Search - Dmitry Shostakovich, Roman Kofman, Beethoven Orchester Bonn :: Shostakovich: Symphony No. 10

4.5 stars -- not so dogmatically virulent and musically sati

Larry VanDeSande | Mason, Michigan United States | 05/22/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I read Dmitri Shostakovich's memoirs as recited through Solomon Volkov, "Testimony", during the 2006 Shostakovich year and, this year, I've read British musicologist Ian MacDonald's more intensive 1991 examination of the composer and the times in which he lived, "The New Shostakovich." This provided impetus for my second "Shostakovich year," if you will, where I've tested a new generation of symphonic recordings including this one against both the statements and precepts presented in the two books and my memories of favored recordings from prior years.



Having lived with two famous Shostakovich 10ths for some years -- the earlier and still revered recording from Karajan and Ormandy's only recording in Philadelphia from the early 1960s -- I thought it time to hear a newer version with somewhat different ears. Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-75), a composer that lived his entire adult life in the Soviet system, composed the Symphony No. 10 beginning in 1953 after the death of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, one of the world's most cold-blooded tyrants who often made Shostakovich's life miserable.



Roman Kofman's recordings of the Shostakovich symphonies with the Beethoven Orchestra Bonn received generally poor reviews from worldwide press when they were released. Of the reviews I read, only the Penguin Guide's promotion of their "Leningrad" Symphony No. 7 and American Record Guide's selection of this recording among the best of the 10th were rated better than average. Most critics derided the recordings for a lack of intensity, bite and Shostakovian understanding and drama. David Hurwitz review of the Symphony No. 8, published online at www.Classics Today.com, encapsulated many reviewers comments in no-nonsense langauge, saying:



"All of the releases in this series have been pretty disgusting, but this one takes the prize. It's the most boring, unidiomatic performance of this symphony ever recorded. The performance lasts more than 70 minutes; compare this to Kondrashin (57 minutes) or Mravinsky (60 minutes), and you can see the problem...absolute speed isn't the only thing that matters, but slow speeds combined with flaccid rhythms and soggy phrasing make for singularly toxic results. The sonics faithfully reflect the dullness of the playing and inadequacy of Roman Kofman as a Shostakovich interpreter. Yawn."



Some critics dismissed this recording, too, even though I would call it neither boring nor flaccid in comparison to Karajan or Ormandy. Tempo and timing are in keeping with tradition -- 55 minutes here, same as Ormandy compared to 51 and 52 minutes in Karjan's two recordings, the difference mainly being in the long first movement -- and the playing of the Beethoven Bonn Orchestra is fine, as is the recording (this also comes in a set with a DVD.) What differentiates this from other fine recordings -- and what sets it apart -- is its beauty and musicality.



This may seem ironic -- beauty in the Shostakovich 10th Symphony -- since the composer admitted in "Testimony" that the symphony was his reflection of the awful Stalin years of tyranny, state-sanctioned murder, mass imprisonment and torture, and the loss of Shostakovich's friend and intellectual peer, Mikhail Tuhkachevsky, to a Soviet-Nazi plot, after which he was assassinated. What beauty could there be in such a musical reminiscence? Kofman and his orchestra find a lot of beauty, actually, while still keeping intact the acidic nature of the second movement portrait of dictator Stalin.



A blood brother to the 8th Symphony in both design and stated content (that one was also about the prewar Stalin years of totalitarianism and the great purge of the 1930s, accoring to "Testimony"), the 10th is said to have the greatest single movement of any Shostakovich symphony -- the lengthy first movement. I'm not sure I agree with this assessment since the opening of the 8th symphony, which is more of a lengthy threnody, is its equal to me.



Like the 8th, the 10th is composed of several shorter, virulent movements after the opening, then closes with another lengthy movement before ending with what appears to be a note of optimism. MacDonald explains the apparent optimism in his book, saying this was a muscial strategy to both get the symphony published and played in the Socialist reality dogma of teh Soviet Union while seemingly concluding the music appropriately.



I think Korman and crew handle all this very well while adding a certain legato, almost singing, line to the music. It still stomps and huffs and puffs where necessary and helps you believe it is part of what MacDonald called the group of "terror" symphonies Shostakovich wrote.



Simultaneously, Korman et al present a scenic loveliness in its line and aural cavern I don't hear in other performances. Where Karajan is straightforward and intense, and where Ormandy focuses on the terror aspect of the score, Kofman sees something quite different and presents it well in this 2003 concert recording. I think anyone wanting another view of what may be Dmitri Shostakovich's best symphony won't go wrong listening to this one.





"

"Outstanding"

Frank Pandel | USA | 03/18/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Here`s the first release in a series of Shostakovich`s complete 15 symphonies to keep an eye (and ear) out for!

Roman Kofman and the Bonn Beethoven Orchestra give us a precise and unique interpretation of one of the composer`s greatest symphonies. MD&G (Dabringhaus and Grimm) pay particular attention to key elements in recording technique. And it pays off along with a wonderful performance such as evidenced here.

This release is also available in DVDA format!



Frank Pandel

musicologist reviews"