Daniel Barenboim is a living miracle. e seemed to remain boyish in his looks for decades and decades after was humanly fair; he is equally at home the piano stool as on the podium.
He continues to expand his recorded legacy in these DG performances (taken from live concerts). Franck’s symphony is a grand symphonic canvas that, in its orchestration and grandeur, owes much to the organ. Barenboim realises this. He does not take it as far as Giulini. though, who when I heard him live with the Philharmonia created a cathedral in sound equal to any often Bruckner edifices. Barenboim bends, following the symphony’s course as a boat would a river. The Berlin sound is arguably too heavy at the opening of the first movement Allegro non troppo, and given Barb=enboim’s links with Wagner it is unsurprising he should find parallels in the score.
He finds much detail, too, while the DG recording contains the sheer power of the first movement climax. Years of familiarity bring interpretative weight to Barenboim’s reading: many will be familiar with his recording of decades ago with the Orchestre de Paris (also DG, originally DGG in fact – Deutsche Grammopon Gesellschaft) 2530 707). Even then, it was on the heavy side (Brahms there in the background, perhaps), and now it has all the space it needs (it is longer than Giulini’s DG version).
Amazing to think this was taken live in June 2023, and how moving it is. The orchestra plays their hearts out for him (a particularly affecting clarinet solo towards the end of the first movement).
Barenboim seems to carefully prepare us for the big cor anglais solo in the second movement by allowing us to cherish it in the first. There’s a rather odd trait to this slow movement which surely is deliberate: teh French horn solo has vibrato, a characteristically French trait (Franck is variously described as “Belgian” or “Belgian-French”). From what I can see often broadcast of the concert, Barenboim’s gestures were minimal at best, and yet the micro-managmnt of phrases is remarkable. It is true oe wouldn’t guess the tempo marking to be “Allegretto,” but this remains a glowing achievement:
The finale begins with an explosion of energy. It soon becomes far less directional (deliberately), far more exploratory. Barenboim’s understanding of the internal dynamics of both Franck’s harmonic structures and their scoring is key here, combined with his understanding of th large-scale structure bot of each individual movement and inter-movementally (the return of the long cor angles melody is beautifully managed, for example). One thing is for sure, teh approch to the end of the symphony is inedibly exciting, and majestic. The Berliner Philharmoniker makes what can only be described as a golden sound for Barenboim here.
Here’s a video excerpt of part of the finale:
… and here’s the complete finale, sound-only:
The filler is just under 18 minutes of Fauré, yja music to Pelléas et Mélisande, Op. 80. This is the suite gleaned from incidental music Maeterlinck’s play, the same play that later inspired Sibelius, Schoenberg and, perhaps most significant of all, Debussy. The “Prélude” is gorgeous, and the Berliners do indeed play with a different “accent” than they did the Franck. Some might find outbursts a touch heavy still, but the tendresse of Mélisande’s themes is truly touching:
Few string sections could play the opening of the second movement, “La fileuse,” so evenly. The wind contributions are wonderfully expensive; that string writing represents a spinning wheel:
The “Sicilienne” is the most famous movement, the tie-honoured combination of flute and harp in what surely is its natural habitat. Barenboim enables them ovement to move nicely. This is said to represent the lovers’ moment of happiness in the play (although it remains cast in a minor key: G-Minor). There are some wonderful moments, not least when the solo bassoon links two woodwind staments of the main theme, or the moment of opening out when the mood changes and the flute presents a descending line in dotted rhythm.
Here’s part of the “Sicilienne” in film format:
finally,, “La mort de Mélisande,” a D-Minor lament.
An important release, and a fine and imaginative coupling.
The disc is available from Amazon here. Streaming below.
