Search - Schwartz New York Chamber Symphony :: Howard Hanson: Symphonies Nos. 3 & 6; Fantasy Variations on a Theme of Youth

Joyce R. (jromf) from WALLINGFORD, PA
Reviewed on 7/23/2010...

Symphony no. 3 is rousing and interesting. The rest of the CD less so.

1 of 1 member(s) found this review helpful.

Gorgeous and heartfelt

07/10/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is my first listen to these works conducted by Schwarz, and if this is any indication, his cycle of Hanson symphonies is masterful.The Third is a wonderful work, deeply thoughtful and felt, and technically sophisticated. And that is how Schwarz presents it. In its elegant turn of phrase, the lush string sound, the polished brass and wind, the performance summons a lavish sound-picture that enraptures the listener without it turning into a sentimental wallow. This is the interpretative challenge of the symphony and Schwarz meets it in a way much like that of Koussevitzky whose recording is also available. Hanson's own reading is out on Mercury, straightforward, beautifully played, with composer's insight. All three performances are extraordinary, and the serious listener should have all three.Schwarz is more out-on-his-own in the Sixth, the only other offering having been a stopgap effort by Landau and the Westerchester County SO. In many ways, the Sixth is Hanson's greatest work with its subtly subdivided movements, its masterful orchestration, its emotive power. Schwarz gets most of it, but hangs around a little too long in the slow movement where things start to sag a bit and a few winds seem near running out of breath. But it is scrupulously prepared, conducted and played with great dedication and commitment which encourages you to listen in the same spirit. In that is the highest praise one can lavish on interpreters, something I feel Schwarz and his Seattle players have come up a bit short on in the criticial media of late.This lovely and powerful disk is one you'll take heart in from your first listen and will make an even greater impression when considered in supplement to Koussey and the composer in the Third. For here we may be listening to the passing of Hanson the symphonist from the purely American into the international pantheon of composers."