Böhm was reported to have told the Wiener Philharmoniker towards the end of his life "I loved you as one can only love a woman". Listening to this boxset, capturing the Concertgebouworkest at the peak of its powers (between 1935 and June 1941), still at a commendable level (between July 1941 and 1944) before having to rebuild from the ashes of war (1945 to 1947) to finally come back to the highest level (1949-1950), the careful auditor has history in the making unfolding with its drama, its joys, but essentially its incommensurable beauty.
The ones who read my review of the Mengelberg box set will remember that it was easier to judge the orchestra builder (considering how well the Concertgebouw plays throughout these recordings) than the performer (old and weary by the time most of his recordings were made). As far as the orchestra builder is concerned, this boxset, mostly conducted by other artists than Mengelberg, demonstrates that during his 50-year tenure, Mengelberg had done an incredible job of bringing this orchestra to the highest standards, so much so that composers like Mahler, Grieg or Richard Strauss were considering it the "go to" place for the performance of their music.
Mengelberg - let's start with him, is represented only once but how! He conducts Franck's symphony in D in what is an obliterating performance, precise and passionate: one of the best recorded versions of the piece.
Actually, among the guest conductors only represented once, it is indispensable to mention Paul Paray and his demented "Till Eulenspiegel" - speaking about an orchestra virtuoso enough to play at breakneck speed like this is just amazing. Another five-star performance.
In a completely different genre, it is also very moving to hear "Ma mère l'oye” beautifully done by Ansermet, and one of the best available Elgar's "Variations Enigma" conducted by Adrian Boult just a couple of months before the start of the German occupation - an immensely moving performance - and Hindemith conducting his own Symphony in E, wih gusto and authority - despite poor reviews at the time. .
To be sure there are less pleasant experiences and the boxset brings testimony of conductors from the occupying power conducting in the middle of WWII: on a pure artistic basis, Karajan and the Concertgebouw had very little in common and the Don Juan from 1943 is just pleasant (I would have personally chosen the "Tanz der siebein Schlieier", much more committed and sexy - but I wasn't asked!).
Abendroth plays the beautiful (and virtually unknown) symphonic poems from paintings by Boecklin by poor Max Reger, who ended up representing teutonicity during the Nazi era at the Concertgebouw while the composer himself died in 1916…
van Kempen (cleared of pro-Nazi activities but in the eye of the storm after the war) conducts a completely uninteresting piece by Renzo Rossellini (brother of Roberto) while Schuricht manages to make "Das Lied van der Erde" uninteresting despite a juicy incident close to the end of the performance. Too bad Mengelberg was unwell and had to be replaced that night, preventing posterity from a Das Lied conducted by Mengelberg…
Switching now to the conductors that were/would be "regulars" of the orchestra, we need to first mention Pierre Monteux, permanent guest conductor of the orchestra between 1925 and 1934 who came back in 1939 to conduct a concert of French music before returning regularly after the war until his death in 1963. Again, we have superior accounts of "La Mer" and of the phenomenal Saint-Saens's piano concerto #4 (with Robert Casadesus as soloist), Elsewhere in the boxset Monteux plays a superb Konzertstück by Schumann with Lily Kraus and a MAGNIFICENT première, taped in 1950: Andriessen's organ concerto played by the composer at the great Concertgebouw organ. A very impressive, ample piece.
The boxset also pays tribute to another permanent guest conductor, the legendary Bruno Walter, who was offered a position at the Concertgebouw after having been kicked out of Berlin in 1933. He stayed in Amsterdam until 1939 and from his tenure we have amazing accounts of the Fliegende Holländer overture (another reference recording) and of Busoni's violin concerto (played by Adolf Busch). My only regret is that the boxset dos not include the insane Brahms piano concerto #1 recorded with Vladimir Horowitz in 1936 and released by Music & Arts. Like Monteux, Walter will come back after the war but his 1947 Mahler's 1st will not be a decisive account probably because at that time the orchestra is rebuilding from the horrors of the war and is not at its best. Strangely enough, Klemperer deals with this situation better than Walter: the viola section cannot play the viola passage of the second movement of Bruckner's 4th so solo violist Klaas Boon plays on his own. Symptomatic of the poor form of the orchestra, this performance is nonetheless unforgettable because Klemperer plays with a great flexibility and does not dwell too much - so the symphony flows very naturally and this "convalescing" music-making is just beautiful.
Monteux and Walter were stars in their own right but the quality of an orchestra is for all to hear when it manages to deliver the goods without necessary a superstar raising the stick. And here we need to have a word or two for Jan Koetsier, somewhat forgotten today but he was second conductor of the Concertgebouw between 1942 and 1948, and the boxset pays tribute to him via three FANTASTIC recordings: The "Pastorale d'été" by Honegger (1943), Haydn's Piano Concerto in D major with Gérard Hengeveld (1943) and - listen to his- what is probably one of the best-ever recorded version of the "Academic Festival Overture" by Brahms. There is so much students' enthusiasm reflected here that the public applauds several bars before the end!
1950…Almost the end of the great boxset. And this anthology, perfect since the beginning, presents two facets of the music world during that year: its past and its future. Let's start by its future: Rafael Kubelik, only 36 then, permanent conductor of the Concertgebouw alongside van Beinum between 1946 and 1955 - playing the Dutch premiere of Shostakovich's Leningrad Symphony, generating tears from his moved audience, for whom the hunger winter was not that long ago. Shostakovich, a composer that had been neglected so far by the orchestra, and that Kondrashin and Haitink would help it rediscover. But this "Leningrad" is unforgettable and shows the natural appreciation of the Concertgebouw for this music.
1950…also the end of an era with Erich Kleiber and Willhem Furtwängler who would both die soon (Furt in 1954 and Kleiber in 1956).
Kleiber is unfortunately very poorly represented with a very noisy and OTT Beethoven's 5th while Furtwängler's Brahms is cataclysmic and overwhelming - the opposite of what van Beinum would do with the score just one year later. Music would never be interpreted that way again and Furtwängler would not set foot in the Concertgebouw after these July 1950 performances.
An era was closing but the sound of the Concertgebouw remained, purer and more beautiful than ever, fully recovered from the War, and determined to continue to make history.
The saga of the Concertgebouw is far from over.
Performers
Composer: Richard Wagner, Ferruccio Busoni, Maurice Ravel, Richard Strauss, et al …
Performer: Adolf Busch, Robert Casadesus, Carl Martin Oehmann, Kerstin Thorborg, et al …
Conductor: Bruno Walter, Ernest Ansermet, Paul Paray, Herbert von Karajan, et al …
Orchestra: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Works on This Recording
1.
Der fliegende Holländer: Overture by Richard Wagner
Conductor: Bruno Walter
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1841/1852; Germany
Date of Recording: 1936
Length: 10 Minutes 17 Secs.
2.
Concerto for Violin in D major, Op. 35a/K 243 by Ferruccio Busoni
Performer: Adolf Busch (Violin)
Conductor: Bruno Walter
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1899; Berlin, Germany
Date of Recording: 1936
Length: 22 Minutes 13 Secs.
3.
Ma mère l'oye by Maurice Ravel
Conductor: Ernest Ansermet
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: France
Date of Recording: 1940
Length: 24 Minutes 5 Secs.
Notes: Orchestrated: Maurice Ravel (1911)
Composition written: France (1908 - 1910).
4.
Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche, Op. 28 by Richard Strauss
Conductor: Paul Paray
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1894-1895; Germany
Date of Recording: 1940
Length: 13 Minutes 25 Secs.
5.
Don Juan, Op. 20 by Richard Strauss
Conductor: Herbert von Karajan
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1888-1889; Germany
Date of Recording: 1943
Length: 17 Minutes 19 Secs.
6.
Un raggio de sole: Stampe della vecchia Roma by Renzo Rosselini
Conductor: Paul Van Kempen
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: Italy
Date of Recording: 1942
Length: 13 Minutes 6 Secs.
7.
Symphony in D minor, M 48 by César Franck
Conductor: Willem Mengelberg
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1886-1888; France
Date of Recording: 1940
Length: 35 Minutes 6 Secs.
8.
Les Eolides, M 43 by César Franck
Conductor: Pierre Monteux
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1875-1876; France
Date of Recording: 1939
Length: 12 Minutes 20 Secs.
9.
Benvenuto Cellini: Overture, Op 23 by Hector Berlioz
Conductor: Pierre Monteux
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1834-1837; France
Date of Recording: 1939
Length: 11 Minutes 16 Secs.
10.
Concerto for Piano no 4 in C minor, Op. 44 by Camille Saint-Saëns
Performer: Robert Casadesus (Piano)
Conductor: Pierre Monteux
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1875; France
Date of Recording: 1939
Length: 24 Minutes 46 Secs.
11.
La mer by Claude Debussy
Conductor: Pierre Monteux
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1903-1905; France
Date of Recording: 1939
Length: 23 Minutes 10 Secs.
12.
Das Lied von der Erde by Gustav Mahler
Performer: Carl Martin Oehmann (Tenor), Kerstin Thorborg (Mezzo Soprano)
Conductor: Carl Schuricht
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1908-1909; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 1939
Length: 63 Minutes 26 Secs.
Language: German
13.
Concerto for Cello by Gian-Francesco Malipiero
Performer: Enrico Mainardi (Cello)
Conductor: Eduard van Beinum
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1937; Italy
Date of Recording: 1941
Length: 15 Minutes 57 Secs.
14.
Tone Poems (4) after Arnold Böcklin, Op. 128 by Max Reger
Conductor: Hermann Abendroth
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1913; Germany
Date of Recording: 1941
Length: 25 Minutes 41 Secs.
15.
Concerto for Violin in A major, Op. 101 by Max Reger
Performer: Georg Kulenkampff (Violin)
Conductor: Willem van Otterloo
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1907-1908; Germany
Date of Recording: 1944
Length: 54 Minutes 36 Secs.
16.
Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 36 "Enigma" by Sir Edward Elgar
Conductor: Sir Adrian Boult
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1898-1899; England
Date of Recording: 1940
Length: 30 Minutes 5 Secs.
17.
Pastorale d'été by Arthur Honegger
Conductor: Jan Koetsier
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1920; France
Date of Recording: 1943
Length: 7 Minutes 59 Secs.
18.
Concerto for Keyboard in D major, H 18 no 11 by Franz Joseph Haydn
Performer: Gerard Hengeveld (Piano)
Conductor: Jan Koetsier
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: by 1784; Eszterhazá, Hungary
Date of Recording: 1943
Length: 21 Minutes 18 Secs.
19.
Symphony no 40 in G minor, K 550 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Conductor: Eugen Jochum
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1788; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 1943
Length: 25 Minutes 27 Secs.
20.
Sinfonietta for Winds by Willem van Otterloo
Conductor: Willem van Otterloo
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1943; Netherlands (Holland
Date of Recording: 1944
Length: 16 Minutes 55 Secs.
21.
Academic Festival Overture in C minor, Op. 80 by Johannes Brahms
Conductor: Jan Koetsier
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1880; Austria
Date of Recording: 1944
Length: 11 Minutes 4 Secs.
22.
Symphony no 1 in C minor, Op. 68 by Johannes Brahms
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1855-1876; Austria
Date of Recording: 1950
Length: 46 Minutes 19 Secs.
23.
Hebrides Overture, in B minor Op. 26 "Fingal's Cave" by Felix Mendelssohn
Conductor: Otto Klemperer
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1829-1832; Rome, Italy
Date of Recording: 1947
Length: 9 Minutes 7 Secs.
24.
Symphony no 4 in E flat major, WAB 104 "Romantic" by Anton Bruckner
Conductor: Otto Klemperer
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1874; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 1947
Length: 55 Minutes 1 Secs.
Notes: Edition: Nowak
Composition written: Vienna, Austria (1874 - 1886).
25.
Cyrano de Bergerac Overture, Op. 23 by Johan Wagenaar
Conductor: George Szell
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Date of Recording: 1948
Length: 13 Minutes 54 Secs.
26.
Concerto for Organ by Hendrik Andriessen
Performer: Hendrik Andriessen (Organ)
Conductor: Pierre Monteux
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1950
Date of Recording: 1950
Length: 18 Minutes 14 Secs.
27.
Symphony in E flat major by Paul Hindemith
Conductor: Paul Hindemith
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1940; USA
Date of Recording: 1949
Length: 31 Minutes 41 Secs.
28.
Symphony no 7 in C major, Op. 60 "Leningrad" by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Rafael Kubelik
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1941; USSR
Date of Recording: 1950
Length: 71 Minutes 51 Secs.
29.
Symphony no 1 in C major, Op. 21 by Ludwig van Beethoven
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1800; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 1950
Length: 24 Minutes 58 Secs.
30.
Symphony no 5 in C minor, Op. 67 by Ludwig van Beethoven
Conductor: Erich Kleiber
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1807-1808; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 1950
Length: 31 Minutes 14 Secs.
31.
Leonore Overture no 3 in C major, Op. 72a by Ludwig van Beethoven
Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1805-1806; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 1950
Length: 14 Minutes 49 Secs.
32.
Symphony no 1 in D major "Titan" by Gustav Mahler
Conductor: Bruno Walter
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1888/1896
Date of Recording: 1947
Length: 49 Minutes 0 Secs.
Notes: Composition written: Leipzig, Germany (1888).
Composition revised: Germany (1896).
33.
Konzertstück for Piano and Orchestra in F minor, Op. 79 by Carl Maria von Weber
Performer: Lili Kraus (Piano)
Conductor: Pierre Monteux
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1821; Dresden, Germany
Date of Recording: 1939
Length: 16 Minutes 46 Secs.
34.
Concerto for Piano left hand in D major by Maurice Ravel
Performer: Paul Wittgenstein (Piano)
Conductor: Bruno Walter
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1929-1930; France
Date of Recording: 1937
Length: 15 Minutes 59 Secs.
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