Flautist-turned-conductor Patrick Gallois, in these Haydn performances,
draws from the best aspects of two distinct styles of performance.
In doing so he strikes a convincing middle ground. The solid,
forward instrumental sonority suggests a modified version of
the old-fashioned, big-orchestra manner, but he guides it with
the lightness and purposeful phrasing favoured by the period-practice
fraternity.
Based on the booklet photograph, the Sinfonia Finlandia Jyväskylä
is a modern-instrument ensemble of chamber proportions. Their
forthright, clean sound, however, suggests a pared-down symphony
orchestra rather than the more anemic "historical"
groups. The string tone is handsome; the horns, in their exposed
moments, are full-bodied and firm. Attacks and accents are incisive,
and the sonority is weighty and grounded.
The twelve-minute C major symphony has just three movements,
lacking a slow movement. In the bustling outer movements, Gallois
contrasts the vigorously rhythmic elements of the texture against
the the legato motifs. This brings out the variety of the sonority
though the secondary material could have been more subdued in
spots. He phrases the central Menuet with real elegance.
Both the other works are in the standard four-movement format,
with the slow movement second. These performances display similar
strengths. Gallois is, again, particularly good in the propulsive
outer movements: even in the A major's sturdy, big-boned Vivace
e con spirito, the momentum doesn't flag in the lyrical
phrases. The finales are busy, but not helter-skelter. That
of the D major has a good sense of weight, with room for all
the little notes in the rondo variations to speak clearly. The
A major is jocund and playful and draws thrust and drive from
the chugging chords in the development. The inner movements
evince plenty of character as well, with the D major's Andantino
e cantabile maintaining its initial dignified, stately demeanour
as it moves through unsettled minor keys.
The sound is pleasing, though perhaps not quite realistic: the
close, detailed orchestral image sounds out of sync with the
longish hall resonance, though the latter undoubtedly helps
fill out the ensemble sound. The writer of the booklet note
doesn't always seem to have been hearing quite the same symphonies,
or perhaps performances, that we've got on the disc. Still,
if you want musically informed performances played by a polished
modern orchestra, this disc is sure to please and at minimal
cost.
Stephen Francis Vasta
See also review by Tim
Perry
Haydn
symphonies on Naxos
Sinfonia Finlandia Jyväskylä/Patrick Gallois
