- Posted by madisonears (A) on April 23, 2007 at 23:30:45
I have listened to most of the readily available performances of Dvorak's New World Symphony on SACD, and these are my observations. I am not proclaiming this to be the ultimate evaluation, and I welcome your friendly comments.Auditioned: Fischer on Philips, Jarvi on Telarc, Kreizberg on Pentatone, Reiner on LS, and Szell on Sony. I believe there is only one other version readily available in the US.
I have only a stereo, albeit one that kicks butt, so multi-channel aspects are not considered.
The Reiner on Living Stereo is my favorite, regarding the combination of performance, recording, and couplings. Nicely, it is also the least expensive. In spirit and tempo, this performance comes closest to my all-time favorite, Bruno Walter on CBS. The playing of the Chicago Symphony is almost perfect. By comparison, the Budapest Festival group sounds second rate at best. The other orchestras involved are all superior to BFO, but the Chicago simply cannot be bested.
Reiner is not in any hurry for a change, although he moves things along at a steady clip. Parvi takes some parts much too slowly, losing impetus and tension. Reiner brings out the dancing rhythms and the tender moments to perfection. He builds tension in every movement, then releases it in a rousing but controlled finale. Kreizberg jerks tempos around like he's trying to improve the original score, and he cannot maintain a somewhat slow Largo. Then he speeds up the fast parts until it seems he and the orchestra are losing control of the music. Jarvi's Largo is ridculously slow, and he completely loses the beauty of Dvorak's interpretation of the original theme. This isn't funeral music--it's the world "going home", going to sleep like a baby in its mother's arms. That's exactly the feeling I get from Reiner; he captures all the tenderness, the yearning for and final attainment of total, perhaps timeless, peace and contentment. His Scherzo is just as well judged, and the finale is a dancing, powerful triumph. His tempos infuse this music with plenty of folkish flavor, and the dynamics are explosive.
I can hear many of you asking, "What about Szell?" I know his interpretation is a favorite, and I really tried to like it. The sound, however, was a real impediment to my enjoyment. If sonics aren't that important, you might enjoy his more than Reiner's version. I couldn't tolerate the thin string sound and generally grainy recording. I do not have an overly analytical system, but it doesn't sugar coat stuff like this, either. I think Szell's Slavonic Dances are so superb that they overcome the poor sound, but, in terms of SACD sonics, this is very low on the scale.
The Living Stereo is also a vintage recording, but of much higher quality than what Columbia managed to capture. Although the upper registers of strings sometimes become a bit shrill, we get a realistic orchestral image and some excellent woodwind and brass timbre. It is not nearly as luxurious or spacious as the modern recordings. Both Telarc and Pentatone provide their typical superb sonics, with a perfect balance between instrumental detail and total orchestral image and impact. The Philips recording is not as good, with some excess reverberation and tubby bass. A lot of people raved about the Philips when it was released, but, in perspective, it is not all that special other than that it showed the potential of SACD. If you want the best sonics, Telarc is your choice, closely followed by Pentatone.
The couplings chosen for the LS disc are the same as what was offered on the CD, and they are a perfect fit. The Carnival is an irresistible swirling storm of Slavonic rhythms, played to perfection by the CSO. Smetana's Bartered Bride is equally spirited fun, and where else can you even find the jolly yet ultimately majestic Weinberger's Polka and Fugue? Szell's 9th comes with an equally bad-sounding 8th, and both of these are many people's first choice. I have another favorite 8th by Dorati on Mercury (alas, not an SACD), so this coupling is actually a drawback for me. The Kreizberg includes a decent version of Romeo and Juliet. Parvi's is paired with a Martinu symphony, which is an interesting piece but doesn't fit here.
When all these factors are put together, I believe the Reiner on Living Stereo is the best choice.
Peace,
Tom E
