Sergei RACHMANINOV (1873-1943)
Symphony No.3 in A minor Op.44
(1935) [41:53]
Symphonic Dances Op.45 (1940) [38:46]
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln/Dmitrij Kitajenko
rec. Studio Stolberger Straß, Cologne, Germany, 13-15 February 2012 (Symphony),
13-17 May 2013 (Symphonic Dances)
OEHMS CLASSICS OC442 [80:51]
This third disc of Rachmaninov from Dmitrij Kitajenko and
the Gürzenich-Orchester Köln completes their survey of the Symphonies (Symphony
1; Symphony
2). However, there is a handful of the orchestral works - and works for
chorus and orchestra - yet to be recorded, and such is the quality on display
here that I hope these works will follow.
The strengths and virtues of the current disc replicate those of the earlier
volumes exactly. Kitajenko is an unfussy interpreter not prone to excesses
of tempo or emotion in these works. If I had to characterise the performance
style at all it would be broad and powerful. In this he is backed to the hilt
by the superb Gürzenich-Orchester with excellent engineering to boot. All
three of the discs seemed to have been recorded in a period from January to
October 2013 with the exception of the Third Symphony given here which was
put 'in the can' nearly a full year earlier in February 2012.
Interesting therefore to realise that the consistency of Kitajenko'
s approach to the symphonies starts with the latest work - in compositional
date terms. There are many recordings these days of all of Rachmaninov's
music so performances need to have something different to offer just to enter
the reckoning. By removing the extremes, Kitajenko removes some of the sense
of impetuosity and volatility that others find in this work. Of the three
symphonies the third is the trickiest to bring off interpretatively. The First
Symphony is the most direct, the most theatrical, the Second a massive sprawling
stream of melody whereas the Third can sound sectionalised and bitty. Kitajenko’s
single greatest achievement is just how symphonic he makes the work
sound. In a masterly feat of composition Rachmaninov derives most of the melodic
material in the work from the tiny rocking motif that appears in the very
opening bars. I like the way Kitajenko presents this in a very bare, etiolated
fashion - about as unpromising as it could be - which allows the eruption
of the full orchestra in the fifth bar to register with the impact the composer
must have wanted without over-emphasising the dynamic indication of just f.
As with his versions of the other symphonies Kitajenko is good at taking Rachmaninov's
nudging of tempi at face value - they are often a matter of degree more than
the great Romantic swoons that other performances indulge in. A case in point
is the big tune of the first movement - introduced by the cellos at figure
5. Yes Rachmaninov does indicate "tempo rubato" - the tempo to be
played with flexibility/freedom - but the only marked 'hold'
in the melody's flow is at the end of the second bar. Kitajenko nudges
this without disrupting the flow. As ever he is helped hugely by the warmth
and sonority of the Cologne players.
There is a paradox at the centre of this work. It is as if Rachmaninov is
deliberately being anti-modern; I am not sure I can think of another major
symphony written as late as this one that uses a very traditional exposition
repeat in the first movement. The finale features a fugal passage and elsewhere
Rachmaninov stays true to the lush tonal flow of melody that marked out so
many of his works. Yet at the same time he experiments with orchestration,
harmony and form in a way - for him - quite different to any of his previous
works. As mentioned Kitajenko's strength is to bind the work together
emphasising its true symphonic stature. This comes at the price of some sheer
emotional heft or visceral excitement that other performances achieve. In
the middle movement, Rachmaninov experiments with a two movements in one form
with an extended scherzo section (Allegro vivace) flanked by two
adagio 'panels' with material yet again derived from the opening
cell. Kitajenko's scherzo is beautifully 'placed' but
by being a good fifteen or so beats per minute under the score's marking
of crochet/quarter note = 160 it lacks the quicksilver brilliance that I think
Rachmaninov sought. Ashkenazy in his well-known Decca/Concertgebouw recording
pushes a good fifteen beats or so above that marking but his Dutch
orchestra play with extraordinary brilliance. Important to note though that
Kitajenko is in good company; Ormandy
in Philadelphia - the orchestra who premiered the work but with Stokowski
- is also significantly off the printed pace. Svetlanov
is another who favours a mercurial speed as does Weller
with the LPO on Decca although Weller's account feels driven rather
than brilliant.
The opening of the third and final movement from Kitajenko again features
a middle-ground tempo which gives the music a ceremonial rather than festive
feeling. This is very consistent with his approach to the entire symphony
- I would have been surprised if he had made a different choice - again he
is a good 12 bpm off the marked crochet = 130 indication. If I was allowed
only a single version of this work I would opt for one that stuck closer to
the score's tempo indications but as with the other discs in this series
I find Kitajenko's individual approach very effective. Indeed the closing
pages see him cranking up the tempo and energy very excitingly. Right up to
the last two bars where he indulges in an interpretative foible that I really
dislike - huge brakes go on and literally these two bars are played at nearly
half the tempo of the preceding music. There is no indication in the score
at all for this. Of the other versions I know; Svetlanov in both his recordings
for Melodiya
and the 1993
re-make does this (see
also) - making me think it was a Russian/Soviet performance tradition
- but then de Waart in Rotterdam on Philips does the same. None of them make
it work and it is very nearly a deal-breaker. My sense is that this music
needs to blaze through to the very last double bar in some act of creative
cocking-a-snook at musical modernism circa 1935.
The coupling of Rachmaninov's final orchestral work - the Symphonic
Dances is both apt and generous. Particularly so here since it gives
the disc a running time of over eighty minutes. By now Kitajenko's
preference for broad tempi and rich sonorities should come as no surprise.
Again, this performance would not be my preferred single version but there
are insights provided by both the interpretation and the quality of the engineering
and playing that are of real interest. I miss the dynamism Svetlanov brings
to the work's opening with his contra-bassoon player providing a massive
foundation on which to build the work. Other performances find more sensuality
in the saxophone solo too. Kitajenko comes into his own with a daringly languorous
central dance - he is well over a minute longer than Previn (EMI Classics),
Litton,
Ashkenazy
and Jansons.
Only Svetlanov
in his digital re-make is slower but that version lacks the sheer tonal allure
of this new version. Listening to these two final dances it did strike me
that taking their subtitles into account - "Evening" and "Midnight"
- it would be possible to hear these Kitajenko performances as dreams; the
former all perfumed sensuality and the latter a feverish nightmare - the Dies
Irae stalking the music in an implacable manner. At the beginning of
the finale Kitajenko opts for orchestral bells rather than tubular bells and
he allows them to clang through the texture like some fearful tocsin. No pacing
worries or unscripted pull-backs here. This is a powerful and convincing performance
throughout. I would have liked the brass to crown the final most explicit
statement of the Dies Irae more tellingly but this is a strongly
characterised and executed interpretation. Whether to allow the final tam-tam
to ring or not?; Kitajenko has a massive deep-toned gong that rings on for
a full twenty seconds.
This disc is presented in Oehms' typically minimalist manner - an unfussy
liner in German and English - but extremely well engineered. So, a strongly
individual, superbly played conclusion to this cycle of Rachmaninov Symphonies.
Certainly worth hearing.
Nick Barnard
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