Image: ©️ Thomas Grøndahl
This album begins Thomas Dausgaard and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra’s cycle of Bartók’s orchestral works, which will program contrasting works on each release. Here we get the Suite No. 1, a piece from the young Bartók’s pen, and the Concerto for Orchestra, one of the final orchestral works he completed. The contrast between these two pieces is indeed stark, but Dausgaard and the Scottish Symphony Orchestra’s extraordinary playing bring a sense of unity to the disc.
Suite No. 1 is a tour de force of orchestration, a roller coaster of emotions that requires a delicate touch. All the different gestures — the accelerandos and allargandos, the sharp pizzicatos, the tasty brass morsels — risk turning the piece into a hodgepodge in unskilled hands. Thankfully, Dausgaard and his players are masterful. The first movement moves along at a brisk base tempo, faster than most other available recordings, making the ritardandos at the tutti cadences all the more compelling. The low brass and timpani are recorded exquisitely, with just the right balance between their boisterous bouncing and the melody in the rest of the orchestra. In the second movement, the ensemble playing shines; the strings and winds sing in gorgeous octaves, and pizzicatos which rarely sound so foreboding. Then listen to the final seconds of the movement — a perfectly executed little wink.
The third movement, which might as well be labeled “Waltz with Interruptions,” will scratch all your waltz itches, if you’re someone who has that sort of thing. The fourth movement showcases a wonderful trio of clarinet, bass clarinet, and French Horn, trading a faux folk melody with great sensitivity. The tritone outbursts are just the right amount of tart. The suite finishes with a sophisticated and at times surprising palette cleanser; it’s a crowd-pleaser, but not without some strange extra bars mixed in (The extended decrescendo at 0’33”, the little strings soli at 3’30”, and, oh yes, the main “dance” theme is effectively in seven). Dausgaard and co. are the ultimate Bartók apologists here, if such advocacy is still required; they take every gesture and make it into something wonderfully artistic. Ultimately, their approach may be too sugary for some, but this listener happen to love it. This is Bartók in full color.
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- Review: Bartók – Strings Quartets (Complete) – Quatuor Diotima
- Review: Janáček and Ligeti String Quartets – Belcea Quartet
Given that the Concerto for Orchestra is structured around different groups of solo instruments, it seems reasonable to address them each in their turn here. The low string work that begins the piece is some of the finest on record, with precise intonation and articulation. As the movement progresses, the upper strings are similarly ultra-fine and refined throughout. The horns and trumpets that bandy about the theme in fourths are blessedly rich in tone without losing any of the characteristic bite. In the second movement, the woodwinds and trumpet duo are stellar — special praise goes to the bassoons, who sound wonderful despite being inexplicably poorly mic’d. In the Elegy, it’s the tutti moments that really stuns (4’56” for example). In those moments, the notion of a concerto “for orchestra” feels quite fitting, as the whole orchestra seems to pulse as one. Finally, Dausgaard’s work in the finale brings considerable joy, from the perfectly executed, Tchaikovsky-like moments (1’33”, his Symphony No. 4) and Debussy-like music (8’33”, the chorale that closes La Mer), to the ghastly fugue and the impeccable pacing and phrasing throughout.
This album holds its own against any you care to compare it to — Reiner, Solti, Dorati, Kocsis, or more recently, Alsop or Eschenbach. It is beautifully performed and recorded, and is now, technically speaking, the best recording available of the Suite No. 1, if not also the Concerto. Emotionally, some may find the Scottish Symphony Orchestra’s playing too refined, but the outstanding musicianship far outweighs all other considerations. Highly recommended for all.
Bartók – Concerto for Orchestra, Suite No. 1
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Thomas Dausgaard – Conductor
Onyx, CD ONYX4210
Bartók Concerto for Orchestra – Recommended Comparisons
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