Symphony No. 2

After a very good CD with the first Symphony of Brahms , with others works with chorus and orchestra ( one of Mendelssohn) I was really surprised with a disc that is still better.I like very much the Integral of Schumann that Gardiner recorded for Deutsche Grammophon, but this Brahms project , specially this second CD is really outstanding. The intelligence of the program is amazing : the CD begins with works for male chorus and Orchestra. For the first time I heard these Brahms arrangements of Lieder by Schubert. Special. Natalie Stutzmann sings very well,and the chorus sounds fantastic. The rare "Song of the spirits over the waters" is , maybe, the high point of this CD. Schubert was here really genial, with one original instrumentation ( only slow strings in the orchestra).So we have Brahms ( Rhapsody) , Schubert, Schubert via Brahms and finally the Second Symphony of Brahms.
The Symphony, principal work of the CD , has here one fantastic reading. Brahms isn't a Mahler of second hand. Brahms is a Brahms of first rate.Try to make this work a Symphony contemporary of Sibelius is a failure. Gardiner , without the mannerisms of Harnoncourt and Norrington ,chose very appropriate "andamentos", and the orchestra sounds gloriously. Only the Symphonies of Brahms recorded by Kertesz are rival of this version.The transparency prevails all the time. And the expression never lacks in these performances. One last (good) thing: the sound of this record is fantastic.

There are, of course, scores of available recordings of this congenial symphony. You will have your favorites, as I do. But the truth is that most sound pretty much the same. But this one is truly different. Gardiner and his orchestra here manage to remove the warmth and fuzziness from Brahms, and the first hearing of this recording, for those of us who love this symphony, can be a shock. Instead of a warm bath, be prepared for a leap into a some chilly waters. It sounds a bit like a chamber orchestra version, and its intriguing to ponder the possibility that this is indeed how the composer "meant" this music to be heard. The playing here is immaculate, and the recording pristine. It is not often that one can listen to a familiar work and be obliged to re-evaluate it, as if hearing it as for the first time. Highly recommended.

In his ongoing Brahms cycle, Gardiner wins points for imaginative programming, his aim being to place Brahms in the context of music that influenced him. The cycle also combines vocal and orchestral works, the choral ones being the rarities. Here the main connecitons are all vocal: Brahms's Alto Rhapsody with mal chorus, based on a poem by Goethe, is linked to Schubert's Gesang der Geister, a part song for male chorus also based on a poem by Goethe. Ti fill out the choral part we get two Schubert songs that Brahms arranged for male chorus.

Period fans will be more fascinated by these works than I was. If Gardiner believes that 'authentic' style in Brahms is closer to Baroque practice than Romantic, so be it. But it's strange to hear those zingy, vibratoless strings in quintessentially Romantic music. The men of the Monteverdi Choir perform vigorously and with impeccable intonation. In the Alto Rhapsody it's hard to forget the great singers of the past, especially Kathleen Ferrier, Janet Baker, and Christa Ludwig. It must be said that Nathalie Stutzman is a true contralto, her tone almost masculine in timbre, and she's an accomplished lieder singer. She sings very dramatically, and Gardiner provides a dramatic, moderately brisk (12 min.) reading. Since period style is applied to both the orchestra and voice, I doubt I will return soon to this performance, however. To be fair, Stutzman does give us some expressive vibrato but in a limited way I found unsatisfying.

The main orchestral event is the Brahms Sym. #2, which has had any number of great performances but few in period style (and none of those could be considered great). Gardiner can't compete with Karajan, Walter, and Bernstein as an interpreter, but his ideas about style will intrigue period buggs, and to his credit, despite the zingy strings that belong in Handel and Bach, the spirit of this performance is Brahmsian in its pastorl warmth and geniality. The key word is lightness, and tempos are all on the fast side. My resistance is raised, though, when somebody's first idea about Brahms is to remove his fervor, intensity, and emotional depth. Others may feel very differently.

Here's the complete program:
Alto Rhapsody, Op. 53
w. Nathalie Stutzmann (contralto)

Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 73

Schubert:
Gesang der Geister über den Wassern, D714

Gruppe aus dem Tartarus second version D583 (Schiller)
(arr. Brahms 1871)

An Schwager Kronos, D369
(arr. Brahms 1871)

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 3 reviews  4.3 out of 5 stars