Florent Schmitt (1870-1958)
La Tragédie de Salomé Op 50 (1907)
Chant Elégiaque, Op 24 (1911)
Ambur Braid (soprano); Philipp Staemmler (cello)
Frankfurt Radio Symphony / Alain Altinoglu
rec. 2021/22, HR-Sendesaal, Hessischer Rundfunk, Frankfurt, Germany
Alpha Classics 941 [70]
In 2023 I was greatly intrigued by a recording of Florent Schmitt’s ballet, La Tragédie de Salomé by Julien Masmondet and the ensemble known as Les Apaches! (review). Masmondet also recorded the 1907 full score, so does this new recording by Alain Altinoglu offer a direct comparison? Well, not quite.
When Schmitt composed the ballet, he scored it for a small band of some 20 players; that’s what we hear on the Masmondet disc. In 1909 Schmitt fashioned a suite which he scored lavishly for full orchestra. That suite takes about 30 minutes to play and it includes, among other music, some of the juiciest bits of the ballet – the ‘Prélude’, ‘Danse des perles’, ‘Les enchantements sur la mer’ and the concluding ‘Danse de l’Effroi’. However, the suite uses only about half of the ballet’s music: Altinoglu’s recording of the full score plays for 62:45 while the Masmondet version takes about 54:00. What intrigues me about this new Altinoglu recording is that the piece is billed as “1907 version” yet it is played by a full orchestra; so far as I’ve been able to discover, Schmitt never scored the entire ballet for large orchestra. I can only presume that the scoring of the 1909 Suite has been applied to the ballet as a whole. Catherine Lorent’s notes, which are very good – and vastly superior to what is offered with the Masmondet recording – are silent on this point.
It will be noted that Alain Altinoglu takes some nine minutes longer than Julien Masmondet to play the ballet; as an example, Altinoglu’s account of the ‘Prélude’ takes 10:58 against Masmondet’s 9:25. I think Masmondet is somewhat leaner in his approach – and I’m not just talking about orchestral textures – but I never felt there was any lack of tension – or momentum when required – in the Altinoglu performance. That said, with a very large orchestra at his disposal, it’s understandable if Altinoglu yielded to a desire to be spacious at times.
I enjoyed his performance very much indeed. The ‘Prélude’ seems to me to be admirably judged; it sets the scene for what is to follow in so many ways. The section which follows ‘Deuxième Tableau’ offers a mixture of sumptuous and powerful music. A little later on we hear ‘Danse du Paon’ (Dance of the Peacock), which Catherine Lorent refers to as “pompous” music; I might prefer the word stately, but I know what she means. The ‘Danse des Serpents’ is suitably slithery and malevolent in this performance. A highlight of the whole score is the section ‘Les enchantements sur la mer’. Here, the scoring is quite magical and offers more than a nod to Debussy’s La Mer. Altinoglu and his orchestra are marvellous in this episode: they relish Schmitt’s colourings; the playing is wonderfully atmospheric and also poetic.
Towards the end of the ballet comes ‘Chant d’Aïça’. This brief episode includes a part for a solo soprano. Ambur Braid makes a fine impression; her voice is suitably distanced at first but then becomes more ‘present’ as the music grows in intensity. I admired her sensuous sound. I should add that Sandrine Buendia is also impressive on the Masmondet recording. The section which follows the intervention of the soprano, ‘Danse blanche’ is strongly projected in this Frankfurt performance. Then the ballet whirls to its conclusion and the powerful dénouement of ‘Danse de l’Effroi’.
I felt caught up in Alain Altinoglu’s performance. He and his orchestra do full justice to Schmitt’s opulent scoring, bringing out both the powerful, dramatic passages and also those places in the score where a lighter touch is required. It’s absolutely fascinating to hear the original scoring in the Masmondet recording but I find the full scoring irresistible.
For his coupling Altinoglu offers something which is infinitely more interesting than the contemporary piece on the Masmondet disc. Altinoglu gives us another piece by Schmitt in the shape of his Chant Elégiaque. I had never heard this piece before but I learned from Catherine Lorent’s notes that it was originally conceived for cello and piano between 1899 and 1903; Schmitt orchestrated it, most effectively, in 1911. Here, the soloist is Philipp Staemmler; he’s excellent, playing with great eloquence and a lovely, rich tone. The piece is beautiful; the mood is melancholic and gently intense. Wisely, Schmitt doesn’t allow the music to outstay its welcome; the dimensions of the piece are just right. It’s the perfect envoi after the opulence of the ballet score.
This pair of fine performances has been recorded in excellent sound. Catherine Lorent’s notes offer a very good introduction to the music we are hearing.
John Quinn
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