: I still enjoy the performance
when I'm "just" listening. For a fuller realization of the score's
drama and breadth, however, you're still best off with Haitink's now-venerable
account - probably hard to find, alas, outside the old Philips "bargain
box" reissue.
Stephen Francis Vasta
Stephen Francis Vasta is a New York-based conductor, coach, and
journalist.
The handsome playing and recording of the symphony and its forthright
musicality have their undoubted appeal.
Masterwork Index:
Bruckner symphony 2
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