Shostakovich: Symphony No. 10 [CD]

Petrenko is really proving himself as a champion of Shostakovich with fantastic performances of the 5th, 8th, 9th and 11th symphonies already to his name. So this masterful recording of no.10 really puts his name in the same league as such Shostakovich interpretors as Mravinsky, Ashkenazy, Gergiev and Rostropovich.

The handling of the mysterious opening is perfection, there is much sensitive playing from the RLPO soloists with an excellent dynamic range and well thought - out articulation. The thrilling climax at the centre of this movement is absolutely breathtaking, and the melancholic ending of the movement is just sublime with sensitive playing from the two piccolo solos in particular.
The second movement is given a very energetic performance with impressive virtuosic playing from the RLPO. The anger in the movement is captured exceptionally, making the listening experience all the more exciting.
The sense of tragic mystery in the third movement is caught very well with fantastic handling of Shostakovich's genius hints of the DSCH motto theme.
The woodwinds of the RLPO give astonishing solos in the mysterious opening of the fourth movement, reminiscent of the first movement. This leads into the energetic allegro section with exceptional playing from the RLPO. The climax is astounding, extremely exciting. The brief string section which brings the last bit of melancholy of the symphony after the climax is played so beautifully. After that the ending is in sight and Petrenko really pushes the best out of his orchestra, bringing an exciting, enjoyable finale. After hearing those triumphant last few bars, with the DSCH motto in the timpani, I just wanted to listen to the whole symphony over again!

Throughout the whole symphony, the performance of the RLPO is impeccable and Petrenko's handling of this great orchestra is magnificent. The Naxos sound is fantastic and really allows the glorious orchestral tone of the RLPO to shine.

To me, it is better than Karajan's attempts, however great they were. This recording just contains so much more energy and beauty! So overall, this cd is highly reccommended.

Maybe one day after his Shostakovich cycle, Petrenko would turn to Mahler...I can only dream about how amazing that would be.

DH

The fourth issue in the Petrenko/RLPO cycle of Shostakovich symphonies reaches the composer's most accomplished work in this form, the monumental 10th. The controversy over Solomon Volkov's 'Testimony', in which much is said about its political implications, can blind one to its supreme virtue as a work rooted in a classical, abstract form, with simple themes that can be picked out and their development easily followed. For instance, in the first movement, the opening six-note motif, and the wedge-shaped second subject are developed,and then combined in a massive orchestral climax, to die away unresolved in an uneasy calm. The last movement gropes towards an optimistic conclusion, reaching an apotheosis in which the main theme, and the musical acronym of the composer's surname (D-S-C-H: D- E flat- C-B in British musical notation) combine to bring the work to a triumphant conclusion in the major key. It is a perfectly-formed symphony, travelling through the depths of despair to a final victory against the odds, and achieving what the composer's earlier exercises in this form did not quite bring off.

As in earlier issues, Petrenko adopts brisk tempi, and avoids lingering over the more introspective sections, especially in the third movement where he is obedient to the 'Allegretto' marking. His orchestra sustains the sheer momentum of the violent and angry second movement, in which the upper strings, woodwind and side-drummer play with great virtuosity. Nor is this at the expense of subtlety: in the well-judged start of the work, the lower strings emerge from nothing to set the tragic mood that defines most of this symphony. Naxos has provided the clear, rather clinical sound that a work of such searing intensity demands, as well as notes that give a background to the symphony, though the revelation that it appeared at the end of the year when Stalin died is sufficient explanation in itself.

Once more at bargain price, and recommended without reservation.

Additional Note (8 October 2011): this recording has just won an accolade as the 'Gramophone' magazine's best Orchestral recording for the past year, so this is another good reason for getting it

The tenth is arguably one of Shostakovich' finest works, continuously battling the fifth for the gold in the popular vote, and over the last fourty-odd years a multitude of first-class performances have found their way to the mediums of LP and later CD. It is a symphony that demonstrates both great depth of emotion and at the same time the expressivety of a marching brass band (in short, Shosta at his best), and, composed in the exuberant months following Stalin's death in March 1953, it occupies a pivotal position in the oevre of the composer (for more about the symphony per se, see also my review of Semyon Bychkov's exemplary recording for AVIE).

Vasily Petrenko, by now a Shostakovich interpreter to be reckoned with, handles every note to perfection, and what a first-class orchestra the RLPO has become over the last decade! Every instrument group, sounding smooth as silk, shines like a midsummer sunrise and even the subtlest phrasing is in perfect sync. This is praise indeed - but therein, oddly enough, lies also my only real reservation when comparing this recording to others of equal standing.

Many years ago a critic for Gramophone magazine, when reviewing a Mahler recording by Leonard Bernstein, could not help complaining that once more the conductor just simply had to squeeze that last drop of neurotic angst out of the music, and this technique was beginning to feel a bit "over-done". He may have had a point, but once you've grown accustomed to heart-on-sleeve interpretations the "straight-up stuff" tends to come across as just a tiny bit bland (or under-salted, to stay in the technical language of the kitchen), and, to me at least, there was a spot or two in Petrenko's reading that was just a tad too straight forward. One example is the little valse grotesque of the third movement (at 7'52); this is played technically without fault but with the very stiffest of upper lips. If you turn to say Solti's recording (Decca 433 073-2) his sudden drop of pace from waltz to slightly wobbly ländler turns the dance into something like a struggle to get out of the quicksand of a seemingly paralysed everyday life. Or Sanderling's (Naïve V 4973 live) all but impossible accelerando in the same place, that introduces a quasi-schizoid slapstick element to the otherwise grey and icy movement. Little things like that can make quite a difference. The allegro (rather trying for presto furioso, as seems to be the trend these days) is extremely effective, but again Sanderling achieves a somehow more biting (or menacing) effect at a slower tempo. All in all, I miss something a bit angular (or even abrasive) in this performance, but for that to make its mark maybe the conductor had to be there in the old USSR when the going got rough - like Mravinsky or Sanderling or Bychkov; or maybe he had to be very far away - like Karajan, who always, to my considerable surprise, did this symphony astoundingly well. For these isolated instances of "underkill" I should like to deduct about half a star, but as that is not possible and as my qualms are related mostly to personal taste, I'll let Petrenko have the full five. Everything else is just so infuriatingly (from a critic's point of view) well done in this recording.

The Naxos engineers, having hit the target spot on in Petrenko's recording of the Rachmaninov Symphonic Dances, again manage a sound that is both sumptuous and finely detailed with a nice sense of space around the orchestra, so full marks in that department. The unstopable second movement in particular comes across as the sonic equivalent of an onrushing train; put that in your stereo and smoke it!