Béla Bartók (1881-1945)
Concerto for Orchestra, Sz.116 (1943)
Viola Concerto, Sz.120 (1945)
Amihai Grosz (viola)
Orchestre National de Lille/Alexandre Bloch
rec. 2022, Auditorium du Nouveau Siècle, Lille, France
Alpha Classics 1013 [62]
Recordings of these works are not thin on the ground, especially the Concerto for Orchestra. It would have to take something exceptional to endorse the disc. This CD has two things going for it. First, there is the combination of the pieces that to my knowledge have not been paired before. Both are late works Bartók composed in America and have certain themes, which are similar. Second, the performances are not only superbly played but also possess a great deal of character. There have been a number of accounts in recent years of the Concerto for Orchestra, where the virtuosity of the orchestra is taken for granted and the sound of the recordings is state-of-the-art. That is true here, too, but in addition Alexandre Bloch reveals the folk nature of these works to a degree that is second nature only to Hungarian conductors. With Amihai Grosz, as soloist, we have an account of the Viola Concerto that is outstanding in its virtuosity and warmth.
Bartók began composing the Viola Concerto in his final year, but was able to make only sketches and suggestions of the orchestration before leukemia took his life. It was to be his last composition. Like Mahler’s Tenth Symphony and Mozart’s Requiem it was left in a state where other hands were required to piece the work together and contribute composing of their own. Tibor Serly, pupil and friend of Bartók, accomplished the feat. Though there have been a few changes made to the Serly edition since then, which supposedly more accurately reflect the composer’s intentions, it is his original edition that is most often performed and recorded. It is also the one Grosz and the Orchestre National de Lille play here. Scottish-born violist William Primrose commissioned Bartók for the concerto, which was originally planned to consist of four movements with a scherzo the composer did not get to write. Its three movements are a long, rhapsodic section in sonata form reminiscent of this Violin Concerto No. 2. This is followed by a much shorter slow movement and a rondo finale that has a theme in the Poco meno mosso section suggestive of the Scottish folksong Comin’ Thro’ the Rye andseen as a tribute to Primrose, according to Nicolas Derny’s informative note.
Many listeners are likely familiar with Amihai Grosz in his role as one of the principal violists with the Berlin Philharmonic, especially if you subscribe to the Digital Concert Hall. He is also a founding member of the Jerusalem String Quartet and a renowned soloist in his own right. He plays a 1750 Gaspar-da-Salò viola on this recording. It is amazing how much colour Grosz produces from his instrument. His lower register is rich and burnished, while the higher end of the spectrum is brilliant, but never cold. Bloch’s orchestra are equal partners and one can clearly appreciate the orchestral part, though the recording favours the viola to the degree that most recordings do in solo concertos. The account of the concerto as a whole is as good as any I have ever heard. The finale really thrills as it dances off the page. I have heretofore not given enough consideration to this work largely because Bartók left it unfinished and it seemed a lesser work than his other mature concertos. This new account has totally changed my opinion.
The Concerto for Orchestra, on the other hand, is undoubtedly Bartók’s most popular orchestral work. I have heard too many performances to count and most of them are well played and recorded, but so often the work is treated as an orchestral showpiece to demonstrate the musicians’ proficiency. Prowess is clearly not lacking here, either, but Bloch brings out so much more in the way of character. He makes the work sound fresh. In my experience only Hungarian conductors have achieved this quality. Two of the best of those, not forgetting Fritz Reiner’s classic Chicago recording for RCA, are by Iván Fischer with the Budapest Festival Orchestra and Antal Doráti with the Amsterdam Concertgebouw both Philips (the latter may be hard to find), which I used for comparison here. All three recordings fall into the normal duration range: Fischer, the quickest (36 min.); Doráti (37); Bloch (38). This is misleading, however, because of differences in the individual movements. Fischer, overall, is more exciting and dramatic, while the other two show rather greater variety when it comes to tempos and mood. I find them all equally convincing, with the possible exception of Doráti’s second movement. His Giucco delle coppie is a bit on the slow side and, while adhering to the Allegretto scherzando marking, could be perkier. Conversely, the third movement Elegia is quicker than the others but with plenty of power and drama. What I really appreciate about Bloch’s account is the way he follows Doráti in closely observing Bartók’s accelerando markings in the finale. After the brassy fanfare, he speeds up gradually to the main tempo and at the end before the final chords he also differentiates the tempo by being slightly deliberate before those last bars. Fischer tends to speed through these, as many conductors do. To place Bloch on the same level as those Hungarians is high praise, indeed!
Bloch’s orchestra has no weak sections. The strings’ articulation in the fast moving passages is something to behold. Likewise, the solo woodwinds, brass, and percussion are first-class in every way. The sound that Alpha provides is truly vivid, allowing one to savour Bartók’s rich and colourful orchestra to the fullest. There are places where one would like even more presence. The horns, for example, could project more in their response to the trumpet theme in the finale, and no recording that I have heard quite equals the Concertgebouw’s robust tuba for Doráti in that movement. I would not want to be without any of these accounts of this twentieth-century staple and there are others, including Reiner’s, that I also regard highly. Alpha’s non-plastic packaging and more than satisfactory booklet are further incentives to add yet another recording of the Concerto for Orchestra and the Viola Concerto in this apposite coupling to your collection.
Leslie Wright
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