BIS introduced me to Lan Shui and the Singapore
Symphony with
Seascapes, a truly scrumptious SACD that went
straight to the top of my list of
Recordings of the Year 2007
(
review).
The
La Mer from that disc is reprised here, but the rest of
this collection – in varying sample rates - is new. What a tempting
prospect it is, given the quality of this band and the lovely acoustics
of the Esplanade Concert Hall. Indeed, of all their recordings that
have come my way only one, Rachmaninov’s Second Symphony, has
left me seriously underwhelmed (
review).
As for that
La Mer, I described it as ‘vivid and vibrant’;
it certainly outclasses Jun Märkl (
review)
and Stéphane Denève (
review)
and, for me at least, it shares top billing with the vintage Ernest
Ansermet (
review).
Intended as a two-piano follow-up to his first set of
Images
for solo piano (1905) Debussy’s
Images pour orchestre
is probably one of his best-known works. This 2009 recording, taken
from a 44.1kHz original, has a brighter, more sharply etched sound than
I remember from
Seascapes – probably due to the lower
sampling rate – but
Gigues gets a decent outing nonetheless.
As ever Lan Shui calibrates dynamics with sensitivity, although some
may find the quieter passages a little
too quiet; indeed, I
don’t recall a recording in which
Gigues gets off to
such a distant start.
Par les rues et par les chemins, the first piece in the three-part
Ibéria, finds the SSO at their animated best; rhythms
are well articulated and momentum never falters. However, it’s
a little short on temperament – I miss the energy of Ansermet,
now on Decca Eloquence - but otherwise it’s a fair performance.
Not so
Les parfums de la nuit which, despite some tactile playing,
lacks its usual loveliness; I prefer a lighter, more permeable reading
than this. As for
Le matin d’un jour de fête it’s
much too well-mannered for a celebration. In that polite context the
sudden spurt of energy at the close seems out of kilter with the rest
of the piece. Alas, it doesn’t get any better;
Rondes de printemps,
hobbled by the conductor’s refusal to loosen his grip on the music,
has little of the dance about it.
Lan Shui’s
Images simply doesn’t get the idiomatic
and instinctive lift that makes his
La Mer so memorable. A
matter for concern, perhaps, as such qualities are
de rigueur
in the
Prélude à l’après-midi d’un
faune. Some may feel that Karajan’s 1965 recording for DG
- with Karlheinz Zoller a hauntingly mellifluous soloist - is too moulded,
but for sheer pulsing beauty and purity of line it’s hard to beat.
Indeed, that and Ansermet’s uniquely coloured account are the
most perfect distillations of this game-changing piece that I know.
By contrast Lan Shui’s reading seems a tad prosaic – his
breathier, warmer-sounding soloist is somewhat earthbound - but still
he conjures up enough magic to keep one listening to the end. I even
registered a goose bump or two along the way. Not bad, then, but I still
relish the liberating loveliness of Karajan and Ansermet; at least this
newcomer isn't as soul-crimping a performance as Märkl's. The 24/96
recording seems better balanced and more atmospheric than
Images.
Readers who want to know why I rate Lan Shui’s
La Mer
so highly need look no further than my
Seascapes review. Within
seconds of starting
De l'aube à midi sur la mer
it’s clear this 2004 recording is in another league entirely,
both musically and technically. The performance is simply ravishing,
and the Singapore band play with a blend of finesse and feeling that
compares favourably with Europe’s best. As for the recording itself
I felt it was one of BIS’s best then and I still do so now; spacious,
detailed and so
alive this is a
La Mer that all Debussians
should hear. I’d urge listeners to seek out
Seascapes
– the music sounds even better in Super Audio - but if the Bridge,
Glazunov and Zhou Long pieces don’t appeal just lift
La Mer
from this download.
It would be cavalier to write off this fine orchestra and conductor
on the basis of a few uneven performances. The SSO certainly didn’t
do as well at the 2014 BBC Proms as I’d hoped; that’s a
pity, for their recorded Rachmaninov – especially with pianist
Yevgeny Sudbin – is really rather good. As for issuing old and
new material together BIS have done this before; to their credit they
do make that clear in the booklet.
Lan Shui's
La Mer is still one of the best on record; alas,
the fillers are rather ordinary.
Dan Morgan
twitter.com/mahlerei
Masterwork Index:
La
Mer
