A2 HINDEMITH Orchestral Works, Volume 1. • Werner Andreas Albert
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A2 HINDEMITH Orchestral Works, Volume 1. • Werner Andreas Albert, conductor; Queensland Symphony Orchestra Brisbane. • cpo 999 004 [DDD]; 72:15. Produced by Stephen Snelleman. Amor und Psyche. Philharmonisches Konzert. Symphonic Metamorphoses on Themes by Carl Maria von Weber. HINDEMITH Orchestral Works, Volume 2. • Werner Andreas Albert, conductor; Queensland Symphony Orchestra Brisbane. • cpo 999 005 [DDD]; 62:13. Produced by Stephen Snelleman. Lustige Sinfonietta, op. 4. Rag Time. Symphonic Dances. HINDEMITH Orchestral Works, Volume 3. • Werner Andreas Albert, conductor; Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. • cpo 999 006 [DDD]; 63:55. Produced by Stephen Snelleman. Nusch-Nuschi Dances, op. 20. Concert Music for Strings and Bass, op. 50. Symphony (“The Harmony of the World“). HINDEMITH The Four Temperaments. Concerto for Piano and Orchestra. • Siegfried Mauser, piano; Werner Andreas Albert, conductor; Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra. • cpo 999 078 [DDD]; 62:24. Produced by Hans Bernhard Bätzing. (Distributed by Koch International.) The complete orchestral music of Paul Hindemith is an exciting and ambitious project: even the composer did not get to record it all. These first discs bring us three pieces long-absent from the catalog. One may not expect the two Australian orchestras to match the grandeur of the Berlin Philharmonic or the Philharmonia Orchestra in Hindemith's 1950s recordings, but surprises turn up on both continents. Volume one starts with Cupid and Psyche (as it is usually known), overture to an unwritten ballet. Competition comes from the finest of Hindemith's Berlin Philharmonic records, heard on Decca DL 9969; the monaural Deutsche Grammophon recording brilliantly captured the orchestra playing at its best, in an alert and sparkling performance. The Queenslanders cannot match the power and character of the Berlin Strings, and the important solo horn is not as consistently warm and clean. Noblissima Visone follows; the playing is first-rate, in a spirited performance which is a nice alternative to the highly pointed playing of the Atlanta Symphony for a great Telarc recording of a very slow performance. Hindemith's own fine recording with the Philharmonia Orchestra on an EMI disc is also quite slow. With the 1932 Philharmonic Concerto, Albert and his Australians come into their own. The composer's 1950 Telefunken recording with the Berlin Philharmonic caught everybody on an off day, and the Queensland Symphony players outdo themselves. This concerto for orchestra is a theme and variations; the third variation is for the brass section, with virtuosic solos for trombone, trumpet, and horn. All three players surpass their Berlin counterparts. As the cpo recording is vastly superior to the mediocre Telefunken, this becomes the preferred version of the work. The Symphonic Metamorphoses is a notoriously difficult piece to perform, beyond all but the best orchestras. The Queenslanders are amazingly successful with it; Albert keeps rhythms taut at conventional tempos, and the orchestral excellence implies many arduous rehearsals. But it still sounds difficult; only two recordings come to mind which give the (delightful) impression of tossing it off with ease: Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic on a Columbia LP, and Yoel Levi on the Telarc disc mentioned above. Note that a new Bernstein recording, with the Israel Philharmonic, is in preparation and may be available by the time you read this. The Comic Sinfonietta and Rag Time both appeared on a Wergo disc, with Gerd Albrecht leading the Berlin Radio Symphony. Both orchestras play well, and the interpretations are virtually interchangeable; the Wergo recording of the Sinfonietta is a bit smoother and more solid in the bass. But the major difference is that the Wergo disc includes dead-serious readings (in German) of six poems which inspired the piece, and they are hysterically funny; they are tracked separately, so one can ignore them once their initial frisson wears off. In Rag Time, the Wergo recording, from a different session, is thin and dry. But the cpo disc offers an irresistible bonus: the only modern recording of a major Hindemith work, the 1937 Symphonic Dances. The composer recorded it with the Berlin Philharmonic in the mid-50s, almost simultaneously with its only other previous recording, by Ferenc Fricsay and the RIAS Symphony Orchestra. The Fricsay was livelier than the Hindemith, but both were middling monaural recordings; the four dances suffer from complex, muddy orchestrations, so the modern digital stereo clarifies them and elevates the cpo disc to preferred status. The Australian performances are equal to Hindemith's own, but are not as frisky as the Fricsay. The third disc of orchestral music sees a change to the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. The Nusch-Nuschi Dances are not played with the sparkle and color of the performances in Wergo's recording of the complete opera {Fanfare 12:4). The Concert Music for Brass and Strings reveals the fine sonorities of both sections, but tempos drag. Comparison with a Deutsche Grammophon 20th Century Classics disc shows the 1972 Boston Symphony to be more alert and exciting, superior in every way and at a faster tempo. The forthcoming Bernstein disc will also include this piece. To review two recordings of “The Harmony of the World“ Symphony in one issue is beyond even a Hindemith-lover's imagination; yet here they are. The Brisbane orchestra on the first two discs competed successfully with some fine European orchestras, and the Melbourne group does so here; they have a fuller, warmer string section, aided by a mellower recording. I praised the Dresden version with controlled enthusiasm; this performance has a zesty exuberance which lifts our spirits again and again. All sections of the Melbourne Symphony contribute to the glory, as does the gorgeous recording. The first two movements go at tempos nearly identical to those in Dresden. The enormous “Harmony of the Spheres“ finale is much broader in Melbourne, where the more- reverberant recording does obscure some detail; closely miked, hard-struck percussion make a sensational effect in the final measures of the Dresden performance. The fourth disc begins a different series, the Works for Piano and Orchestra. This is another strong entry in the Hindemith discography. In The Four Temperaments, pianist Siegfried Mauser and conductor Albert hew closely to the classic performance: Leon Fleisher with the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra under Szymon Goldberg, on an old Epic LP. Fleisher's elegance and careful articulation of every note are always fascinating, but Mauser makes the music flow more freely, and the fuller, smoother digital recording does wonders for the accompanying strings. In Fanfare 13:6, Paul Snook reviewed the first-ever recording of the 1945 piano concerto, giving a performance history and a fine description of the work. The larger body of strings in the Frankfurt orchestra brings out more of Hindemith's harmonic textures, and the orchestral playing is more secure in every section, but leaner textures and faster tempos contribute their own excitement in Louisville. Both pianists are on top of the score: Mauser makes it heavy and solid; Luvisi is freer and more mercurial. Viewed either as pure Hindemith or as a very-late- Romantic piano concerto with a few neo-Baroque touches, this German disc is clearly the preferred version; Luvisi is equal to Mauser as a pianist, but the differences in orchestral work swing the balance. As these are the concerto's only recordings, this cpo disc becomes required Hindemith. Both series will conclude with a similar issue, scheduled for release at the end of 1991: three more orchestral discs and one more with piano. I have never been to Australia, and I don't think I have heard these orchestras on recordings before. I must apologize to all Aussies for my New York-centered bias: these discs have shown me that when we think of the finest orchestras worldwide, we must not forget these distant candidates. Volumes five and six will add still another, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra; I can't wait to hear them. Werner Andreas Albert showed us in the previous issue that he is a fine conductor with a taste for arcane repertoire; his Pfitzner symphonies were excellent, but the competition is much stronger with Hindemith. These are all fine readings, consistently challenging the great Hindemith recordings of the past, which include names like Furtwängler and Bernstein, as well as the composer's own sometimes outstanding productions. Each of these four discs contains at least one performance which makes it essential to any Hindemith collection. Taken as a whole, they should do much to fuel the current Hindemith revival; the composer has never been so well represented on recordings. James H. North This article originally appeared in Issue 15:1 (Sept/Oct 1991) of Fanfare Magazine. HINDEMITH Kammermusiken. • Riccardo Chailly, conductor; Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra 1-3-; Konstanty Kulka, violin 5; Kim Kashkashian, viola 6; Norbert Blume, viola d'amore 7; Lynn Harrell, cello 4; Ronald Bräutigam, piano 3; Leo van Doeselaar, organ 8; Paul Verhey, flute 2; Jan Spronk, oboe 2; Piet Honingh, clarinet 2; Julia Studebaker, horn 2; Brian Pollard, bassoon 2. • LONDON 433 816-2 [DDD]; two discs: 65:24, 72:44. Produced by Andrew Cornali. Kammermusik No. 1 for Twelve Solo Instruments, op. 24, no. V. Kleine Kammermusik for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Hom, and Bassoon, op. 24, no. 2Z. Kammermusik No. 2 for Obbligato Piano and Twelve Solo Instruments, op. 36, no. 13. Kammermusik No. 3 for Obbligato Cello and Ten Solo Instruments, op. 36, no. 2*. Kammermusik No. 4 for Violin and Large Chamber Orchestra, op. 36, no. 35. Kammermusik No. S for Viola and Large Chamber Orchestra, op. 36, no. 4e. Kammermusik No. 6 for Viola d'amore and Chamber Orchestra, op. 46, no. 17; Kammermusik No. 7 for Organ and Chamber Orchestra, op. 46, no.