FUCHS: ORCHESTRAL WORKS; LIGHT YEAR, etc. Sinfonia of London, John Wilson/Chandos

The second volume in this Chandos series devoted to the orchestral music of the contemporary American composer Kenneth Fuchs (b.1956) proves to be as enjoyable as the first, and those attuned to Fuchs’ instantly accessible body of work will be entranced once more by the variety on offer here. This immaculately recorded SACD opens with a performance of ‘Light year’ (2022-2024), a six movement suite for orchestra after six paintings by Helen Frankenthaler. It was composed shortly after the completion of ‘Cloud Slant’ the main work on the first Volume of this series that I reviewed in July 2023. While audibly similar to its predecessor in style and use of the orchestra ‘Light Year’ is more ambitious in both range and expression, taking the form of an orchestral suite each movement of which is inspired by one of the series of canvases which Frankenthaler painted between 1977 and 1990, and coalesce under the umbrella of stargazing. As the composer has written in the score ‘the music is, like the painting, intended to depict the experience of looking up in wonder at the night time sky full of stars’. The titles of the six movements are ‘Star Gazing’, ‘Stella Polaris’, ‘Lunar Valley’, ‘Hot Ice’, ‘Constellation’ and ‘Light Year’ that may perhaps provide an indication of the composer’s febrile imagination and his characteristic iridescent orchestral textures on display here. As one might expect, John Wilson and his Sinfonia of London revel in the opportunities provided by the composer to project both the diversity and subtleties of Fuchs’ score to the receptive listener, aided of course by the superfine clarity of the Chandos recording.
Fuchs’ ingenious craftsmanship is further epitomized by the two contrasting concertos that follow. ‘Eventide’ is a concerto for Alto Saxophone and an orchestra of percussion, harp, celesta and strings. Originally written for the cor anglais in 2003 it was reworked for the alto saxophone twenty years later. As the title suggests, it is a predominantly pastoral work whose lyricism benefits from the marvellously fluent and sensitive account given here by the superb soloist Timothy McAllister.
Concertos for Bass Trombone are understandably thin on the ground, but this 2018 composition from Kenneth Fuchs will make a welcome addition to this instrument’s limited repertoire. It is an exuberant piece in a single movement, though in four clearly defined sections, that pits the bass trombone against the dazzling colours of Fuchs’ orchestral tapestry and is performed with considerable panache by the young British bass trombonist James Buckle.
For ‘Point of Tranquillity’, the final work on the disc, Fuchs’ inspiration stems from another painting. This time it is one from a contemporary of Helen Frankenthaler – Morris Louis (1912-1962). In this work Fuchs has aspired to match in musical terms the artist’s use of ‘vivid colour washes’ and ‘sense of structural freedom’. Though originally a work for wind band it was adapted for orchestra at the request of the conductor JoAnn Falletta, a long time champion of this composer’s music and it is this latter version performed on this disc.It is a haunting and melodic piece that flows with untroubled serenity, though interspersed by Fuchs’ characteristic splashes of colour and, as with all the works on this compelling disc, it receives a masterly and sympathetic reading from John Wilson and his accomplished players.
Highly recommended.

MAHLER: SYMPHONY NO. 3, Minnesota Orchestra, Osmo Vänskä, BIS SACD

With this release Osmo Vänskä and the Minnesota orchestra complete their epic project to record all ten Mahler symphonies for the BIS label. The journey began in June 2016 with Mahler’s 5th Symphony and continued with the 6th Symphony in November of the same year. A further five symphonies were recorded in subsequent years before the COVID-19 Pandemic threatened to derail the rest of the cycle. Fortunately, after three years, the recording sessions resumed with the 9th and 8th Symphonies – the latter being the final work performed and recorded by Vänskä before the end of his 19-year tenure as the orchestra’s Music Director. In his new role as Conductor Laureate he returned in November 2020 to complete the ‘Mahler Project’ with this resplendent account of the 3rd Symphony, certainly the composer’s longest and in many respects most challenging composition for a conductor.
With a playing time of a little over 103 minutes Vänskä’s performance is marginally more spacious than a number of the other dozen recordings of the work available in high resolution sound, but its expansiveness is only really evident in the vast opening movement (35’52) where the conductor’s pacing allows each of the movement’s diverse and often wild sections to make their maximum impact (one such example being the huge glissandos he elicits in the brass from 4’24) without losing his grip on the overall structure. The magnificent playing of the Minnesota Orchestra, a major factor and a constant pleasure in each and every release in this Mahler cycle, is showcased again here. From the stentorian opening fanfare, delivered with supreme confidence by the Minnesota horns, to the eloquent trombone solos from R. Douglas Wright and the tumultuous closing pages of Part I (marked ‘mit höchster Kraft’) Vänskä’s players give their all.
The ‘Tempo di Menuetto ‘that opens Part II (originally titled ‘What the Flowers in the Meadow Tell Me’) is played with appropriate lightness and grace; Vänskä’s uncontroversial pacing allowing full appreciation of the superfine musicianship on display, especially from the woodwind. The characterful and occasionally sinister ‘Comodo. Scherzando’ that follows features an off-stage Dotzauer Fürst Pless Rotor 18915 valved posthorn in B flat (pictured in the booklet) appropriately distanced in the recording and expertly played by Manny Laureano whose trumpet playing excels throughout the Symphony.
The Nietzsche setting that comprises the 4th movement is sung movingly by Jennifer Johnston while the clear and well projected voices of the Minnesota Boyschoir and the women of the Minnesota Chorale bring appealing simplicity to the childlike Wunderhorn poem that follows.
It comes as no surprise that Vänskä’s unforced rendition of the finale puts the ultimate seal of quality on this performance. The Minnesota strings play with exquisite refinement as the music travels from opening serenity to the tonal intensity of the overwhelming final bars. In short, Vänskä’s reading has a magisterial grandeur and impressive focus that places it among the finest versions of this much recorded symphony.
Even taking for granted the usual high standards we have come to expect from BIS, the recording team of Vänskä’s long-time collaborators – producer Robert Suff and recording engineer Marion Schwebel – have excelled themselves here. The soundstage on these two 5.0 multi-channel SACDs is both wide and deep with an expertly judged balance between low level percussion detail and thunderous climaxes within the generous ambience of Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis.
This outstanding recording makes a fitting conclusion to Vänskä’s individual and sometimes controversial Mahler cycle