Search - Prokofiev, Rostropovich, Onf :: Symphonies 1 & 6

That rare thing, a truly convincing Prokofiev Sixth

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 01/18/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Back in 1986-87, Rostropovich was a learn-as-you-go conductor. Being a great musician doesn't guarantee crossover success on the podium. But on this CD he is totally convincing in the elusive Prokofiev Sixth Sym., which has hardly had an outstanding reading since Mravinsky's murky but masterful Melodiya recording decades ago. In all respects Rostropovich is just as compelling, but in a very different way.



Mravinsky exploited the same idiom in the Sixth as in the Prokofiev Fifth, going for depth and power on a large scale. Certianly the writing in the two symphonies is very similar, but Rostropovich sees the Sixth as almost a parody of the Fifth. The first movement stumbles drunkenly, it has lyrical episodes alternating with hollow bravado. There's an enticing tang in the winds of the Orchestra National de France and an urbane sauciness that saves the music from its tendency toward bombast. Erato's recorded sound is very good, too, full of color and impact. The eeriness of the slow second movement is something Prokofiev never achieved in the Fifth Sym., and the Vivace finale, although shaped along balletic lines that Prokofiev used many times before, starting with his Sym. #1, doesn't sound like a ballet excerpt in Rostropovich's hands -- it has suggestions of melancholy beneath the merriment. In all, a great performance, enough to rehabilitate the reputation of this neglected work.



After that it didn't much matter to me what Rostropovich did in the 'Classical' Symphony, which has enjoyed half a dozen outstanding recordings even in my limited experience. As it turns out, his performance is quite balletic, slowed down a fraction to make nice points in the phrasing. In this way Rostropovich removes the work from its niche as a youthful hijacking of Haydn. It's not a humorous reading, but in its shyly dignified way it's rather convincing."