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| 1. Symphony No.2 - National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine |
| 2. Symphony No.4 - National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine |
Product Description
BBC Music Magazine
The National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine seems to have a real feeling for Martinu's idiom and turns in commendably authentic-sounding performances: bright, colourful and well-shaped. These symphonies make a nicely contrasted coupling, too: No. 2 something of a 'pastoral sinfonietta' with its luminous scoring and comparatively short, ebullient third and fourth movements, while No. 4 is possibly Martinu's greatest, the sinister dionysiac vigour of the march-scherzo and the mystic exaltation of the slow movement giving way to a decisive and finally triumphant finale of tremendous rhythmic drive.
It comes over very well here; in fact the performance of No. 4 seems a notch above that of No. 2, where there are occasional moments of untidy ensemble and the orchestral piano is rather oddly balanced. I found myself reliving some of my teenage excitement at the sheer individuality of the composer's sound-world. The recording lacks - perhaps to its advantage - the cavernous acoustic resonance of the classic Supraphon versions from the Sixties (Ancerl, Neumann, Turnovsky) from which we first learned these works. Instead it's bright and clear, allowing much of the teeming instrumental detail, the intensifying flecks of woodwind and percussion, to make their full contribution. Altogether these are perfectly good versions of still-underrated music, and tempting at the price. Yet it's only just to say they're not quite out of the top drawer: Neeme Järvi in his set of Nos 1-4 with the Bamberg SO, or (especially) Be?lohlávek with the Czech PO in No. 4 only, provide still finer playing and bring greater understanding, vividness and impetus.
Performance ****
Sound ****
© BBC Music Magazine 2001
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fagen's Martinu,
By
This review is from: Martinu: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 4 (Audio CD)
This disc, which includes the attractive and oft-recorded 4th symphony (an ideal starting-place for those unfamiliar with Martinu's symphonies, by the way), is typical of Arthur Fagen's approach to Martinu. These are very well-played performances with fine attention to detail, dynamics and balance which tend to emphasize the lyrical qualities of Martinu's music. All very important, of course, but what I miss in these readings is the very last ounce of "bite" which the music also needs at times. Bryden Thomson on his Chandos recordings of the complete symphonies scores over the Naxos issues in this respect and, as his readings are generally very fine and the set is available at super-budget price, I think that I would have to recommend it above Fagen's performances, good though they are.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
3.0 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews) 15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Lighten up, guys! This is not that bad a recording.,
By Michael D. Bauer "darthelm0" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Martinu: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 4 (Audio CD)
Good lord, to read these reviews you'd think this was a performance by war criminals or orcs. But for a budget-priced recording, it's a fine introduction to Martinu for the hesitant & budget-conscious.
Go ahead and disagree with Fagen's reading; that's fair game. But as with the 99-cent cassette tape that introduced me to Tchaikovsky's Fourth when I was a teenager, the composer's voice in these works is too powerful to be suppressed by Fagen or anyone else with the courage to attempt to bring them to life. As far as I'm concerned, Martinu's symphonies are brilliant enough to be performed on a calliope without losing much of their inherent passion, and the NSO of Ukraine sounds considerably better than a calliope. Balance, intonation, clarity, tone, and production values here are all fine. These are difficult works in which stormy dissonance is often immediately followed by gentle harmony, both of which come across well. And even Fagen's interpretation, which for all I know *might* be off (I don't own the scores to these symphonies), still *sounds* quite convincing. It isn't like, say, the 3rd-French-horn player is being allowed to drown out the violins at odd moments. This is a good recording. Just because there are better ones doesn't make Naxos or Fagen miscreants. Maybe if/when I hear those superior recordings I'll never play these again, but I won't regret having used them to familiarize myself with these complex works; maybe I'll appreciate the better recordings even more as a result. In the mean time, I'll continue to enjoy these. Postscript: if this tells you anything, in the six years since I originally posted this review, I've felt no need whatsoever to seek out different recordings of these works. Fagen and the NSO Ukraine's effort has held up very well indeed to repeated, much-enjoyed listening! Accordingly, I've bumped this up to four stars (from my cowardly original three). 3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Splendid,
By David Saemann - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Martinu: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 4 (Audio CD)
I have to disagree with the previous four reviewers. I think this is a splendid CD, as are all three entries in the Naxos Martinu Symphony cycle. I have heard other performances of the symphonies by Munch, Neumann, Bryden Thomson, and Ancerl, and I feel these recordings by Arthur Fagen are in the same league. Although these discs are budget priced, that is the only concession to budget thinking they demonstrate. The Ukrainian orchestra plays very well, even better than they did in Theodore Kuchar's excellent Prokofiev series. The sound engineering is obviously done in a radio studio, but it is full bodied and clear, lacking only the last degree of resonance. As an interpreter, Fagen is incisive and energetic, demonstrating that these works are not merely studies in wistfulness, as they so often seem. I must admit that I have not seen the scores of these works, but judging just by what I've heard on this disc, there is much to enjoy in Fagen's take on Martinu.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Naxos versus Chandos,
By David Ashworth "David" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Martinu: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 4 (Audio CD)
I am a big fan of Naxos recordings having over 100 in my collection but I Think they miss the boat here. The Chandos set with The RSNO and Thomson offer a better alternative and not much difference in price.
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