Wilhelm STENHAMMAR (1871-1927)
Symphony No. 2 in G minor, Op. 34 (1911-1915) [46:05]
Musik till August Strindbergs ‘Ett drömspel’
(Music for ‘A Dream Play’ by August Strindberg) Concert version: Hilding
Rosenberg) (1916/1970) [11:30]
Antwerp Symphony Orchestra/Christian Lindberg
rec. 2017, Koningin Elisabethzaal, Antwerp
Reviewed as a 24/96 download from
eClassical
Pdf booklet included
BIS BIS-2329 SACD
[58:23]
The Swedish composer, conductor and pianist Wilhelm Stenhammar is easily
overlooked in a landscape so utterly dominated by his fellow northerners,
Jean Sibelius and Carl Nielsen. Given that part of his musical training
took place in Berlin, it’s hardly surprising he was influenced by the works
of Richard Wagner and Anton Bruckner; indeed, he readily acknowledged his
debt to the latter in his Symphony No. 1 in F major (1902-1903), which he
subsequently withdrew. However, No. 2, composed in the run-up to the First
World War, owes more to his Nordic contemporaries, Nielsen in particular.
There are very few recordings of either opus, and those that we do
have are by Neeme Järvi and the Gothenburg Symphony, of which he was
principal conductor from 1980 to 2004. (Stenhammar held the same post from
1906 to 1922.) Järvi’s live performances of Nos. 1 and 2 were first released
separately on BIS 219 and 251 respectively, before they were repackaged as
part of a 4-CD set. Rob Barnett has
reviewed
that collection, as well as a three-disc reissue of the symphonies and piano
concertos (Brilliant Classics). In the early 1990s, Järvi and his Gothenburgers rerecorded both
symphonies, plus Excelsior! and the Serenade in F, for
Deutsche Grammophon.
Fast forward 25 years to Antwerp, its orchestra – formerly the Royal
Flemish Philharmonic – conducted by Christian Lindberg. I so admired their
first Stenhammar album,
which includes Excelsior! and the Serenade in F, that I
made it a Recording of the Month. Lindberg, a remarkably versatile
conductor, is probably best known for his distinguished BIS/Pettersson
cycle with the Norrköping SO, several volumes of which I’ve praised on
these pages, His white-hot
Tchaikovsky Fourth
with the Arctic Phil is also mandatory listening. Most recently, I was
pleasantly surprised by Lindberg’s centennial tribute to
Leonard Bernstein,
with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic. Oh, and he’s a terrific
trombonist, too (see
A Lindberg Extravaganza).
Coming back to Stenhammar, BIS 251, which pairs Excelsior! and the
second symphony, was the very first BIS CD I ever owned. That I never
played it much probably says more about my ambivalence towards the music
than the performances themselves. The disc has long since vanished from my
collection, so I reacquainted myself with the 16-bit download from
eClassical.
I must confess I was slightly disappointed at first, not least by the
bright sound. Then again, this is an early release, and a live concert to
boot. These days, BIS produce some of the best recordings I know, their
LSO/Friedel album,
American Symphonies,
the latest addition to my hard drive.
Lindberg’s account of the first movement of No. 2, marked Allegro energico, is quite encouraging, those atmospheric calls and
ripostes nicely judged. He also seems more pliant than Järvi; not only
that, he appears to shade and scale the music pretty well. (If I sound a
tad cautious at this point, it’s because these are just preliminary
impressions, not tested in direct comparison with Järvi.) And while the
idiom feels closer to early Nielsen than it does to middle or late
Bruckner, those brass chorales suggest the latter’s influence was
indelible. Stenhammar’s symphonic style has always struck me as an uneasy
hybrid, and, thus far at least, I’m not persuaded otherwise. It doesn’t
help that the playing is less assured than it was on their earlier album.
The Andante, ungainly at the best of times, feels even more so here.
Lindberg makes amends with a more characterful Scherzo, but even
then there’s an effortful aspect to the music-making – almost as if neither
the orchestra nor the conductor is completely convinced by the piece – and
that’s oddly enervating. The finale, reasonably animated, isn’t the
culmination it should be, either. As for the filler, a concert version of
music written for Strindberg’s A Dream Play, it’s mildly
diverting. To cap it all, the recording is not terribly involving, but that
may have something to do with the acoustic of this new hall, a SimpsonHaugh
‘shoebox’ design that replaces the old one. I feel the BIS team got far
better results in DeSingel, where the earlier album was recorded.
Somewhat disheartened, I revisited Järvi’s performance, which, heard
immediately after Lindberg’s, did much to lift my flagging spirits. For a
start, our esteemed Estonian insists on taut rhythms throughout, and
ensures textures never clot and cloy. Yes, the recording is still too
upfront for my taste, but at least it’s forensic, and that unearths a
wealth of lovely detail, much of it buried in this new release. As so
often, it helps to believe in the music, and I just don’t sense Lindberg
and his players do. Järvi clearly does, and he communicates that to both
his orchestra – who play very well indeed – and his audience, the latter
quick to show their appreciation at the end. Now I’m sorely tempted to
invest in that DG recording….
A rare misstep for Lindberg/BIS; Järvi, the old ‘un, is still the best ‘un.
Dan Morgan
Update
At the time of my initial review I was aware of
Stig Westerberg’s Stockholm Phil recording of this symphony – Caprice
CAP21151 – but had not heard it. A reader, Thomas Roth, and my colleague,
John Quinn, urged me to rectify that omission without delay. And I’m glad I
did, for this is a lovely performance, chock-full of charm and incident. The
playing is both pliant and polished – the brass especially fine – and
there’s a geniality to the first movement that I like very much indeed. I
still find the textures of the second too dense, although that’s leavened a
little by Olle Bolander’s airy recording. Most appealing is the shapeliness
of the third, which is immensely seductive. As for the finale, it's lithe,
with a true sense of summation. Not as lively or as forensic as the BIS/
Järvi, perhaps, and rather short measure; then again, that hardly matters
when the music-making is so easeful and open hearted. Pretty good analogue
sound from 1978, too.
