Kammerorchester Basel returns for their fourth album in Alpha Classics’s Haydn2032 series. Under the baton of Giovanni Antonini, Kammerorchester Basel and Il Giardino Armonico have been sharing performance duties throughout this complete Haydn symphony cycle, set to be completed in conjunction with the composer’s tercentennial in 2032. This installment is subtitled Au goût Parisien (“to the Parisian taste”), reflecting the thematic grouping Antonini has chosen for the series. In spite of the nod to Paris in the title, only two (82 and 87) of Haydn’s nine (82–87, 90–92) symphonies written for the Parisian L’Orchestre de la Loge Olympique feature on the album. The other two symphonies on the album—2 and 24—are included for subtler reasons: in 1764, Symphony 2 was the first of Haydn’s symphonies to be published (by Jean-Baptiste Venier, in Paris) and 24 became the first Haydn symphony to be receive a documented performance in Paris.
Read all of our reviews of Antonini’s “Haydn 2032” series releases
Kammerorchester Basel’s musicianship throughout the album is nearly faultless. Their playing is clear and precise, never seeming muddled or harried under Antonini’s swift baton. Antonini’s readings of the symphonies presented here are respectfully authentic, and his enthusiastic interpretations of Haydn’s dynamic markings are particularly praiseworthy. The results here are fresh and engaging, and bring the verve and humor of Haydn’s music into a new recording for the twenty-first century.
In spite of my overall enthusiasm for the album, there are elements of the recording that cannot escape some reproach. While Antonini’s speed on Symphony 82’s first movement approaches perfection (for contrast, Weil’s 1994 interpretation is entirely too fast and Kuijken’s 1999 reading too slow for vivace assai), his reading of the usually elegant third movement is unconscionably rushed. While the musicians manage to preserve their clarity against this brisk tempo, the result comes off as flippant and is thoroughly unconvincing. Marriner’s 1993 interpretation of this minuet and trio movement is much more fluent and compelling.
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Further, as a matter of historical consideration, one wishes that Antonini had combined his two ensembles for recording both 82 and 87. Though both ensembles, individually, are slightly larger than that of Haydn’s at Eszterháza, they are remarkably smaller than was L’Orchestre de la Loge Olympique, for which Haydn was commissioned to write Symphonies 82–87 and 90–92. Having the personnel resources to double the ranks on these symphonies specifically written for a larger orchestra and not doing so was a missed opportunity. One feels it would have added both historical authenticity and set these recordings apart from other historically informed recordings.
A final critique is due regarding curation, especially given the unorthodox decision to include 2 and 24 on a nominally “Parisian” album. On the one hand, the early Symphony 2 exhibits remarkable intellectual maturity and progressivism, especially when considered alongside contemporary symphonies by Haydn’s peer Johann Christian Bach or the older Johann Stamitz. While its lively and innovative rondo finale looks ahead to Haydn’s later compositions, Symphony 2 retains a pre-classical aura that does not allow it to sit comfortably alongside 24, 82, or 87. The result on the album is a dynamically narrow chamber symphony awkwardly set behind three dynamic and highly developed ones.
On the other hand, the inclusion of the rarely played Symphony 24 should be commended. While this symphony is somewhat quirky—a close listen to the formal features of the slow movement betray that it is almost certainly recycled from a now-lost flute concerto, and elements of the final movement are reworked from Symphony 13—it is an intriguing historical introduction to the sound that made Haydn a household name in Paris in the years leading up to his major commissions for L’Orchestre de la Loge Olympique. In listening to the album, one might consider hearing the pieces in the order 2, 24, 87, and 82 (which, to judge by Christian Moritz-Bauer’s liner notes, is close to the intended queueing of the album) in order to better appreciate these brilliant new recordings.
Haydn 2032, Vol. 11 – “Au goût Parisien“
Symphonies 2, 24, 82, 87
Kammerorchester Basel
Giovanni Antonini – Conductor
Alpha, CD 688
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