Search - Shostakovich, Phl, Chung :: Symphony 4

A shattering experience

N. Daniele Pietro | Milano, MI Italy | 05/08/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"When I saw this cd I was surprised : A Philadelphia Shostakovich 4 for DG? Under Myun-Whun Chung?
There were no pre-release announcements , and the book issued
in 2000 by the Philadelphia Orchestra for their centenary ( "A century of music", expensive but wonderful book) doesn't mention it in the recordings list.
Probably the Orchestra historians forgot it , or lost any hope about seeing it released, because it's been languishing in DG's vaults since 1994! (must be a record)
Really, in these sad days of dramatic shrinking of the classical
recording industry, a major release from this Cadillac of an orchestra is a gift, even I have to say that I approached this particular disc with caution.
Myun-Whun Chung (who is well known over here because he's the
Director of Rome's Academy of S.Cecilia Orchestra) is generally
associated with a different repertory, mainly French and Italian music, often with operatic connections.
He seemed to me very removed from the anguished world of Shostakovich's music especially so when you think about the modernistic rage of this sprawling, colossal, troubled masterpiece.
Against all preconceptions, Chung assaults the 4th with hysteric determination married to total conviction, and the result is a performance that reminds
me the old Soviet school of Shostakovich performance, Mravinsky- style, ferocious playing, fast speeds and all.
By Chung's side , now my prized Simon Rattle EMI recording now seems a little too polished, maybe even a bit detached.
Of course , all of this would not mean anything without the right orchestra , and the Philadelphia tradition in Shostakovich is unique among Western orchestras, dating from Stokowski's days and carried by Ormandy though his long tenure.
You can hear that the Philadelphians are really in tremendous
right from the very beginning: Chung takes the relentless
opening (in my opinion the most impressive one
in Shostakovich's output) very fast, maybe a little more than I usually like, but the orchestra answers with
a stunning display of peerless ensemble and impeccable articulation, not only by the strings, as you would expect from Philadelphia, but by every section (here the brass are just incredible!)
Actually, there's no moment in which the orchestra sounds strained by Shostakovich's demands, not even in the dissonant, polyphonic
climaxes scattered here and there. I don't think the enigmatic finale never sounded so desolately chilly yet the performance is so subtle that an ambiguous undercurrent of ..what ? hope? rebellion? is always present.
Last but not least, all of this is ensconced in wonderful, state-of-the-artrecording quality by DG, whose forceful yet crystal-clear sound-picture is light years far away from the dismal sound usually provided by EMI for Muti and Sawallisch in Philadelphia.
Too bad that DG didn't go on working with them, but they were
bought (along with practically every other label) by Universal (and then Vivendi) and then whole classical industry more or less collapsed.
So grab this while you can, because in this conglomerate new world recordings come out after 8 years (if they ever do) and then they go out of print right away."

What a gem. buy buy buy buy it.

N. Daniele Pietro | 07/07/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"*Chung has worked extensively in Shostakovich (he has recorded the 14th and the mammoth Lady Macbeth). *As of late he has been..well.. workin' the crossover/cheesy scene.*This is not the fastest major performance of the 4th. If we look back at our imported Kondrashin version with the Moscow P.O., he clocks in at 59"52. This is significant becuase Kondrashin was entrusted with the premiere of the 4th and suggests that it is Haitink and Jarvi who are on the wrong side of the interpretive fence. * The Philadelphians play with such aplomb, warmth and techincal perfection they seem the perfect amalgamation of the Cleveland Orchestra and the Vienna Philharmonic. *The recording gives slight preferance to the brass*The strings are magnificent. Listen to track 6, 2'05 to 2'30 for an example.* my preferences(1) kondrashin
(2) chung
(3) jarvi/ Ormandy
(4) rohzdestvensky (shoddy orchestra- too many mistakes)
(5) M. Shostakovich
(6) Rostropovich
(7) Rattle"

Vigorous and Revelatory Shostakovich

Timothy Dougal | Madison, Wi United States | 06/22/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This disc, recorded in 1994 but just released now in 2002 comes as quite a revelation, even though I have been familiar with Shostakovich's 4th since Eugene Ormandy first recorded it with the Philadephia Orchestra in the 60's. The string sound on this disc isn't the same full-bodied sound I grew up on, but the sound is good, provided you crank the volume up enough to keep the quieter passages from sounding anemic. The revelation here is in Chung's vigorous, brilliantly phrased interpretation. Most conductors get the abstract, modernist aspects of this work, by this is the first time I have heard the music so clearly characterized in so many ways. This protean symphony, which so often foreshadows later Shostakovich symphonies, now is clearly linked to a multitude of genres. And the speed of this performance is also something. Ormandy clocked in a 62 minutes. Other conductors have generally made it longer (Haitink over 67). This one is 60 minutes, but never feels rushed. Chung's conductorial touch is intense, lyric, eerie, monumental or exuberant as called for by the music. This is quite a performance!"