Search - Carter, Bohn, Knussen :: Concerto for Orchestra

"great winds of change, destruction, and renewal..."

R. Hutchinson | a world ruled by fossil fuels and fossil minds | 09/08/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Truly it is a shame that this music, recorded in 1991 and released in 1992 in the U.K., is so hard to come by in the U.S.! This is one of three recordings of "Concerto for Orchestra," including the original commissioned version by Bernstein and the NY Philharmonic. I sought out this version on hearing that Knussen and the London Sinfonietta were the first to do it justice, and based on their brilliant recent premiere recording of Carter's "Symphonia." This "Concerto" is also brilliant, I am happy to say! As it turns out, Carter was in the studio with Knussen and supervised the recording. First performed in 1970, it reflects the turmoil of the times -- Bayan Northcott in the liner notes describes it as "a large structure as a kind of vortex of interacting forces." The "great winds" quote above refers to the poem "Vents" which was an inspiration for the composition. With his "Concerto for Orchestra," Carter created one of the most powerful and distinctive orchestral works of the late 20th century. "Three Occasions for Orchestra" and the "Violin Concerto" are more recent compositions (1986-9, 1990), and both are superb. Interestingly, "3 Occasions" was composed in the same way as "Symphonia" -- the three movements were composed separately, and then brought together. While neither piece is as stunning as the "Concerto for Orchestra" or the recent "Symphonia," they work perfectly here in creating a diverse and absolutely compelling set of modern music!



8/05 UPDATE) This is the best version of the "Concerto." The Michael Gielen recording of 1992, which has just been reissued by Arte Nova (see my review), is fine, but not as detailed as Knussen's. Knussen's interpretation is more Boulezian, revealing every detail of the score, while Gielen's is more lush and romantic, with more powerful crescendos, but missing some of the rich complexity. Another advantage to this Virgin disc is that the "Concerto" is separated into six tracks, so each movement can be heard on its own, while the Arte Nova disc places the entire piece on one track. An interesting element of this recording's genesis is the involvement of Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead, a devotee of modern music! Lesh and the Rex Foundation helped subsidize this 1991 recording.



Try amazon.co.uk for a copy of this Virgin recording, as it seems to unavailable for now in the States."