CD SACD

Symphony No. 9 in Eb major, opus 70[a]; Symphony No. 10 in E minor, opus 93[b].
Oleg Caetani, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi.
Arts Music 47675-2. DDD. TT 80:35.
Recorded live, Auditorium di Milano, Italy, February 2003[a], March 2002[b].

Symphony No. 5 in D minor, opus 47[a]; Symphony No. 9 in Eb major, opus 70[b].
Valery Gergiev, Kirov Orchestra.
Philips 470 651-2. DDD hybrid SACD surround/SACD stereo/CD stereo. TT 73:58. Also available on CD 475 065-2.
Recorded live, Mikaeli-Martti Talvela Hall, Mikkeli, Finland, 30 June 2002[a]; live, Mariinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg, 14-18 May 2002[b].

Of Shostakovich's works without words, the Ninth Symphony is his most overtly sarcastic. Entrusted with its premiere, Yevgeny Mravinsky defended it as "a work directed against philistinism … which ridicules complacency and bombast". By this he pretended to mean the philistinism of the bourgeois, but few can have failed to recognise that the composer's contempt had Stalinist pomp fixed in its cross-hairs. Generally unperceptive, Danilo Prefumo's booklet notes for Arts Music describe the Ninth Symphony as "carefree", lacking the "bitter sarcasm" of the Tenth, but Oleg Caetani's own written contribution is more promising, identifying the Ninth as Shostakovich's "reaction against the way Stalin exploited the victory" over the Nazis.

Caetani's baton successfully delivers on this promise, yielding one of the least carefree, most bitterly sarcastic recordings yet of this brief yet remarkably eventful opus. The conspiratorial violin and piccolo solos of the first movement would seem merely cheeky were it not for the Milanese orchestra's spark-spitting brass, which depict an antagonist as dangerous as self-important. There is real risk in mocking such company, and being witness to this is unsettling for the listener.

Indeed, this is a highly involving performance throughout, thanks largely to the distinctive timbral qualities of the cast, captured by a razor-sharp recording. Chills set in from the beginning of the second movement, courtesy of the haunting woodwind entry, and are heightened by the guttural lower strings that follow. The expressive bassoon lament of the fourth movement feels particularly vulnerable. As for the preposterous march climax of the fifth, it has rarely sounded this rancid; you can almost taste the bile.

Gergiev's conception of the Ninth is also convincing and well recorded. He chooses significantly different tempi for each movement than Caetani (incidentally, Philips' printed track timings mistakenly deport a minute and a half from the third movement to the fourth). Gergiev's opening Allegro is more deliberate, but in the other fast movements he is fleeter of foot than Caetani. This renders well the absurdity of the trumpet's bullfight melody in the third movement, and builds great anticipation in the approach to the grand climax of the fifth, then sprinting to the close.

The greatest difference between these two versions is in the second movement, which Gergiev completes more than a minute sooner than Caetani (6:47 versus 7:55, respectively). Most conductors, Russian and otherwise, have been tempted to play the movement slower than its metronome marking, crotchet = 208. At that tempo it would barely last six minutes, and would lose any trace of the gravitas it exudes at a slower pace. However, Richard Pleak and Derek Hulme revealed in DSCH Newsletters XIII and XIV that Shostakovich was adamant that this symphony, its second movement in particular, not be dragged out. As suggested by Ian MacDonald, "what Shostakovich probably wanted was something more slyly ambiguous: a subtle satire on official mourning decreed by a government which killed more of its own citizens than Hitler." At approximately crotchet = 139, Gergiev is already much slower than the marked tempo, though he is in good company; Kondrashin plays it at virtually the identical speed (Aulos AMC2-043-1-10). Caetani's crotchet = 124 ought to be well beyond the pale, yet tempo is not everything, and his interpretation conveys more acidity than solemnity.

Indeed, if I could recommend only one of these new Ninths, I would choose Caetani's over Gergiev's, thanks largely to the more vivid characterisations of the Italian musicians. For example, Caetani's bassoonist pays far more heed to Shostakovich's dynamic markings in the fourth movement than does Gergiev's. But in truth both performances are praiseworthy; buyers selecting on the basis of the weightier couplings on these CDs can be reassured that they should find either Ninth rewarding.

Philips' otherwise exemplary recording registers occasional low murmurs of uncertain origin, which I found slightly distracting in the second movement of Gergiev's Ninth. This is a greater problem in his Fifth Symphony, especially in the Largo, where indistinct vocalisations break the mood. A pity, because in all other respects this is a Fifth that makes one sit up and take notice.

Here is a study in the power of rubato, with accelerations and decelerations initiated then revoked often within a couple of measures. Take Gergiev's superb handling of the symphony's opening, with subtle tempo modulation of the high violin and flute theme, imparting a strong sense of requiem. Even his more striking interventions, like the ritardando he applies at the entrance to the Moderato section of the first movement, generally feel more like discoveries than idiosyncrasies.

The one reservation I have concerns another unmarked rit., this one beginning at Fig. 119/6:55 of the finale. Gergiev brings the proceedings almost to a standstill, stalling the strings. The musical logic and intended emotional impact of this interruption are unclear.

The Kirov Orchestra provide clean execution. Performing highlights include the hair-raisingly spooky coda to the first movement, and the uniquely froggy voice of the contrabassoon in the second. Overall, this is an unexpectedly original and persuasive take on this most familiar of Shostakovich's symphonies.

There is much less score kneading in Caetani's Tenth Symphony, with the noteworthy features relating to dynamics rather than tempo. In the first movement, for instance, three long Ds on violins terminate the dance section at Fig. 28+4/8:13; there is a crescendo marked for the third of these, but Caetani applies a crescendo and diminuendo within each of the first two as well, making a more decisive separation between sections. In the third movement, the fourth iteration of the Elmira motif begins with the horn blanketed by the strings, but as the strings dim the horn theme grows more distinct, as if emerging to launch the Largo segment. Orchestral volume is also finely judged throughout the grinding second movement, not the first place one would think to look for dynamic nuance. The players do not indulge the lugubrious tendencies of the fourth movement but blast out splendidly in its climaxes.

In this live concert there are a few less-than-perfect moments: delivery of the climax of the first movement is not as crisp as it could be; the triangle's tone is variable as it underlines the second theme of the third movement; the first note of the flute solo at Fig. 150+2/2:25 of the finale is inaudible. On balance, however, the orchestra put in a good day's work.

The acoustics for Caetani's Tenth are decent, though not as clear as for his Ninth. Arts Music include audience applause, which follows immediately after each symphony. This will please some listeners and displease many more; providing a separate track for applause would go a long way to satisfying both camps. The audience are otherwise as quiet as mice, so with a thoughtful Tenth and blistering Ninth, this CD would be an excellent entry point for anyone wishing to dip into Caetani's ongoing Shostakovich cycle.

W. Mark Roberts
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