Search - Franz Joseph Haydn, Colin Davis, BBC Symphony Orchestra :: Haydn: The Seasons

19TH CENTURY MUSIC

DAVID BRYSON | Glossop Derbyshire England | 06/14/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Haydn's `oratorio' (or whatever) The Seasons received its first performance in 1801, the 70th year of the composer's life. He was at the very height of his creative powers, and his inspiration had received a new jolt, as Beethoven's and Schubert's were later to do, through his exposure to Handel. He was not new to oratorio, indeed his Creation seems to me the only later work of that name that can be mentioned in the same breath as Handel's. He was also not unduly thrilled with the libretto of The Seasons, which comes in English and German versions but which he characterised tersely as `franzoesischer Quark' (frenchified rubbish). For my own part, it's all one to me whether The Seasons counts as oratorio or not. For me it is an unqualified masterpiece, and a landmark in the development of music. There is real sublimity here, and not just in such obvious instances as the great final chorus culminating in the tremendous `Amen' that so excited Tovey. The whole work has a consistency of style and quality that lifts it far above its text, and the rustic effects, in Haydn's hands, are all part of that. The natural world is a sublime thing in its own right, and so severe a later genius as Bartok had no qualms about including birdsong and insect-sounds in his string quartets.



Where The Seasons follows on from The Creation is in showing signs of a 19th century romantic idiom, something I don't find in Haydn's quartets and symphonies, although there may be touches of it in his piano sonatas, and something I don't really detect in Beethoven either. The liner-note most perceptively sees resemblances to Weber - that's the kind of romanticism I mean. This is integrated effortlessly with `secco' recitatives (accompanied only by the continuo), which are a downright throwback in music of this period. However one thing that gets this performance high marks from me is that the continuo instrument is not a harpsichord but a fortepiano. Guru though he still is, Tovey has been more or less ignored in his claim that the piano (played with proper restraint) actually does the continuo job better than the harpsichord, and the effect here leads me to agree with him.



All this leaves me having no problems with a performance of The Seasons using modern instruments. A certain amount of allowance may have to be made for the singing style, although it is very good of its kind. In fact I don't expect that the tenor and bass, Ryland Davies (unaccountably not mentioned on the frontispiece) and John Shirley-Quirk, will upset many listeners. Heather Harper is of course firmly of the English oratorio manner, which I myself can accept easily, not least because this is an English oratorio or something very like one. Of its kind her singing is very good indeed, and really superlative in the lovely cavatina `Light and life' in the Winter section. The singing in general, chorus as well as soloists, deserves high praise for distinct enunciation. The full words are not provided in the liner, but if you make a little effort you can hear them well enough. So far as I'm concerned, it's sufficient to get the general idea of what each number is about. The text is no masterpiece to say the least but the music is, and it's what interests me.



The direction by Colin Davis suits me very well, given my attitude to the performing style overall. The recording is perfectly adequate (1968 in Watford town hall). I also want to put in a special word of commendation for the liner-note by Richard Drakeford, which is blessedly unpretentious as well as being genuinely informative and interesting. It has been a long time since I last heard The Seasons. It is a genuinely great work in my own view as well as being a milestone in the history of music, and I give this account of it a special welcome."

Well Seasoned Seasons!

Peter J. Schiefelbein | Grafton, ND | 09/02/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This turned out to be everything the reviews I read beforehand said it would be: a fine, characterful romp through the year in the capable hands of great musicians. I only wish they had included the English libretto, but I am sure it's available online. Well worth the money."