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Symphony No.1 in C minor, Op. 68 Symphony No.2 in D, Op. 73 Symphony No.3 in F, Op.90 Symphony No.4 in E minor, Op.98 Variations on a Theme by Haydn, op.56a Tragic Overture, op.81 British National Anthem |
Philharmonia Orchestra
conducted by Arturo Toscanini
(recorded live at Royal Festival Hall, London 1952)
TESTAMENT SBT 3167
3 discs [58:06 + 55:28 + 75:58] full-price
by Marc Bridle
These recordings obtained legendary status quite soon after the
concerts themselves in 1952, but this is the first official release of
the performances on CD (in fact, in any legitimate format) and stem
from Walter Legge's own EMI tapes of the sessions. It must be said
from the outset that these transfers are markedly superior to anything
that has appeared beforehand - certainly much better than the
dreadfully transferred World Record LPs.
The performances have, of course, appeared on CD before - on two
releases from Hunt/Arkadia - both versions of which have now been
deleted from the catalogue. In those transfers, the sound was often
dry and brittle, a contrast to the warmth of the present transfers -
even given the difficult acoustics of the Royal Festival Hall.
The performances of the symphonies are compelling - and certainly
much warmer and more lyrical than his recorded cycle with the NBC
Symphony Orchestra. As interpretations, they rather contradict the
impression that all Toscanini performances were somehow symmetrically
constructed, with tempos often staggeringly similar from performance
to performance. With the exceptions of the First and Fourth
Symphonies, these Philharmonia accounts are often less expansive than
the NBC cycle he recorded in late 1951/early 1952. The notable
achievement in this cycle is the Third Symphony which here receives
the most assured of all Toscanini's interpretations of this symphony -
a performance of considerable sunniness with the most beautiful of
cantabile ever-present. This contrasts with the NBC recording which is
slow, lacks rhythmic tension and seems drawn downwards by an
interminably long beat.
Taken at almost quaver 100, the development of the opening timpani
seems too fast - and he accelerates the timpani, ruining the grand
line that Brahms intended (and for which you have to turn to
Furtwängler or Celibidache to hear correctly played). This aside,
however, the movement develops inexorably, with the contrapuntalism of
Brahm's construction not only implied, but grandly developed.
Dynamics, whilst not as scrupulously observed as Celibidache (the
most inspired interpreter of this symphony) are actually more clearly
heard in this Philharmonia account than in his NBC recording of the
work. The opening drum rolls, even if tempi are wayward, do clearly
distinguish between the opening f and the concluding ff,
and in the first movement's main theme cellos, woodwind and horns play
perfectly before the appearance of the crescendo.
In fact, the care given to the woodwind is an example of this
performance's individualism, and this is no more evident than in the
finale with its horn and flute melodies, here played gorgeously by
Dennis Brain and Gareth Morris. The playing here is certainly more
distinctive than on the NBC recording, and recalls another
Philharmonia recording of the First Symphony with Guido Cantelli (a
performance remarkably similar to this one). The trombone's missed
entry in the finale (and then his fluffed notes) do not noticeably
ruin what is one of the very best (and most exciting) recordings of
the work available.
The playing is at once lyrical as it is idyllic, with the tunes
given a statuesque presence, the penumbral shading of Brahms' scoring
spot-lit neatly against the borders of lighter melody. The second
subject of the first movement is as song-like as one could ask for,
the coda intense and evocative. If the middle movements are gracious,
with felicitous woodwind playing, the finale, marked Allegro con
spirito, is as grandiose and driven as any. The playing is
wonderfully dynamic, the development to the coda remorselessly laid
out before us but not overdriven in any way.
When the triumphal coda appears, one of the most astonishing things
Brahms wrote (and as similarly transparent as the closing pages of
Bruckner's Fifth Symphony) the exuberance is infectious. The great
brass sonorities are here captured magnificently, strings arching ever
higher upwards, horns and trombones radiant to the close. The cheers
at the end say it all!
As I have already suggested, this performance of the Third
Symphony is the finest Toscanini has left us. As if to illuminate
the point further, Manoug Parikian, the leader of the Philharmonia
Orchestra for these Toscanini concerts, later said that for him the
most sublime and unforgettable moment of the series was the third
movement of the Third Symphony. The opening cello theme had, according
to Parikian, an unusual tenderness to it that stirred the depths of
human feeling. It was, he added, "...one of my most profoundly moving
experiences, and a lasting reminder of Toscanini's undoubted genius".
Great recordings of this work are thin on the ground, possibly
because it is Brahms' most misunderstood symphony. It combines passion
and resignation in equal measure and few conductors have been able to
unite those two contrasting facets into a workable performance. This
is the symphony where Toscanini's tempos are most diverse - the first
movement of this Philharmonia account is almost 1½ minutes
faster than on his NBC recording.
Because this symphony, the most unique of all Brahms' symphonies in
that it ends all of its movements piano or pianissimo,
is so emotionally complex, it is surprising that Toscanini - ever the
objectivist - is actually able to encourage the Philharmonia to play
with such astonishing weight and passion.
The first movement positively surges, the finale opens in an
exhilarating fashion, with strings astoundingly fleet. In between, the
contrasts between the melancholic phrasing and wild outbursts are laid
bare. Pianissimos are here given suppleness, and the most
fearsome fortes seem to come from the core of the earth, so
shattering are they. No wonder this performance is one of the most
memorable things Toscanini did in his last years.
The conception is laid out in the grandest of terms, the opening
bars given astonishing presence. The development is built up
inexorably, and the coda to the first movement, still noble and
statuesque, generates enormous energy. Toscanini, crucially, does not
slow before the timpani enter near the penultimate bar, and thus the
climactic ending actually gathers momentum. There is no mannerism
here, just the thrill of hearing the closing bars as they should be
played.
The second and third movements appear in this performance more than
just intervals before the extraordinary unwrapping of the great
passacaglia of the final movement. True, we hear the
intervention of fireworks from the roof of the Festival Hall, but
Toscanini remains unfazed and the listener cannot fail to be unaware
of the very conscious build up of the layers of this extraordinary
movement. The music arches forward nobly and naturally, the dynamics
amplified by some of the finest wind playing on any recording of the
work. Horns are given astonishing girth, strings play with the most
sensitive of balance. Toscanini does hold back in the final moments of
the movement's coda, but this allows the inevitability of the
triumphant finale to reach its apogee. The moment is sublime.
These are all performances that pay more than repeated listening.
Coupled to the symphonies are performances of the Tragic
Overture and the Variations on a Theme by Haydn, both fine
examples of Toscanini's craftsmanship in interpreting the genius that
is Brahms. The playing on these discs is superb throughout, as one
would expect of the Philharmonia Orchestra of the time.
The trombonist may have had his problems in the first symphony, but
strings play with passion and the woodwind are really quite without
rival. The brass are majestic. What probably would persuade me to
recommend these recordings over Toscanini's NBC SO one is the sheer
personality of the orchestral playing. You simply do not hear horn
players of the stature of Dennis Brain today, or the saintly playing
of Gareth Morris (flute), Sidney Sutcliffe (oboe), Frederick Thurston
(clarinet) or Cecil James (bassoon) on woodwind. To say the playing is
heavenly is not an understatement. The Testament transfers, for the
first time, really allow the greatness of this orchestra of
individuals to emerge in the clearest of terms.
Alan Sander's notes give much of the history behind these
recordings - anecdotes that amuse as much as they amaze. However,
neither he, nor reviewers, have mentioned the BBC talk which Sir
Adrian Boult gave about these concerts during the interval of the
second concert.
I assume the reason the talk has not been reproduced on these discs
is because it is lost from the archives; if it is not, it is an error
that should be addressed. However, as an example of one illuminating
conductor talking about another it is probably worth reproducing here:
Those of us who were lucky enough to be present in the Festival
Hall for Monday's concert will, I'm sure, never forget it. As
Toscanini came onto the platform the entire audience rose to its feet
in homage to the great conductor - a homage, needless to say, without
a trace of hysteria which came from our hearts and our minds.
After each work, as the applause broke out, Toscanini at once had
the Philharmonia Orchestra on its feet and so it was each time he came
back. It was indeed only because the orchestra at the end resolutely
refused to rise, that we were able, with them, to express our deep
appreciation to the maestro himself.
Tonight we have already heard wonderful performances of the Brahms'
Variations on a Chorale of St Anthony and the Third Symphony.
And, as last Monday, we heard the music bathed in a brilliant light
with every detail crystal clear and eloquent in a way we hadn't heard
before.
Some people have felt it a pity that the programmes are restricted
to Brahms, and some of us might perhaps have preferred the splendid
series of mixed programmes that were planned for the opening of the
Festival Hall when the Maestro's illness prevented us the pleasure of
welcoming him.
But I am sure this is part of a definite plan. When Toscanini came
to the BBC in 1939, he said he wished to put, as it were, a seal on
his previous visits with a complete cycle of Beethoven Symphonies with
the Great Mass. Now he goes on to Brahms, a composer for whom he has
shown a special sympathy, unusual among his countrymen, for whom he
has done much.
When he was still a young man, I remember hearing of his great
powers from Alberto Randiger, an Italian who was then one of the
leading teachers of singing in London. He said, "He is great, even in
the Brahms symphonies". I've told elsewhere how he interrupted me when
I called him great: "No, no, no not that at all, just an honest
musician." Well, we have heard how honest and how great besides.
And now we are to hear the finest of Brahms' symphonies - the
Fourth. I am looking forward with the keenest anticipation to
Toscanini's interpretation of this great work; above all to the slow
movement and the passcaglia - the final movement. Au
revoir, dear Maestro, we want to see and hear you again soon." One of the finest sets yet to appear from the archives of EMI and
Testament.
The First Symphony is a powerful performance, although as in
all Toscanini's interpretations of this work he fails to conduct the
opening bars of the work as they should be. These opening bars, with
its unrelenting timpani strokes, are amongst the most grand and
profoundly moving of all passages in the symphonic canon, yet
Toscanini, like virtually most conductors, seems confused by Brahms'
marking of sostenuto.
Listening to the opening of the Second Symphony, with its
low strings and horn and woodwind exchanges, I was amazed at how much
presence exists in this Testament transfer. Toscanini was reputedly
somewhat worried that string tone was somewhat undernourished, yet
hearing the opening bars and then the entry of the string's first
theme, one is aware of an extraordinary depth of tone. Tempi in this
symphony are all swifter than in Toscanini's studio recording of the
work, yet this is never at the expense of the string's beautifully
phrased playing.
Almost as memorable, in fact, as the astonishing Fourth
Symphony. This was the symphony which Toscanini most admired by
Brahms - and one can see why. It is a work of greatness, moving
between tragedy and wild exclamation, often within the same movement.
Just as it is the culmination of Brahms' symphonic output, so it is
the epoch-making performance on this cycle. This is the greatest
single performance in Toscanini's NBC cycle and this Philharmonia
account is as inspired as that, perhaps the single most impressive
'live' Fourth ever recorded (and notably different from an equally
great Fourth from Celibidache with the Munich Philharmonic).
"I expect there are few of you listening to me now who missed the
first Toscanini broadcast on Monday. You will have been thrilled by
the intense power of performances, by the way they pressed forward
relentlessly to their climax and, above all, by the way they sang. I
remember his calling out at a rehearsal... 'Sing, sing, always sing,
even when you are counting your rests.'
The Latin countries were slower than Austria, Germany or England in
their reception of Brahms' works as they came out. And Toscanini, both
in Italy and elsewhere, did much to further them.
Marc Bridle will be signing copies of his new CD,
Nirvana's greatest hits transcribed for harp and lute, at Tower
Records in Singapore next month.
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683: 5.3.2000 ©Marc Bridle
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CONCERTOS
Piano Concerto No.1 An Inktroduction with
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Violin and Double Concertos With Kremer and Hagen, the Royal Concertgebouw/Harnoncourt (Teldec)
Violin Concerto featuring Nathan Milstein.
Violin Concerto with Anne-Sophie Mutter.
Violin Concerto. Violin Sonata No.3 and now Vengerov.
THE SYMPHONIES
The Four Symphonies Toscanini conducting.
Symphony No.1 & 2. Serenade No.2. Haydn Variations. A Double Decca collection.
Symphony No.4 The legendary Kleiber recording.
Symphony No.1. Ein deutsches Requiem. with master conductor Sergiu Celibidache.
CHORAL MUSIC
Ein deutsches Requiem. The classic
Klemperer performance.
"Songs Ring out to the Heavens" Choral Works with the Kansas City Chorale.
CHAMBER MUSIC
Cello Sonatas Op.38 and 99. feautring
Mtislav Rostropovich and Rudolf Serkin.
15 Hungarian Dances (trans. Cziffra), etc. with Cziffra.
"The Keys to Brahms's Music" An Inktroduction to Brahms's Pianos