Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 2 (CD review)

Also, Dances from Aleko; Scherzo in D minor. Paavo Jarvi, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.  Telarc CD-80670.

Paavo Jarvi’s Telarc releases have been somewhat hit-and-miss with me, but this one I enjoyed quite a lot. Was there ever a more romantic and more melancholy piece of music than Rachmaninoff’s Second Symphony? It’s no wonder Tchaikovsky’s took a liking to the younger composer’s music early on; Rachmaninoff (or Rachmaninov) was a natural successor to Tchaikovsky’s brand of Romanticism, carrying it well into the twentieth century. Maestro Jarvi does well by the score.

Jarvi takes the big, lengthy opening movement at a brisker pace than I’m used to with my favored Andre Previn (EMI) recording, but Jarvi maintains the slightly despondent opening mood nicely until the more starry-eyed subject kicks in. The second movement Scherzo is appropriately extrovert, filled with the kinds of lush melodies for which Rachmaninoff is known.

Then it’s on to the famous Adagio and its celebrated love theme, and the Finale, which always seems to me from some other symphony altogether. No, Jarvi doesn’t quite express the same degree of passion or the same sense of longing that Previn conveys, but it’s close. Moreover, I liked Jarvi’s account somewhat better than I liked Jesus Lopez-Cobos’s rendition with this same Cincinnati Orchestra on Telarc just a few years earlier. In addition, it’s nice to have the two dances from Aleko as well as the little Scherzo in D minor along for the ride.

Sonically, there is nothing to complain about, either. The Telarc recording is exemplary in almost every way, but most especially in its tonal balance, imaging, and stereo spread. By comparison, the 1973 Previn disc still sounds wonderful, but this 2006 Jarvi disc almost equals it for fullness, breadth, and depth. In other words, Jarvi joins a select company of Rachmaninoff conductors worthy of first-choice consideration. Of course, the Previn is cheaper, but you knew that.

Incidentally, for those people with SACD playback capability, the folks at Telarc also make their disc available in an SACD hybrid multichannel format.

JJP