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HDTT Death and the Maiden Symphony

98.195.40.83
Posted on October 22, 2023 at 10:31:50
johngladneyproffitt
Industry Professional

Posts: 79
Location: Houston, Texas
Joined: December 9, 2016



"As is usual for High Definition Tape Transfers the sound quality is stunning in its clarity and impact. HDTT recordings are available from their website (highdeftapetransfers.ca) in a variety of download formats as well as CDs. I recommend this release without reservation to anyone who enjoys Schubert."

Review by Henry Fogel of our recent orchestral release from HDTT!

SCHUBERT Symphony "Death and the Maiden" (arr. András Vass); Overture "Rosamunde"
HINDEMITH Symphonic Metamorphosis on Themes of Carl Maria von Weber
Franz Anton Krager, cond; Mei-Ann Chen, cond. Texas Music Festival Orchestra, Houston; Moores School Symphony Orchestra, Houston
HIGH DEFINITION TAPE TRANSFERS 14076 (77:22) Live: Moores Op House University of Houston 2021-2022 Available in CD and multichannel formats at www.highdeftapetransfers.ca

The big news here is arrangement of Schubert's "Death and the Maiden" Quartet for full orchestra made by Hungarian conductor András Vass. The arrangement calls for the same forces as in Schubert's late symphonies. When I approach a transcription like this, I judge it on its own merits rather than comparing it with the original. By that standard, I found Vass's arrangement a surprisingly gratifying experience. The original is one of Schubert's most dramatic quartets, and the music responds to an orchestral treatment quite well.

There are already a number of recordings of Mahler's arrangement of the "Death and the Maiden" Quartet for string orchestra, but this is something quite different. On first hearing, it can be jarring to hear such familiar music in new garb, but the more you listen, the more you can appreciate Vass's fine orchestral work in Schubertian style. I won't claim that the experience is like discovering a new Schubert symphony. Vass's orchestration is so skillful, however, that for me his version deserves a place in the concert hall.

The performance offers further proof of the high quality of America's university music schools and conservatories. The annual Texas Music Festival gathers student musicians between the ages of 18 and 30 along with some young professionals. They play with polish, energy, and style. Conductor Franz Anton Krager is a professor at the University of Houston's Moores School of Music. This performance, however, is anything but academic. Krager's reading of the Rosamunde Overture is affection and just as well played.

The disc also offers a crackling performance of Hindemith' Symphonic Metamorphosis led by Mei-Ann Chen. The Taiwanese-American conductor is music director of the Chicago Sinfonietta and the Großes Orchester Graz in Austria. Chen is a talented conductor whose career is on the rise.
As is usual for High Definition Tape Transfers the sound quality is stunning in its clarity and impact. HDTT recordings are available from their website (highdeftapetransfers.ca) in a variety of download formats as well as CDs. I recommend this release without reservation to anyone who enjoys Schubert.

~ Henry Fogel, Fanfare Magazine
John Proffitt

 

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Hi, John - I'm always a fan of your engineering on recordings!, posted on October 22, 2023 at 13:09:16
Chris from Lafayette
Audiophile

Posts: 28127
Location: SF Bay Area
Joined: February 17, 2004
Contributor
  Since: February 6, 2012
 Thanks for the heads up. I'm a big fan of the Hindemith Symphonic Metamorphoses too!

 

RE: Hi, John - I'm always a fan of your engineering on recordings!, posted on October 22, 2023 at 13:36:13
johngladneyproffitt
Industry Professional

Posts: 79
Location: Houston, Texas
Joined: December 9, 2016
 Thanks, Chris!
John Proffitt

 

He's your friend untill you tell him how many mics you used...!, posted on October 23, 2023 at 14:14:00
oldmkvi
Audiophile

Posts: 10739
Joined: April 12, 2002
 Hey, take a chance!

 

RE: He's your friend untill you tell him how many mics you used...!, posted on October 23, 2023 at 18:43:38
johngladneyproffitt
Industry Professional

Posts: 79
Location: Houston, Texas
Joined: December 9, 2016
 For 5.0 multichannel orchestral recordings I use *five* omnidirectional condenser microphones - Neumann and Peluso - and that's it! Three across the front of the orch and two set back from the orch for the surround channels.
John Proffitt

 

Maybe, maybe., posted on October 25, 2023 at 14:01:11
sser2
Audiophile

Posts: 2580
Location: Pittsburgh USA
Joined: July 30, 2003
 For me, the original quartet version is the most adequate. As one moves to Mahler's string orchestra arrangement, the drama increases, but the intimacy decreases. I haven't heard the Vass full orchestra arrangement yet, but believe it goes in the even more drama and less intimacy direction.

 

Good point, posted on October 25, 2023 at 15:44:20
Chris from Lafayette
Audiophile

Posts: 28127
Location: SF Bay Area
Joined: February 17, 2004
Contributor
  Since: February 6, 2012
 BTW, which string quartet version(s) of DatM do you like?

My imprint version was the Smetana Quartet's version on the Artia label (presumably originally Supraphon), where the nickname on the cover was "Death and the Girl"! (It also had one of those Jules Maidoff paintings too - a fixture of album covers on a few different labels during that part of the LP era.)



Sticking with the Czechs and their unusual renderings of the quartet's nickname, I see the following available at Amazon, where the nickname is shown as "Death, the Teenager, and the Maiden"! (Well, at least they went back to Maiden!) My current fave is the Oslo Quartet's recording on the audiophile 2L label - a performance of unbelievable drive and energy, with 2L's typically incredible engineering.

 

"My imprint version was the Smetana Quartet's version on the Artia label", posted on October 25, 2023 at 18:25:37
Kal Rubinson
Reviewer

Posts: 12595
Location: New York
Joined: June 5, 2002
 Same here.

When I was a callow kid with a college radio show, I reviewed the then-available recordings of DATM and picked this one because of the intensity of the playing and the distinctively rich sound of the instruments. That choice elicited a nasty comment from a listener who accused me of being duped because "all those Eastern European quartets slather schmaltz on their strings!" :-)

FWIW, there is, also, an interesting arrangement for string orchestra by, and performed by, Patricia Kopatchinskaja on Alpha.

 

"all those Eastern European quartets slather schmaltz on their strings!", posted on October 26, 2023 at 01:11:45
Chris from Lafayette
Audiophile

Posts: 28127
Location: SF Bay Area
Joined: February 17, 2004
Contributor
  Since: February 6, 2012
 So THAT's why I like so many of those Czech and Hungarian groups! ;-)

I also recall a Gramophone review (I think, although it could have been BBC Music magazine) wherein the reviewer, discussing the Smetana Quartet's recording of one of the Beethoven Quartets, asked, "I wonder if they don't take too much for granted?". It was as if he thought they weren't slathering ENOUGH schmaltz on their strings in that performance! ;-)

 

Imprint version, posted on October 26, 2023 at 04:13:08
pbarach
Audiophile

Posts: 3462
Location: Ohio
Joined: June 22, 2008
 Mine was the Juilliard Quartet's RCA recording. Still very exciting, although the sound is dry and a little shrill.

 

RE: Hi, John - I'm always a fan of your engineering on recordings!, posted on October 26, 2023 at 07:32:06
Rushton
Reviewer

Posts: 771
Location: Huntsville, AL
Joined: January 5, 2001
Contributor
  Since: October 23, 2004
 I agree - great engineering that nicely captures the sound of these groups.

 

RE: Imprint version, posted on October 26, 2023 at 10:36:50
Chris from Lafayette
Audiophile

Posts: 28127
Location: SF Bay Area
Joined: February 17, 2004
Contributor
  Since: February 6, 2012
 I heard a lot of Julliard Quartet recordings when I was young - but not that one! I had to wait until I acquired the "Golden Era of Living Stereo" box, released seven years ago. Great performance, but I agree with with you that a lot of those Julliard Living Stereo recordings were on the dry side. I remember being very struck by that at the time these recordings were originally released - I thought to myself, "Why are so many American string quartet recordings so dry, while the European string quartets more often get the benefit of enough reverberation to enhance their performances?". Of course, that was a very broad generalization, and there were plenty of exceptions too, but still. . .

 

That was the correct answer - I'm still your friend! [nt] ;-), posted on October 26, 2023 at 10:38:09
Chris from Lafayette
Audiophile

Posts: 28127
Location: SF Bay Area
Joined: February 17, 2004
Contributor
  Since: February 6, 2012

 

There are so many good recordings of this piece, posted on October 26, 2023 at 12:12:06
sser2
Audiophile

Posts: 2580
Location: Pittsburgh USA
Joined: July 30, 2003
 But I keep looking for new arrivals. New groups offer new excitement, otherwise what's the point of repeating old achievements. My latest infatuation is Tetzlaff Quartet. They strike perfect balance between drama and intimacy. They are on youtube, no CD or hi-rez download. This in their current repertoire.

 

I like the Mahler arrangement, posted on October 27, 2023 at 00:54:09
diw
Audiophile

Posts: 323
Joined: May 30, 2002
 But I am wondering about a full orchestral arrangement. Brass! I might purchase this, but would appreciate a review from any "early adopters" on this site.

 

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