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David's Review Corner - January 2006

HANDEL: Water Music. Music for the Royal Fireworks. Aradia Ensemble, Kevin Mallon (conductor). Naxos 8.557764. (70' 50"). 

There is certainly no shortage of Handel's two highly popular orchestral suites on disc, and they come in shapes and sizes to suite every taste and fashion. This new one belongs to the period instrument brigade, with conductor, Kevin Mallon, pointing out that 'traditional' tempos for the Water Music are much slower than the composer requested. Even Handel's best known piece - the Air from the first suite - is marked Presto rather than the usual drawn out affair, and at that faster speed it makes far more sense in the work's general structure. So Mallon sees the whole score as a series of virile dances, the use a tambourine in place of the tambour stressing that dance aspect. Even the fourth movement of the second suite, marked Lentement, is quite quick, while it would take some extremely fit sailors to dance Mallon's idea of a hornpipe. He does, however, slow for the finale of the first suite, the big and bold approach reinforced by the brilliant quality of horns and trumpets. Tempos for the Fireworks are more circumspect, the overture sounding pompous, a feature heightened by the use of wooden-headed timpani sticks and weighty horns. Even the Minuets have gravity, and I would have ideally liked a more staccato approach to much of the string playing. But throughout the Canadian ensemble is among the best on disc, and with some very fine woodwind contributions the suites make a formidable rival to any recording in the catalogue, the Water Music being particularly recommended. The disc comes in Surround-Sound (6.110115) and DVD (5.110115), but at the time of review I have heard neither.

BROUWER: Aurolucent Circles. Mandala. Pulse: a 50th Anniversary Fanfare. Remembrances. Sizzle. Evelyn Glennie (percussion), Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Gerard Schwarz (conductor). Naxos 8.559250. (65' 03").

Margaret Brouwer, presently the Head of Composition at the Cleveland Institute, has become one of the most sought after composers of her time, with many scores commissioned by major orchestras. Born in the United States in 1940, she treads that path of modernism that has a friendly face of readily appreciated tonality. Here she has the partnership of the world's most charismatic percussionist, Evelyn Glennie, in a programme of recently completed scores, Aurolucent Circles having been premiered in Seattle by Glennie with Schwarz conducting in November 2002. A glittering array of bells illuminates the central Stardance as a foil to the introverted atmosphere of the opening movement Floating in Dark Space, while the finale is a big virtuoso showpiece, the powerful music reflecting its title, Cycles and Currents. Two highly contrasting movements create the fascinating sounds of Mandala and after a quiet start the second becomes highly animated. Pulse takes us musically to the Orient, the contemplative Remembrances featuring a quite superbly played clarinet solo. Sizzle, as the title suggests, brings the disc to an energetic close. Throughout Glennie's participation, as we would expect, is excellent, moving from the delicacy of the opening track, to the virtuosity required for the second movement of Mandala. Since the arrival of Schwarz in Liverpool the orchestra has entered a new golden era in the concert hall, which is here transferred to disc in a mixture of delicate and subtle nuances. A must for anyone interested in listener friendly music for the 21st century.

ENESCU: Oedipe. Monte Pederson (Oedipe), Eglis Silins (Tiresias), Davide Damiani (Creon), Marjana Lipovsek (Jocaste/La Sphinge), Michael Roider (Le berger), Peter Koves (Phorbas), Walter Fink (Le veilleur), Yu Chen (Thesee), Josef Hopferweiser (Laios), Ruxandra Donose (Antigone), Mihaela Ungureanu (Merope), Goran Simic (High Priest), Vienna Boys Choir, Chorus and Orchestra of the Vienna State Opera, Michael Gielen (conductor). Naxos 8.660163-64 (2CDs). (128' 23"). 

George Enescu was a musical genius who in hindsight may have spread his immense gifts over too large an area. He was one of the great violinists in the early part of the 20th century, a gifted pianist, an outstanding conductor and a teacher who brought to the fore so many young internationally famous violinists. Yet it was as a composer that he strove to be recognised, his output substantial in every genre apart from opera, where he completed just one work, Oedipe. The extensive draft was lost in the conflicts of the First World War, and it was not until 1931 that he completed a score with which he was happy. The story, which was also used by Stravinsky, has the highly successful King Oedipus finding the words of the prophet that a man he killed was his father and has since married his mother to be true. In his remorse he blinds himself, but in exile and now in old age he pleads his cause that separated from his parents he knew neither, and his plea is taken up by the gods. Musically the score owes much to Richard Wagner who Enescu adored, with use of motifs that musically represent characters and events. Though an opera in four acts, and dramatically highly charged, it is largely static and shaped as a series of tableaux, male voices dominating the score in line with the story. Much admired by critics at its premiere in Paris in 1936, it never established a place in the repertoire, and I know of only two previous recordings, one rather negating itself by being sung in Romanian. So this is a very welcome release and comes from a live performance at the Vienna State Opera dating from May 1997, with Michael Gielen a persuasive advocate. It is more as a shortcoming of the score than a fault in the performance, but it does not really ignite until the third act. The second track on the second disc is a good sampling point when the performance has reached the moment where Oedipus's crimes are exposed. Monte Pederson is a vocally imposing as he moves from the self-assured and swaggering King to a creature resigned to its fate as the opera comes to a peaceful conclusion. I am not sure why the name of Marjana Lipovsek does not appear on the front sleeve, her voice takes time to warm and become focused, but she is a thrilling Jocasta as the story proceeds. The remainder of the cast is generally good - Ruxandra Donose particularly so - and the orchestra well captures the feel of the score, though the venue and engineers have come together to give preferred status to the singers. The applause that erupts at the conclusion shows the tremendous impact the work made on the audience, and the whole venture is a major catalogue addition.

VAUGHAN WILLIAMS: Tuba Concerto in F minor. GREGSON: Tuba Concerto. STEPTOE: Tuba Concerto. GOLLAND: Tuba Concerto, Op.46. James Gourley (tuba), Royal Ballet Sinfonia, Gavin Sutherland (conductor). Naxos 8.557754. (64' 13").

It was the concerto composed by Vaughan Williams that helped to bring the tuba from the back of the orchestra to take up a solo role. But long before that the great British tradition of brass bands had held the instrument in considerable affection, it big and ripe low notes adding to the character of so much of their music. Edward Gregson is certainly better known in band circles, and if the finale of his concerto could be mistaken for Malcolm Arnold, he certainly knows how to explore the instrument from the jollity in the opening Allegro to its ability to sing in the central Lento. And a finally a moment if sheer brilliance in a cadenza of real virtuosity. Roger Steptoe takes a completely different approach, removing the instrument's knockabout humour we readily think of, and replacing it with a more serious view in the concerto's calm and sombre finale. Completing the disc we move to the world of light music for John Golland and his frothy happiness. Scottish-born James Gourlay is acknowledged as one of the UK's famous band conductors, though in symphonic terms he has been a distinguished member of the City of Birmingham Symphony and BBC Symphony orchestras. His suitably restrained playing of the classical Vaughan Williams acts as a foil to its companion pieces where he takes the big instrument into the world of nimble virtuosity. He has the Birmingham-based Royal Ballet Sinfonia playing better than I have ever heard them, the strings just a mite stretched in the opening movement of the Steptoe, but elsewhere bringing their ballet background to make the music dance. Soloist is well to the fore, but there is total clarity in the orchestra. An absolute winner.

STRAVINSKY: Pulcinella. Le Baiser de la fee. Diana Montague (mezzo-soprano), Robin Leggate (tenor), Mark Beesley (bass), Philharmonia Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Robert Craft (conductor). Naxos 8.557503. (78' 21").

For a company whose objective is to have just one version of each work in its catalogue, it seems downright greedy of Naxos to have two versions of the complete Pulcinella, a work thinly represented on disc. They are, however, quite different in approach with the earlier version using the small instrumental ensemble of the Bournemouth Sinfonietta. It did have one major advantage with the young Ian Bostridge singing the tenor part, while Stefan Sanderling directed a lean and lithe performance. Robert Craft is more robust in his approach, yet often blisteringly fast - try the Tarantella (track 13) to sample his approach. His soloists are proactive in their characterisation, so that the whole work springs to life, the Philharmonia's clean cut playing - the solo horn absolutely superb - capturing the work's many quirky colours. The ballet The Fairy’s Kiss is at the other extreme, the London Symphony creating the opulent quality of Stravinsky's pastiche on music by Tchaikovsky. Craft employs tempos entirely in accord with the needs of dancers, maybe relaxing just a little too much in the second part of the second tableau. Better that than some of the rushed versions on disc. As with the releases in this ongoing Stravinsky cycle, the sound quality is exemplary, the whole release much to be admired.

HAYDN: Twenty Variations in G major, Hob XVII:2. Theme and Variations in C major, Hob XVII:5. Capriccio in G major, Hob XVII:1. Arietta con 12 Variaziono, Hob.XVII: 3. Variations on 'Gott erhalte'. Divertimento: Il Maestro e lo Scolare, Hob XVIIa:I. Jeno Jando, Zsuzsa Kollar (piano). Naxos 8.553972. (66' 11"). 

Haydn's group of keyboard variations were composed around the middle part of the 18th century, their content mainly functional and most probably intended for the consumption of his pupils or the wealthy who enjoyed amusing friends with their performing skills. Appending the name of Joseph Haydn would certainly have added status to the music they were performing, though for much of the time it only makes modest demands on the player. Whether the composer intended them for the harpsichord or square piano is open to question, Jeno Jando avoiding the issue by playing a modern concert grand. He equally eschews the current trend of playing such music with a clipped tone to impersonate an instrument of Haydn's period. Indeed at times Jando takes the music forward to the time of Beethoven, while some of his spacious tempos will come as a surprise. He is joined by his pupil, Zsuzsa Kollar, in the Divertimento, a suitably happy performance of a charming work. It would be folly to describe any of this as great Haydn, but as a pleasing experience the disc is commended to you, the engineering presenting a nice piano tone.

FELDMAN: String Quartet No.1. Group for Contemporary Music. Naxos 8.559190. (78' 33").

Morton Feldman was born in America in 1926 and after studying with Wallingford Riegger and Stefan Wolpe fell under the influence of John Cage in the early 1950's. It was a time in Cage's life when he was obsessed in cleaning away all that was spurious in music so as to discover a purity of sound. That passed onto Feldman's music with a calm abstraction that creates a feel of inertia in his music as it slowly takes shape. The first of Feldman's two enormous string quartets dates from 1980 and at its first performance lasted over an hour and a half. He quipped that in writing the piece he rather let things get out of hand, resulting in its length, the whole work being in one continuous movement. Probably the word 'movement' would give the wrong impression as we are already thirty-three minutes into the score before we sense the other meaning of the word 'movement', to that point sonorities have slowly moved around one another in a feel of rapt meditation. That sense of forward momentum is short lived, the music soon moving back to its opening pulse. To sustain our attention and to provide evidence of shape within Feldman's concept requires considerable concentration from the performers, and the Group for Contemporary Music have my utmost admiration as they manage to make interesting the minute and subtle shifts of sound that Feldman offers. This is certainly a brave release from Naxos and adds to the width of their wide sweep across American music.

MOZART: Serenade No.13 in G major, KV525, 'Eine Kleine Nachtmusik'.
Divertimento in F major KV 247. Serenade No. 6 in D major, KV239, 'Serenata Notturna'. Swedish Chamber Orchestra, Petter Sundkvist (conductor). Naxos 8.557023. (61' 53"). 

Elegant and gracefully performances played on conventional modern instruments, wonderfully neat and devoid of eccentricities. There are some delightfully quick tempos to energise the finales to each of the three works, with a dramatic approach to the opening of the Divertimento. Certainly if you are looking for an unfussy account of Eine Kleine Nachtmusik you need look no further, though Petter Sundkvist is certainly not searching for any hidden depth of musical emotion in the piece. He equally views the Serenata Notturna as a late evening piece, its tempos and content shaped to create a feeling of happy tranquillity. If my attention was drawn to a clumsy horn note in the third movement of the Divertimento, it demonstrates that everything else is technically spotless. The engineers have included a resonant acoustic that probably increases the apparent size of the ensemble, which I would guess is quite modest.

TCHAIKOVSKY: Piano Concerto. Clarinet Concerto. Signs of the Zodiac: Cantata for soprano, harpsichord and string Orchestra. Olga Solovieva (piano/ harpsichord), Anton Prischepa (clarinet), Yana Ivanilova (soprano), Irina Goncharova (harpsichord), Russian Academy of Music Chamber Orchestra, Timur Mynbaev (conductor). Naxos 8.557727. (70' 04").

Boris Tchaikovsky was born almost twenty-five years after Shosakovitch and ten years before Alfred Shnittke placing him in a period of Russian music that seems to have gone largely unnoticed on the international scene. He was a pupil of Shostakovich and become a prolific composer, though, as you will find in the five-movement Piano Concerto, his influences have been quite wide ranging. An offshoot of minimalism in the opening movement; a lyrical second that could have come from Anton Rubinstein and a Prokofiev inspired scherzo. Add these ingredients together and you have the big outgoing finale. For the soloist it is daunting, the fast sections needing the agile fingers of Olga Solovieva. The Clarinet Concerto is a more personal creation that explores every facet of the instrument from the seductive opening movement through to the fast and virtuoso finale. As the title would suggest, the five movements of the Signs of the Zodiac are highly descriptive and fascinatingly coloured. Three of the movements include a soprano soloist with harpsichords adding a personal tone to the opening movement. I did find the finale rather loosing the work's impetus, but throughout the disc Tchaikovsky's music is tonal and easy to like. The soloists are all highly persuasive, and if the orchestra sounds just a little tentative at times, they do bring some important works to the catalogue. Sound quality is nicely balanced and with plenty of impact.

ORDONEZ: Sinfonia in A major. Sinfonia in G minor. Sinfonia in C major. Sinfonia in B minor. Sinfonia in G minor. Toronto Chamber Orchestra, Kevin Mallon (conductor). Naxos 8.557482. (61' 51").

That he may have been the illegitimate son of a member of the nobility leaves the true name of Karl von Ordonez or Carlo d'Ordonez shrouded in uncertainty. Born in Vienna in 1734, little is known of his childhood but he was obviously trained as a violinist and composer, connections with the aristocracy eventually providing him with a place as a government official, though it may have been of low rank as he died in poverty. As a composer he was abundant and was so highly regarded that Haydn was among those who conducted his works. His catalogue contains around seventy symphonies and a profusion of quartets, and if today he is largely forgotten, history would describe him as having had a significant effect on music in Vienna. Certainly the symphonies on this release display a facility for charming melody and some unusual orchestration, his penchant for high horns adding pungency to outer movements. Equally unusual is the feel of urgency he brought to many of his 'slow' central movements and his use of serious music to precede the happiness that was to follow. He may have lacked the consummate skill to extensively develop his thematic material - movements here seldom going beyond four minutes - but place his music in the hands of Mallon and his fine Toronto ensemble and it oozes with charm. Sample for instance the final movement of the G minor symphony (track 15) with its pleasant jog-trot rhythm and you will surely be persuaded to buy. Sound quality is very good.

GOMBERT: Tulerunt Dominum meum. Magnificat primi toni. Credo in unum Deum. Super flumina Babylonis. Media vita in morte sumus. Salve regina (plainchant mode 1). Salve regina (diversi diversa orant). Epitaphium (in Josquinum a Prato)
Oxford Camerata, Jeremy Summerly (conductor). Naxos 8.557732. (62' 17").

Probably of Flemish birth towards the end of the 15th century, the first we know of Nicolas Gombert comes with his name appearing as a student of Josquin followed by an early career as a singer in the court of Emperor Charles V. His compositions continued in the style of his mentor but added much of his own, his later life finding a very inventive musical mind. It is the type of music well suited to the Oxford Camerata who have created a very distinctive sound, the sopranos having the quality of boy trebles but without their problems of pitch, while the male singers produce a rich and sonorous underlay. Combined they produce a sound that brings an ethereal quality to Media vita, the sheer peace being a perfect sampling point (track 5). Not all of the music is of this inspired quality, though I greatly enjoy the full texture and harmonic shifts of the Magnificat and the repose of Salve Regina. The recording tends to catch the 's' in words, but is otherwise of excellent quality and quite an unmissable release for the legion of Camerata enthusiasts.

C.P.E. BACH: Sonata in D minor, Wq.51/4; Sonata in F sharp minor, Wq.52/4; Sonata in A major, Wq.55/4; Rondo in D minor, Wq.61/4; Sonata in C major, Wq.65/47; Rondo in B flat major, Wq.58/5; Sonata in E major, Wq.65/29; Cantabile in B minor, from Sonata, Wq.55/3. Christopher Hinterhuber (piano). Naxos 8.557450. (63' 46").

Austrian born Christopher Hinterhuber has a catalogue of competition successes, including the Geza Anda Competition in Zurich and the Beethoven Competition in Vienna. Selected for the international tour as one of 'Europe's Rising Stars' he has recently appeared in many of the major concert venues on both sides of the Atlantic including New York, Amsterdam, London, Stockholm, Vienna and Salzburg. His credentials hold him in good stead for his Naxos debut recording, with a bold choice of music by C.P.E. Bach that does not normally feature in concert programmes. He was the second and most important musical son of Johann Sebastian, Carl Philipp Emanuel forming that important bridge between the Baroque and Classical eras. Though his father had perfected music of his own period, it was left to his son to take it forward, his sonatas being the most adventurous keyboard compositions of his time, Thematically strong and immediately attractive, it is surprising that we hear them so rarely. Early in the disc Hinterhuber uses a clipped style that to a degree impersonates the harpsichords of Bach's time, but later moves back to a more modern approach, his dynamic range greater than possible from a period instrument. No complaint as he obviously enjoys the music and conveys that pleasure to us, a good sampling point coming at the quick opening movement to the A major sonata (track 7). Good sound quality. 

RAMIREZ: Missa Criolla. TRAD (arr. Haazen): Missa Luba. Choral Arts Society of Washington, Joseph Holt (conductor). Naxos 8.557542. (56' 54").

A new look at long established traditions is today sweeping across many religions with the object of embracing the popular music of the younger generation to make church music more readily accessible. It is not universally welcomed, but here we have a work from the Argentinean composer, Ariel Ramirez, Missa Criolla mixing Spanish derived folk idioms with today's populist culture. The result is more akin to show music in Spain or Latin America, with dance rhythms, clicking castanets, strumming guitars and a 'pop' backing rhythm group. That the result will be easily enjoyed in the mass media music market is never for one moment in doubt, as it contains every ingredient for success, the catchy tunes and vivacious rhythms quickly drilled into the memory. The worthy people of Washington's Choral Arts Society enter into the trendy music with enthusiasm, though you do feel they are happy to arrive on more familiar ground when they reach the harmonies of Missa Luba. The soloists have a rustic folk music quality with improvisation of rhythm and pitch. Sound quality complements the style of music with solo voices well forward. Released this month in the US and internationally next month, its sure to enjoy a huge success.

SPOHR: String Quintet No.7 in G minor, Op.144. String Sextet in C major, Op.140. Potpourri, Op.22. New Haydn Quartet, Attila Falvey (violin), Sandor Papp (viola), Tama Varga (cello). Naxos 8.555968. (69' 29").

Louis Spohr was born in Germany in 1784 and admitted while still a teenager to the Court Orchestra from where he developed into the most highly regarded German violinist of his time. Subsequently holding major conducting posts in Gotha, Vienna, Frankfurt and finally Kassel, it is probably an exaggeration that he trained over two hundred violinists, composers and conductors, but he was certainly a major teacher at this time. His flood of compositions, which include numerous operas, nine symphonies, fifteen violin concertos, and a veritable deluge of chamber music, were already out of date when written, his detractors citing too little inspiration spread over too many works. By the 20th century his name had almost disappeared from the concert repertoire, and it was largely left to the Marco Polo record label to resurrect part of his output. Now those performances are being transferred to the more readily available Naxos, this being the fourth volume of his complete Quintets in more than serviceable performances from the augmented New Haydn Quartet. Tuneful and often incredibly demanding on the leader's virtuosity, the Menuetto movement of the Seventh being a particular joy. However I much prefer the Sextet where Spohr's preoccupation with busy writing can take wing using the greater number of instruments available. And finally a charming piece of nonsense with the Potpourri, an aria from Mozart's Don Giovanni making a brief appearance. The recording is detailed and nicely transparent.

MANCINI: Peter Gunn. Moon River. Baby Elephant Walk. String on Fire. Dear Heart. Dream of a Lifetime. The Great Race March. Days of Wine and Roses. The Pink Panther. Two for the Road. Pie in the Face Polka. Ballerina's Dream. The Life Force Theme. The Glass Menagerie. Charade. Beaver Valley '37. Drummer's Delight. The Thorn Birds. March with Mancini. Richard Hayman and his Orchestra
Naxos 8.557825. (74' 52").

First appearing in the early 1990's on Naxos International - a label dedicated to light music that never really found a niche in the market - the discs are being progressively moved to the regular Naxos catalogue. American conductor and arranger, Richard Hayman, gives Henry Mancini's evergreen melodies a big symphonic treatment, tempos allowing the music to expand into its new garb. As a fan of his arrangements I must confess I have enjoyed Hayman more than this, Mancini's music not the type of material that draws the best from him. Still if you enjoy the catchy tune for Pink Panther, the folksy Pie in the Face Polka or the repose of Sons of Italy, you can be assured of sharply etched performances, some good solo passages - particularly the oboe in The Glass Menagerie - and strong rhythm backing. Sound is quite up-front as the music demands.

MASCAGNI: Cavalleria Rusticana. Maria Callas (Santuzza), Giuseppe Di Stefano (Turiddu), Rolando Panerai (Alfio), Anna Maria Canali (Lola), Ebe Ticozzi (Lucia) Chorus and Orchestra of La Scala, Milan, Tullio Serafin (conductor). Naxos Historical 8.111025. (77' 46").

This was Callas at her finest, creating not the usual Santuzza, but a very living and passionate young woman, willing to fight in the big confrontation with Turiddu when she discovers his duplicity. Throughout she was in fantastic voice, but who would have thought that Giuseppe Di Stefano could turn in such a red-blooded part. The fire in his voice sparks off a raging argument with Callas's Santuzza, Serafin stoking up the whole scene as he drives the orchestra forward at quite fast tempos. If you still need persuasion, just try track 14 and hear the very best of Di Stefano and orchestra. Add to all of this a big resonant mezzo in Ebe Ticozzi as Lucia, and a pert Lola from Anna Maria Canali and you have a first rate cast - well almost, Rolando Panerai sounding a wooden Alfio and at times vocally tired. Never mind, he is not a major player, and this really is the great recording of Cavalleria for your collection, the 1953 sound only just beginning to show its age.

LEONCAVALLO:Pagliacci. Maria Callas (Nedda), Giuseppe Di Stefano (Canio), Tito Gobbi (Tonio), Rolando Panerai (Silvio), Nicola Monti (Beppe), Chorus and Orchestra of La Scala, Milan, Tullio Serafin (conductor). Naxos Historical 8.111024. (72' 43"). 

Maria Callas's Nedda is superb, vocally acting out the move between the real person and Nedda's part in the commedia dell'arte, the two characters very differing. Giuseppe Di Stefano is equally convincing, playing Canio with the feel of man resigned to the fact that he can offer little to keep his wayward wife. The famous aria, Vesti la giubba, is not overplayed, the sobs at the close without histrionics, and having killed his wife the end is in quiet sadness. Tito Gobbi's Prologue is taken without exaggeration, and only in his scene when he makes advances to Nedda does he open up into his big and menacing voice. As in Cavalleria Rusticana I find Panerai a little uninvolved and hardly the character to tempt a girl as vivacious as Callas's Nedda. I still have the LP and comparing it with this Naxos transfer I was amazed at the detail now exposed. I know there are lots of very good recordings of Pagliacci that have appeared since this one, but none have come quite to this level of musicality.

PUCCINI: Madama Butterfly. Maria Callas (Madama Butterfly), Nicolai Gedda (Pinkerton), Lucia Danieli (Suzuki), Mario Borriello (Sharpless), Renato Ercolani (Goro), Luisa Villa (Kate Pinkerton), Mario Carlin (Prince Yamadori), Plinio Clabassi (The Bonze), Enrico Campi (Imperial Commissioner), Chorus and Orchestra of La Scala, Milan, Herbert Von Karajan (conductor). Naxos Historical 8.111026-27 (2CDs). (140' 26").

I remember the excitement of hearing these discs on LP when they first appeared fifty years ago, though they never took away my greater affection for the earlier Renata Tebaldi version on Decca. A lot of water has flown under the bridge since then, and we have had some ravishing performances that have taken our attention away from Maria Callas's deeply felt portrayal of the abandoned Butterfly. Yet returning to it once again it is Karajan's conducting with his subtle nuances, ravishing beauty, and unerring support for Callas that I find the major attraction. You can only wonder what her other early recordings could have sounded like had they been made with him. She does try that very difficult task of sounding like a young girl, and in quiet passages this is deeply moving, particularly in the second act when Sharpless visits her, while in the resignation she brings to her final scene we find a young girl completely drained. The problem comes in the dramatic moments when she has to return to her full and very typical Callas sound. In Nicola Gedda she had an elegant Pinkerton, the first act love duet being one of bliss rather than highly charged emotion. In the rush to make as many recordings as possible from the still young soprano, not all of the casts assembled were of a quality they should have been, Mario Borriello being a very ordinary Sharpless. But don't let that hinder you, for I could go on at length as to the wonders Karajan imparts. Certainly no one at that time could extract such luminous playing from the Scala orchestra, or such organised choral participation. This is, warts and all, an experience - harrowing though it most certainly is - that you should not miss. Naxos has coaxed a sound better than we have a right to expect from 1955, but why, oh why perpetuate that crime that so often appears elsewhere of having a break between discs at the most dramatic moment in the whole work.

ROSSINI:Il Turco in Italia. Maria Callas (Fiorilla), Nicola Rossi-Lemeni (Selim), Nicolai Gedda (Don Narciso), Franco Calabrese (Don Geronio), Jolanda Gardino (Zaida), Piero de Palma (Albazar), Mariano Stabile (Prosdocimo), Chorus and Orchestra of La Scala, Milan, Gianandrea Gavazzeni (conductor). Naxos Historical 8.111028-29 (2 CDs). (137' 50").

When this release first appeared in 1954 Rossini's Il Turco in Italia had largely fallen from the main international operatic repertoire and was recorded simply to display Maria Callas in her most dazzling form. Even so it could not escape the 'traditional' cuts of the time that removed almost 30 minutes from a quite short opera, though the basic story remains. Callas had opted for a soubrette approach to the flirtatious Fiorilla with whom the rich Turk immediately falls in love, ignorant of her married status. Her vocal acrobatics are all in place, the aria at the beginning of the second scene in the opening act sparkling with crystalline brilliance, while she moves to a suitably seductive voice as she charms her Turk. As another of her adoring suitors Nicolai Gedda creates a lyric and most likeable Don Narciso, so much so that you cannot really believe Fiorilla would fall for Nicola Rossi-Lemini's Selim, his rich bass voice portraying a rather ageing person. The remaining members of the cast provide a reliable team for the big ensembles. Just try track 12 on the second disc to hear Gavazzini whip up the excitement. Maybe the critics have been kind in placing it among the great classic opera recordings, but here Naxos add icing to the cake with four extracts from Callas's 1954 recital disc, including a fabulous Una voce poco fa from Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia. The recording of the opera is showing its age, but the voices are well captured.

BEETHOVEN: Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68, 'Pastoral'. Leonore Overture No. 3, Op. 72a. Fidelio Overture, Op. 72. Coriolan Overture, Op. 62. The Creatures of Prometheus, Overture, Op. 43. Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, British Symphony Orchestra, Bruno Walter (conductor). Naxos Historical 8.111032. (70' 33").

Bruno Walter took his interpretation of Beethoven's Sixth symphony from the subtitle 'Pastoral', the music emerging in a gentle pleasure of the countryside, tempos never rushed, the storm scene in the fourth movement being nothing more than a rather gusty day. Just for one brief moment in the third movement the vista becomes craggy in content, the work's final moments ending in a sense of fulfilled calm. It required some very special playing from the Vienna Philharmonic, the silky smooth strings and woodwind matched by the rounded tone of the brass. Maybe the recording did not do justice to the timpani who sound muffled throughout. By contrast the overtures are highly charged and dramatic, Coriolan often hectic and stretching the London Symphony strings. The sheer feeling of exultation in the fast conclusion of Leonora No. 3 and the hefty treatment of Fidelio are totally in accord with the opera's scenario. The recordings date from the 1930's and these magnificent transfers belie their age.

GLUCK: Alceste - Overture. MOZART: Serenade No. 10 in B flat, K.361, 'Gran Partita'. Serenade No.13 in G major, KV525, 'Eine Kleine Nachtmusik'. Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Wilhelm Furtwangler (conductor). Naxos Historical 8.110994. (72' 06").

Furtwangler's Mozart can sound portentous after listening to period instrument performances, though at the time of issue in the late 1940's it was fashionable and much admired. Eine Kleine Nachtmusik is given the full symphonic treatment, the opening Allegro being big and bold, while the varied pulse of the following Romanza pulls it out of shape. Today the editing team would have got to work to sort out the intonation and articulation on the final Rondo. By comparison Furtwangler's Gran Partita is an amiable and lightweight account, generally of a happy and sunny disposition. There is an elegant Minuet, though a mite stodgy in the Theme and Variations sixth movement. The Overture to Alceste comes from 1942, the sound distinctly old and somewhat opaque, though Furtwangler's attention to detail is admirable. Of course it is all too easy to look back with a condescending smile, but those who admire the great conductor will certainly want these Mozart performances that seem otherwise unavailable.

HALEVY: La Juive - Rachel, quand du Seigneur, Act 4. LALO: Le Roi d’Ys - Puisq’on ne peut… Vainement ma bien aimee, Act 3. TOSTI: Parted. Segreto. MURRAY: I’ll walk beside you. CARDILLO: Core ’ngrato. MASSENET: Manon - Je suis seul… Ah! fuyez douce image, Act 3. Werther - Pourquoi me reveiller? Act 3. FALVO: Dicitencello. TRAD: Adeste fidelis. CITTADINI: Ninna Nanna. Nostalgia ricordo. TOSTI: Il segreto. WILLIAMS: Vidalita. BUCHARDO: Cancion de Perico. GRUBER: Silent Night. SCHUBERT: Ave Maria. MASCAGNI: Cavalleria Rusticana - O Lola. BRAHE: Bless this house. PENN: Smilin' through. Beniamino Gigli (tenor), Royal Opera House Orchestra, Covent Garden, Rainaldo Zamboni (conductor), Rainaldo Zamboni & Orchestra. Naxos Historical 8.111101. (67' 05").

In this complete 'Beniamino Gigli Edition' we have reached the years 1946 - 1947, the time I first heard the great tenor in the flesh. By then he was certainly on the downward slope, though in the Halevy and Lalo arias, where he was not vocally pressed, he could still create the old magic. He was now more frequently singing popular ballads of the day, this crop of recordings coming from his visits to London, the microphones kindly placed so that much of it was sung in the head. Accused of crooning his way through his repertoire, this disc would confirm that criticism. To appeal to his London audiences he sang many discs in his attractive broken English. In Zamboni he had a responsive conductor happy to use whatever tempo best suited the rather compromised voice. It is part of the Gigli discography and will appeal to the populist market. The sound is amazingly good in these transfers.

STRAUSS: Mittel gegen den Schlaf - Walzer, Op.65 (Cure for Sleep). Jugendfeuer-Galopp, Op.90 (Fire of Youth Galop). Erinnerung an Pesth - Walzer, Op.66 (Recollection of Pesth). Cachucha-Galopp, Op.97. Gabrielen -Walzer, Op.68. Boulogner Galopp, Op.104. Pfennig-Walzer, Op.70 (Penny Waltz). Der Carneval in Paris - Galopp, Op.100 (The Carnival in Paris). Iris-Walzer, Op.75. Original-Parade-Marsch, Op.73. Erinnerung an Berlin - Walzer, Op.78 (Memory of Berlin).
Slovak Sinfonietta, Zilna, Ernst Marzendorfer (conductor). Marco Polo 8.225283. (54' 20"). 

We have now reached the seventh volume in the complete works from the father of the Strauss dynasty, a career that came from the period 1820 through to his untimely death in 1849. He was probably at his most persuasive in the short and effervescent galops, the Fire of Youth looking very much forward to the outgoing brilliance of his sons. Waltzes were of more varied quality, Gabrielen a quite uninspired piece compared with the mysterious opening and beautifully relaxed main melody for Erinnerung an Pesth. Compared with his sons there is sometimes a more earthy quality to his output, as we hear in the Original-Parade, yet Erinnerung an Berlin has a sophistication that compares with any later Viennese music. Once again I am pleased that his music is not boosted by the use of a large orchestra, as Johann was working with a quite small group of musicians at the time, so solo lines would have stood out from the music's fabric. Maybe Ernst Marzendorfer could have relaxed more in Iris, its gentle spinning-top central section a moment of pure delight. He has some good musicians at his disposal with a fine leading violin, and the recording presents the music in a nice natural way.

ENNA:The Little Match -Girl - Overture. WEYSE: Feast at Kenilworth - Gypsy Dance. SCHIERBECK: Prelude for Strings, Op.43. HARTMANN: The Raven - Overture. GLASS: Suite for Orchestra, Op. 67. HOFFDING: Symphonic Fantasy, Op. 37. Odense Symphony Orchestra, Ole Schmidt (conductor). Dacpo 8.226047. (53' 12"). 

Sadly I seem to have missed this when it was first issued way back in 1986, the six tracks of music inspired by the fairytales of Hans Christian Andersen being an unqualified joy. From August Enna's atmospheric Overture for The Little Match-Girl completed in 1897, to the playful piece by Finn Hoffding that owes much to Dukas's Sorcerer's Apprentice, this is music that you can sit back and enjoy. The most extensive piece coming from Louis Glass's Suite for Orchestra, a highly descriptive series of musical pictures for Andersen's The Elf-Hill, at times a little creepy as the story demands. Going back in time Weyse's jolly Gypsy Dance dates from 1836, his short-lived musical association with Andersen leading to the more extensive relationship between Hartmann and Anderson. That provided the opera The Raven with Beethoven and Weber the influences here, a big and bold overture setting a dramatic scenario. But of all the pieces I particularly enjoy Schierbeck's Prelude inspired by Andersen's poem In Denmark I was born, a sombre piece that captures the feeling of the poet's words. Throughout the playing is very good, and, though nothing special, the sound quality is good.