RACHMANINOFF: SYMPHONY NO. 3, VOCALISE, THE ISLE OF THE DEAD, Sinfonia of London, John Wilson/CHANDOS This is certainly an auspicious start start to the projected cycle of the Rachmaninoff Symphonies from John Wilson and the Sinfonia of London. Wilson and his hand-picked players have already shown their mettle in works with an opulent romantic flavour and there is little doubt that this programme fits them like a glove.Their account of Symphony No.3 is preceded by a compelling account of the composer’s Symphonic Poem ‘The Isle of the Dead, a work inspired by the eponymous painting by Arnold Böcklin that Rachmaninoff saw in a black-and-white reproduction while in Paris in 1907.Wilson and his players perfectly capture the mood of this sombre masterpiece from the start at a measured tempo that evokes the lapping of the waves and the pulling of oars through the water.Wilson gradually builds the momentum with inexorable power to a thrilling climax while the poignant section that follows expands gloriously thanks not only due to the superfine orchestral playing but also the sumptuous quality of the Chandos recording. The ever popular ‘Vocalise’ provides an attractive interlude between the two main works on this SACD. ‘Vocalise’ was originally the last of a set of fourteen songs on which Rachmaninoff began work in 1910 and which he completed in 1912. In 1915, he made the orchestral setting heard here. Though marked ‘Lentamente’ in the score the music can easily become saccharine in some hands, so Wilson’s more animated and flowing cantabile performance (5.22) is a surprising, though refreshing, change from the norm. The composer’s final symphony is an elusive work that has received many and various interpretations since its premier given by Leopold Stokowski and the Philadelphia Orchestra in 1936. Rachmaninoff recorded it with the same orchestra in 1939 – a valuable document in spite of a lack of the 1st movement exposition repeat and small cut elsewhere. On CD this symphony is well represented by celebrated performances from among others, Eugene Ormandy and Vladimir Ashkanazy (who has recorded it no less than three times with three different orchestras.) The 3rd Symphony, even more than the composer’s earlier two, is characterised by a profusion of sweeping melodies often darkened by moods of melancholy, nostalgia, brooding and impassioned defiance. Wilson’s glorious account of this score is fully attuned to the frequent changes of mood and pace – most notable in the second movement that combines a slow movement with a scherzo. His use of rubato throughout is sensitive but never excessively applied and he brings terrific rhythmic verve and joyous virtuosity to the more animated passages. It need hardly be said that the playing of all sections of the Sinfonia of London is beyond reproach and they are meticulous in observing the many dynamic and tempo changes throughout this work. On SACD until now there has been no version I have heard that combines both a top flight performance with the demonstration quality sound that the music deserves. I have no hesitation in stating that, at a stroke, Wilson’s masterly and sympathetic reading combined with the luxuriant Chandos 5.0 multi-channel recording makes this a clear first choice among modern recordings.
POULENC, PROKOFIEV, BRITTEN: SINFONIETTAS, Lahti Symphony Orchestra, Dima Slobodeniouk/ BIS The imaginative programme on this SACD is a marvellous follow up to Dima Slobodeniouk and the Kalevala. The three Sinfoniettas presented here, each from familiar though disparate 20th century composers, are rarely to be found on concert hall programmes, something that makes this excellent BIS release all the more desirable. Poulenc’s Sinfonietta of 1947 was written in response to a commission from the BBC to celebrate the first anniversary of the Third Programme (the precursor to today’s Radio 3). Its source was a failed string quartet which the composer had allegedly thrown into a sewer at the place pereire in Paris! He did, however, recall some of it for use in the Sinfonietta. The result is an irresistibly engaging piece, full of the composer’s wit, insouciant charm and captivating melodies. Dima Slobodeniouk and the Lahti Symphony Orchestra’s crisp and lively account does full justice to what is unaccountably one of the composer’s least performed works. To quote from Philip Borg-Wheeler’s informative liner notes, Poulenc once protested “Don’t analyse my music – love it!”. This is definitely no problem when the performance is as impeccable and beautifully recorded as here. Prokofiev’s five-movement Sinfonietta is a genial, light-hearted and melodic piece beautifully orchestrated, and though written when he was still a student at the St Petersburg Conservatory it is expertly orchestrated and already shows what was to be the composer’s later mastery of the genre. Listening to this alert and sparkling performance from Slobodeniouk and his Lahti players, it is easy to sympathise with Prokofiev’s disappointment that this Sinfonietta did not engender the same public acclaim and popularity as his ‘Classical’ Symphony. Britten was also a student (at the Royal College of Music) when he composed his concise three- movement Sinfonietta, Op. 1 in 1932 here making its first appearance on SACD. Though modelled on (but sounding nothing like) Schoenberg’s 1906 Chamber Symphony No.1 it was originally scored for ten instruments, a wind quintet and string quintet, but it is the composer’s 1936 revised version for small orchestra that is recorded here. The music has a somewhat acerbic quality that provides a bracing contrast with the previous two Sinfoniettas on this disc and Slobodeniouk’s account of the score is appropriately trenchant.
HOLLYWOOD SOUNDSTAGE, Sinfonia of London, John Wilson/Chandos The phenomenal success of the burgeoning number of releases from John Wilson and the Sinfonia of London continues unabated with this spectacular and sumptuously recorded SACD featuring some of the finest music written for the silver screen. Wilson re-established the Sinfonia of London, a body comprising some of the finest musicians from the UK and Europe, in 2018 and their recordings for Chandos in hi-rez sound have garnered considerable praise in the musical press. The first Sinfonia of London’s release was of Korngold’s rarely performed Symphony in F Sharp so it is fitting that ‘Hollywood Soundstage ‘ begins with the overture from one of the finest of the composer’s film scores ‘The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex’ (1939). Nothing on this disc better illustrates the outstanding quality of the orchestral playing – a combination of discipline, spontaneity and technical security. Needless to say the opulent sound quality achieved by the Chandos recording team in what now seems to be their acoustically favourite venue – the Church of S. Augustine in Kilburn, London – is all one could wish for. Korngold’s fellow emigree composers, Max Steiner and Franz Waxman, are represented respectively by Suites from ‘Now, Voyager’ (1942) and ‘Rebecca’ (1940). The latter is listed as a premiere recording as Wilson has returned to the original orchestration of the film rather than use the one featured on the Charles Gerhardt Classic Film Scores disc. A particularly entertaining item is Herbert Stothart’s scintillating Suite from ‘The Wizard of Oz’ (1939) that makes use of the less familiar music in the film. Interestingly Stothart would go on to win the Academy Award for his work on the soundtrack, beating Max Steiner, who was nominated for his epic score to ‘Gone with the Wind’ in the same year. Wilson and his players really go to town in this fast paced pot-pourri with playing that is both seductively sensuous and crisply ebullient. The shorter items on the disc from notable scores by David Raksin, Frederick Loewe, Johnny Mandel and Alfred Newman are equally enjoyable and feature idiomatic solos from two of the Sinfonia’s principals (Andy Wood – trombone in the Theme from ‘Laura’ and Michael Lovatt – trumpet in the Main Title from ‘The Sandpiper’).The splendidly informative liner note from David Benedict definitely add to the enjoyment of this SACD. This is release that is certain to be relished by both aficionados of Hollywood film scores and admirers of John Wilson and his Sinfonia of London’s exceptional musicianship.