Wolfgang Amadeus MOZART (1756-1791)
Serenade No.11 in E flat, K375 (version for wind sextet) [25:56]
Divertimento in F, K253 [10:47]
Divertimento in B flat, K270 [10:10]
Divertimento in E flat, K252/240a [9:37]
Divertimento in B flat, K240 [10:37]
Scottish Chamber Orchestra Wind Soloists
rec. Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Glasgow, 5-7 April 2014. DDD/DSD
LINN RECORDS CKD479 SACD [67:08]
I had two classic recordings of K375 in mind before listening
to this recording. One will not be to all tastes since it dates from Otto
Klemperer’s later years; it can be found on the short-lived 8-CD Klemperer
Legacy set of Mozart Symphonies, Overtures and Serenades, no longer generally
available in the UK, though some dealers still stock it (Warner 4043612 –
review).
K375 was recorded at his very last session in 1971 and it is taken at a sedate
pace.
Jack Brymer and the London Wind Soloists on the Decca set of Mozart’s complete
wind music, on the other hand, take us through the work at a sprightly pace
(4557942, download only): their version of the opening allegro maestoso
takes 7:15 against Klemperer’s 8:03, though the difference actually sounds
greater than that. So Klemperer was slow and lumpen and that proves
it. Hold on a moment, though: there are two parts to that tempo indication
and Klemperer is definitely maestoso, so arguably closer to what is
required.
The Scottish Chamber Orchestra wind soloists on the new recording are, it
seems, with Klemperer on this, taking 10:26, which doesn’t mean slower still
because they observe more repeats, but it does mean that their basic concept
of the movement is closer to Klemperer’s than to Brymer’s. Christopher Hogwood
with the period-instrument Amadeus Winds (Decca Duo 4580962) is of like mind,
observing the repeats and taking 10:52 over this movement. Sabine Meyer,
too, with the Sabine Meyer Wind Ensemble, takes the movement at a fairly deliberate
pace (EMI Electrola 9538242, mid-price, with Serenade No.l2, K388 – review
of earlier release) as do the Holliger Wind Ensemble, originally on Volume
5 of the Philips complete Mozart Edition (4225052, no longer available except
as downloads).
K375 is a comparatively large-scale work and it can certainly take such a
grand view of the opening movement but the Scottish players are no slouches
in the minuet and trio and the closing allegro. Overall I enjoyed
this performance as much as any – it’s slightly less sedate than Klemperer,
with more character than Meyer or Holliger and easier to live with than Amadeus
Winds if you’re not attuned to their fairly early recording of period wind
instruments.
There is one other performance which I should mention because it’s been unfairly
overshadowed: English Concert Winds recorded Serenades Nos. 11 and 12, with
shortened but enjoyable wind transcriptions of the Figaro and Don
Giovanni overtures, for Hyperion in 1997. It’s one of those recordings
which, inexplicably, is available on CD only from the Archive Service but
the download of these stylish performances is readily available, sounding
well in mp3 and lossless formats, with pdf booklet, for just £6.99 (CDA66887).
At that price you could afford both this and the new Linn recording.
The SCO players don’t rush the Divertimenti either: once again they are slightly
slower in K253 than their London counterparts and here too, though I enjoy
the sparkling Brymer-directed performance, the music can readily take a more
sedate approach. These Divertimenti were written to amuse Archbishop Colloredo
but performances as good and as enjoyable as these remind us that there’s
much more to the music than mere amusement.
There’s a case for having all the wind music in one basket by downloading
the London Wind Soloists on Decca. There’s also a lot to be said for having
the budget-price Decca Duo on authentic instruments, especially as it contains
Serenades Nos. 10, the Gran Partita, K361, and 12, K388, in addition
to the Serenade No.11 and the four divertimenti recorded by Linn.
The budget-price 3-CD EMI set containing the Serenades Nos.10-12, the Clarinet
and Horn Quintets and Harmoniemusik from Die Entführung – review
– is no longer available but Nos. 11 and 12 from that set can be had separately
on the Electrola recording listed above. Otherwise the new SCO/Linn recording
is very usefully supplemented with the fine performance of Serenade No.10,
the Gran Partita, on a super-budget Hyperion Helios recording
(CDH55093,
The Albion Ensemble).
The recordings of Mozart’s late symphonies which Sir Charles Mackerras made
with the SCO towards the end of his career are one of the glories of the Linn
catalogue. Without suggesting that these new performances of Mozart’s lighter
music are quite in that category, they are very fine in every respect: performance,
recording and presentation all make this a very worthy successor to the earlier
Linn/SCO recording of the Serenade, K185 and Divertimento, K113 (now re-numbered
as BKD287 – review).
I listened to the 24/96 and mp3 downloads from hyperion-records.co.uk
and both are very good of their kind, with a clear advantage in firmness to
the former. The album is also available on SACD and in mp3, 16/44.1, 24/96
and 24/192 lossless from linnrecords.com,
with pdf booklet in both cases.
All the music is performed in wind sextet format – the Serenade also features
in a later octet version, but there’s very little to choose between them.
If I must single out two performers from the six it has to be Alec Frank-Gemmill
and Harry Johnstone who have made a speciality of playing the natural horn,
a most difficult beast to master – they are pictured with it in the booklet.
I have recently been far from alone in admiration for a new Hyperion recording
of the Mozart Horn Concertos with Pipp Eastop on natural horn (CDA68097 –
review).
The horn parts of these divertimenti may be less demanding but Frank-Gemmill
and Johnstone’s playing and that of all their SCO colleagues is equally worthy
of praise. These players have been making a speciality of performing wind-band
music in recent years. I hope that we shall have more recordings of them
in that repertoire.
Brian Wilson
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