Also, Poulenc: Concerto for Organ, Strings and Timpani;
Wider: Symphony for Organ No. 5. Christopher Jacobson, organ; Kazuki Yamada,
Orchestre de la Suisse Romande. Pentatone PTC 5186 638.
By John J. Puccio
If you went to the catalogue of classical recordings, I’m
sure you’d find that the “Organ” Symphony of Saint-Saens ranks right up there
in popularity with the symphonies of Beethoven, Brahms, and Tchaikovsky. It’s
that well liked. So it’s inevitable that we get new recordings of it every
year. This new one under review is an international affair: the music is, of
course, French. The conductor, Kazuki Yamada, is Japanese. The organist,
Christopher Jacobson, is American. And the ensemble, the Orchestre de la Suisse
Romande, is the Swiss orchestra co-founded by Ernest Ansermet in 1918. Whether
this array of global talent does any better a job of interpreting the music
must be left to the individual listener, naturally, but I can tell you after
having sat through most of the recordings currently available, the new one does
a pretty good job with it.
The French composer, organist, pianist, and conductor Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1921) wrote his Symphony No. 3 in C-minor, “Organ,” Op. 78, in 1886. It is probably the most-popular thing he ever wrote and, as I say, remains one of the most popular pieces of classical music of any kind.
Saint-Saëns called the work “a symphony with organ,” and
he remarked, "I gave everything to it I was able to give. What I have here
accomplished, I will never achieve again." Apparently he knew what he was
talking about because even though he lived on for thirty-five more years, he
never wrote another symphony, organ or otherwise.
The composer divided the work into two major parts, with two divisions in each part. It’s an odd arrangement, but it essentially works out to a conventional four-movement symphony. What’s more, although most people today know the work as the “Organ Symphony,” Saint-Saens himself labeled it Symphonie No. 3 "avec orgue" (with organ). In fact, the organ only plays a part in two of the four movements, the second and the last. But it makes enough of an impression for folks to remember it.
The first movement has always seemed to me the least distinguished, the least characterful, but Maestro Yamada and the orchestra do the best they can. They establish a sweet, leisurely tempo in this section, which, if anything, leads effectively into the second, slow movement.
The second movement Adagio always reminds me of
soft, warm waves flowing over and around one’s body on a tropical beach
somewhere. Here’s where the organ (Christopher jacobson, organist) makes its
first entry, coming in with what should be huge, gentle, undulating washes of
sound. Unfortunately, I didn’t really hear or feel those waves from the organ,
which stays remarkably aloof from the proceedings. While it’s not unpleasant,
it’s not what I expected, either. Actually, Saint-Saens labels this movement Poco
Adagio, or a little bit slow. In other words, not quite as slow as a
traditional Adagio. Yet Yamada and his team take it at a pace that seems
almost drowsy compared to many other recordings.
The two movements that comprise the finale can be fiery
and exhilarating, if not a little bombastic, with the organ blazing the trail.
Here, Yamada maintains the unhurried atmosphere he set in the beginning, giving
us a relaxed, almost tranquil close. Again, not what I expected and not at all
unpleasant, but different. Some listeners will no doubt find the reading
lyrically rewarding. However, I found it a far cry from the more electrifying
performances by Louis Fremaux and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
(Warner Classics/EMI), Charles Munch and the Boston Symphony (RCA/JVC), or the
steady yet still heady version by Jean Martinon and the National Orchestra of
France (EMI or Brilliant Classics), all of which remain my first-choice
recommendations.
Coupled with the Symphony are two more organ works by French composers: Francis Poulenc’s Concerto for Organ, Strings, and Timpani; and Charles-Maria Widor’s Toccata from his Symphony for Organ No. 5. The Poulenc work seems especially well suited to the understated style of Yamada and Jacobson, and it comes off with an appropriately energetic, yet spiritual and inspirational tone. Well done. As an encore, Jacobson gives the Widor Toccata a good, healthy flourish.
Producer Job Maarse and engineers Erdo Groot and Jean-Marie Geijsen recorded the music at Victory Hall, Geneva, Switzerland in August 2017. They made the recording for hybrid multichannel SACD, two-channel SACD, and two-channel CD playback. I listened in two-channel SACD.
The hall nicely complements the sound of the orchestra, giving it a degree of depth and resonance that some venues lack. The sonics are smooth and natural, not particularly transparent or “audiophile” but lifelike in their presentation. The SACD recording ensures that dynamics are there when needed, both in range and impact, although here, too, it isn’t quite in the audiophile class of clarity but more subtle. The organ makes a different impression on the ears in each of the three works on the disc. It’s restrained and a tad recessed in the Saint-Saens, more aggressive in the Poulenc, and finally comes into its own in the solo Widor piece. Of more important note, the organ is always well balanced with the orchestra, and that’s good to hear.
JJP
To listen to a brief excerpt from this album, click below:
By John J. Puccio
The French composer, organist, pianist, and conductor Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1921) wrote his Symphony No. 3 in C-minor, “Organ,” Op. 78, in 1886. It is probably the most-popular thing he ever wrote and, as I say, remains one of the most popular pieces of classical music of any kind.
The composer divided the work into two major parts, with two divisions in each part. It’s an odd arrangement, but it essentially works out to a conventional four-movement symphony. What’s more, although most people today know the work as the “Organ Symphony,” Saint-Saens himself labeled it Symphonie No. 3 "avec orgue" (with organ). In fact, the organ only plays a part in two of the four movements, the second and the last. But it makes enough of an impression for folks to remember it.
The first movement has always seemed to me the least distinguished, the least characterful, but Maestro Yamada and the orchestra do the best they can. They establish a sweet, leisurely tempo in this section, which, if anything, leads effectively into the second, slow movement.
Coupled with the Symphony are two more organ works by French composers: Francis Poulenc’s Concerto for Organ, Strings, and Timpani; and Charles-Maria Widor’s Toccata from his Symphony for Organ No. 5. The Poulenc work seems especially well suited to the understated style of Yamada and Jacobson, and it comes off with an appropriately energetic, yet spiritual and inspirational tone. Well done. As an encore, Jacobson gives the Widor Toccata a good, healthy flourish.
Producer Job Maarse and engineers Erdo Groot and Jean-Marie Geijsen recorded the music at Victory Hall, Geneva, Switzerland in August 2017. They made the recording for hybrid multichannel SACD, two-channel SACD, and two-channel CD playback. I listened in two-channel SACD.
The hall nicely complements the sound of the orchestra, giving it a degree of depth and resonance that some venues lack. The sonics are smooth and natural, not particularly transparent or “audiophile” but lifelike in their presentation. The SACD recording ensures that dynamics are there when needed, both in range and impact, although here, too, it isn’t quite in the audiophile class of clarity but more subtle. The organ makes a different impression on the ears in each of the three works on the disc. It’s restrained and a tad recessed in the Saint-Saens, more aggressive in the Poulenc, and finally comes into its own in the solo Widor piece. Of more important note, the organ is always well balanced with the orchestra, and that’s good to hear.
JJP
To listen to a brief excerpt from this album, click below:
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for your comment. It will be published after review.