Dmitri's Dacha

[alkan]

Which recording, in your opinion, contains the wildest, all-Hell-breaking-loose ending of the 11th symphony? (Thanks in advance.)

I have the Rostropovich/LSO Live CD, and the ending is pretty overwhelming.       The bells are REALLY loud and clear, and the side-drummer is hammering away like a maniac.      The nice thing at the very end is that despite it being a live recording, the audience are absolutely silent as the reverberation of the bells fades slowly away.    The spell is not broken .....     

[Opus106]

I have the Rostropovich/LSO Live CD, and the ending is pretty overwhelming.       The bells are REALLY loud and clear, and the side-drummer is hammering away like a maniac.

Excellent.

The nice thing at the very end is that despite it being a live recording, the audience are absolutely silent as the reverberation of the bells fades slowly away.    The spell is not broken .....     

Very nice added bonus, I would say. Thanks.

[alkan]

Out of curiosity, I listened again to Rostropovich's LSO Live ending to No 11   .... it had been a while and my message yesterday was based on my old recollections ....

Basically, I still find it to be absolutely overpowering and thrilling.       The build-up is slow, deliberate, and ominous.    There is a marvellous passage with tormented winds punctuated by awesome blows on the bass drum .... really menacing.   I'd forgotten just how good the brass are when they enter into the fray .... a real powerhouse.    The xylophone is extremely clear and piercing.       The bells at the climax are actually not quite as dominant as I thought.    Nevertheless, they are perfectly clear and every so often a crucial dissonance really rings out.     It's great to follow the bells playing in the minor key against the orchestra in the major.

Two impressions dominate.    The first is Rostropovich's control and/or the LSO's discipline.     It never gets ragged or unruly ..... it rolls forward like a monstrous machine.     The second is the recording quality.     There is so much going on at the end and it is all perfectly clear and transparent.    Very impressive.

There are other highlights and climaxes   (eg in the second movement, when the revolt is crushed by the army) which are equally impressive.        I bought this CD on impulse because it was so cheap ..... what a bargain it turned out to be .... 

[alkan]

Whilst we are on the topic of awesome endings in Shostakovich Symphonies  (his speciality I think ....), what do you think of the ending of the 4th Symphony?     For me, this is the "creme de la creme".     Not only an apocalyptic climax, but a bizzare and unearthly epilogue.      Rather to my surprise, my favourite recording here is Simon Rattle with the Birmingham SO.    Tremendous power in the climax, followed by a truly atmospheric coda .... it's like surviving an atomic bomb ....    Kondrashin is great too, but the sound is far inferiour and this lessens the impact a little.

For the 5th, my favourite is Sanderling ..... if you have never heard it before, it is quite a shock.    The total opposite to every other recording I know.    But for me, very convincing.

Sanderling also for the end of the 15th ..... this is the most spine-chilling music I know ....

[jlaurson]

Whilst we are on the topic of awesome endings in Shostakovich Symphonies  (his speciality I think ....), what do you think of the ending of the 4th Symphony?     For me, this is the "creme de la creme".     Not only an apocalyptic climax, but a bizzare and unearthly epilogue. ...

From: http://ionarts.blogspot.com/2008/01/when-heldenleben-orchestra-stops-at.html

...Beautiful the tic-tocs into the false calm of the third movement's opening – only to proceed to delve deeply into this strange, enervating, beautifully bizarre world that makes the Mahler-influenced first movement seem perfectly normal. Bychkov managed to tighten the music's thumbscrews anew at every new start after an intermittent lull or (faux-) lyrical passage.


If someone ever felt compelled to make a film of Griffins having S&M sex, this would be the soundtrack for it: The shrieks, the brutality, the claws, the exhaustion, the climaxes and the pounding, and the relentlessness are harrowing and were particularly so in this performance. There could not be a more appropriate description of it, even if it risks being clichéd: Bychkov and orchestra were playing the hell out of the finale. But more distressing still, because of all that which preceded it, was the ensuing dreamy delicacy of the ticking-away of the symphony... the final breath and that mourning trumpet that sounded like a death knell ringing over a blood soaked battlefield on a Winter dawn ... a comment on a victory everyone knows to have been a defeat.


No wonder Shostakovich kept the symphony in the drawer until de-Stalinization was under way. It would otherwise not only have been his fourth, but also his last symphony.

[alkan]

Thanks JLaurson.        For sure, the finale makes the imagination run riot !!

I once saw the end of the 4th symphony used as a very effective soundtrack to a documentary about the Voyager probes to Jupiter!     The quiet part, before the big climax, portrays the probe travelling through outer space for years on end.     As it finally approaches Jupiter, the climax starts.     As the wierd and never-before-seen vista's of Jupiter and its moons fill the screen, the continuous fortissimo and awesome climaxes underline a real feeling of titanic, unearthly grandeur.    Then, Voyager has flashed by Jupiter and is heading off into the depths of space (it has actually left the solar system by now) as represented by the coda.     

A totally different take to the one you mentioned, but incredibly supportive of the images.

[Tapio Dimitriyevich Shostakovich]

Whilst we are on the topic of awesome endings in Shostakovich Symphonies  (his speciality I think ....), what do you think of the ending of the 4th Symphony?     For me, this is the "creme de la creme".

This. Without any doubt. You may want to try Mariss Jansons with the Bavarians here. Very important is the trumpet for me, it makes me shudder. In the Jansons you can clearly hear it. There are other performances where it's too much in the background.

But it's not only greatness in the endings of the whole work, but also endings of movements. In particular I'm thinking of the ending of No. 5 mvmt I, or the second movement of 11. Both share some bizarre, unearthy elements, and fear.

And this is what we like about Shostakovich, don't we? The positive moments are not plain positive and followed by tragedy or question marks. He's not Schubert.  Or the Lento in Symphony No. 1 - was impressing for me as a live experience. Beautiful melody with the clarinet, but that warbling violins transporting uncerrtainty, great.

For the 5th, my favourite is Sanderling ..... if you have never heard it before, it is quite a shock.    The total opposite to every other recording I know.    But for me, very convincing.

The recordings with the Berliner SO? They're all my favourites except maybe for the 8th and 10th. As for the fifth and that particular recording: IMHO the first movement starting from 13:00 pretty well sums up, what Shostakovich Symphonies are about.

Sanderling also for the end of the 15th ..... this is the most spine-chilling music I know ....

Yes. Yes. Yes. Absolutely. I prefer both of his recordings. Other conductors play the percussive ending way faster, but I don't like that-.

BTW did you know this reviews page? http://dschjournal.com/reviews/review_master_index.html

[jlaurson]

Sanderling also for the end of the 15th ..... this is the most spine-chilling music I know ....

Not shabby in the 15th: Kondrashin / Dresden!
http://ionarts.blogspot.com/2008/01/dip-your-ears-no-88.html

[Mirror Image]

I've come to really appreciate (and love) Shostakovich's music this year. I have really come to enjoy most of his symphonies, the concerti, the ballets, his other various orchestral works, and the string quartets (which I'm still making my way through). I recently listened to the newer Argerich recording of her performing Piano Concerto No. 1, but I really loved the inclusion of his Piano Quintet. Here is the disc:





I'm not sure if I can pick a favorite symphony cycle I own (so far): Barshai, Haitink, Ashkenazy, Rostropovich, and Jansons. I'm really enjoying the ongoing cycle with Petrenko. This might be some of the exciting Shostakovich I've heard yet. Has anyone heard Kitajenko's cycle? I've read mixed opinions of his set.

[Mirror Image]

I only have the 3 film CDs on Chandos.  I think it's some of his best work.

Not me. Film music was not Shostakovich's medium, although he did compose some great scores. His symphonies, concerti, and the string quartets are his most important contributions to music in my assessment.

[Mirror Image]

Add Rostropovich to the debate........

Sarge

I like the Rostropvich cycle or at least so far as I've made my way through Symphonies Nos. 1-11.

[jlaurson]

Has anyone heard Kitajenko's cycle? I've read mixed opinions of his set.

I find it extraordinary, especially when I'm in the mood for excellent sound. But I have no "favorites" in Shostakovich, somehow...  not in the same way I do in other composers, at least.

[Brian]

I'm not sure if I can pick a favorite symphony cycle I own (so far): Barshai, Haitink, Ashkenazy, Rostropovich, and Jansons. I'm really enjoying the ongoing cycle with Petrenko. This might be some of the exciting Shostakovich I've heard yet. Has anyone heard Kitajenko's cycle? I've read mixed opinions of his set.

Haven't got many cycles, just Barshai in fact, but I've heard quite a few Tenths in the past 6 weeks and would rank them in this order:

(No 10)
=outstanding [these three can change places depending on my mood]=
1. Petrenko
2. Jansons
3. Sanderling (sound is dated, sure, but the playing superb)
=very, very good=
4. Karajan 80s
5. Barshai
=flawed in some way=
6. Skrowaczewski
7. M. Shostakovich, LSO (probably the Supraphon is better)
8. Wigglesworth (sound too low-level)
9. Kitajenko (though his third movement is in the top 3, the finale is very plain)

I recently auditioned the scherzo from Ancerl's legendary performance and, despite my love for Ancerl and high expectations, found it a major letdown. It's so fast it loses a lot of intensity. Petrenko and Karajan are best there.

But it's not only greatness in the endings of the whole work, but also endings of movements. In particular I'm thinking of the ending of No. 5 mvmt I, or the second movement of 11. Both share some bizarre, unearthy elements, and fear.

The ends of the first movements of 5, 6, and 10 are all different angles on that same insight.

[Brian]

I have the Rostropovich/LSO Live CD, and the ending is pretty overwhelming.       The bells are REALLY loud and clear, and the side-drummer is hammering away like a maniac.      The nice thing at the very end is that despite it being a live recording, the audience are absolutely silent as the reverberation of the bells fades slowly away.    The spell is not broken .....     

This didn't happen at the LPO live 11th I went to earlier this month. There was a burst of hugely enthusiastic applause, then sudden silence as everyone realized the bells were still audible. After a while everyone started clapping again, but kind of awkwardly. The sound engineers were probably kicking themselves.

[Scarpia]

This didn't happen at the LPO live 11th I went to earlier this month. There was a burst of hugely enthusiastic applause, then sudden silence as everyone realized the bells were still audible. After a while everyone started clapping again, but kind of awkwardly. The sound engineers were probably kicking themselves.

They're going to re-record the closing at rehearsal to get an applause-free version anyway.

[Mirror Image]

I find it extraordinary, especially when I'm in the mood for excellent sound. But I have no "favorites" in Shostakovich, somehow...  not in the same way I do in other composers, at least.

Thanks J., I'll check it out. I see that it's out-of-print. That's a shame. 

[Mirror Image]

Haven't got many cycles, just Barshai in fact, but I've heard quite a few Tenths in the past 6 weeks and would rank them in this order:

(No 10)
=outstanding [these three can change places depending on my mood]=
1. Petrenko
2. Jansons
3. Sanderling (sound is dated, sure, but the playing superb)
=very, very good=
4. Karajan 80s
5. Barshai
=flawed in some way=
6. Skrowaczewski
7. M. Shostakovich, LSO (probably the Supraphon is better)
8. Wigglesworth (sound too low-level)
9. Kitajenko (though his third movement is in the top 3, the finale is very plain)

I recently auditioned the scherzo from Ancerl's legendary performance and, despite my love for Ancerl and high expectations, found it a major letdown. It's so fast it loses a lot of intensity. Petrenko and Karajan are best there.

The ends of the first movements of 5, 6, and 10 are all different angles on that same insight.

Yes, Brian the Petrenko 10th is amazingly good. I might be revisiting it, yet again, tonight. By the way, have you heard Rattle's recording of the 10th with the Philharmonia? This one is another one of my favorites. Here's the cover (or the one I own anyway):

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

=flawed in some way=
6. Skrowaczewski

I have and enjoy this one. What don't you like about it? I do think the orchestra is not as powerful as it should be, but otherwise I have no objections.

I recently auditioned the scherzo from Ancerl's legendary performance and, despite my love for Ancerl and high expectations, found it a major letdown. It's so fast it loses a lot of intensity.

That was my reaction. Too fast and too light.

Also, have you heard Jarvi and Mravinsky?

[Tapio Dimitriyevich Shostakovich]

Important note: I hereby declare Kurt Sanderling to be my personal "Hero of Shostakovich". I have all the Berlin SO CDs with him conducting and I love them all (Sym. Nos. 1, 5, 6, 8, 10 and 15). I now tried No. 8 with Haitink, but happily returned to Sanderling. He's still alive BTW, heading towards 100 years of age .

[mc ukrneal]

In regards to Sanderling and #10, any thought on how his live version compares (the one Orchestre National de France)?