Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Symphonies Vols 32-35
Contents listed after review
Heidelberger Sinfoniker/Johannes Klumpp
No recording details provided
Hänssler Classic HC24039 [4 CDs: 282]

Johannes Klumpp has inherited an assignment of recording four CDs of Haydn symphonies – a pleasurable engagement, judging from his own enthusiastic booklet notes (in German and English). It’s an equal pleasure to review this box, as the symphonies are rarely played. Of course one cannot expect to hear at all regularly the dozens of Haydn symphonies which deserve to be played. There are few dull ones, but naturally the nicknamed ones and the familiar masterpieces are creamed off, even though many gems are to be found elsewhere. Having said that, may I do a mini-rant …? I do deeply regret the universal neglect of Haydn by symphony orchestras. The eighteenth century is where the modern orchestra was formed and concertgoers’ ears need the clean textures of Haydn and Mozart as refreshment and contrast with the predominance of Romantic and late-Romantic repertoire which saturates our concert programmes. 

To return to Klumpp’s inherited assignment – Thomas Fey conducted fifty-five of these consistently inventive works and Heidelberger Sinfoniker leader Benjamin Spillner took interim charge of seven symphonies. Fey had to withdraw because of serious disability, which is why Klumpp is now our man. An excellent choice he is, too, with his natural feeling for Haydn. One random example is the finale of Symphony No  66, with its five-bar phrases and testing bassoon part. Here, Klumpp is terrifically lively but also genial. In finales generally, he is energised without being fierce and driven, qualities which mar certain other conductors’ modern-day Haydn recordings. Incidentally, no other composer from this period writes a phrase of five bars which sounds as natural as the conventional four-bar unit. The first three movements of No 66 are nearly as satisfying – the opening Allegro con brio (both repeats are taken) is alert, rhythmically pointed and has a lively buzz. In the Adagio, Klumpp is generally plain and rather subdued. 

In general I love Klumpp’s handling of Symphony 71: an arresting slow introduction given with due emphasis and well contrasted dynamics, then an Allegro con brio of bristling energy. Like the second movement of Symphony No 66, this following Adagio, a supremely elegant theme and  variations with lovely wind-writing and a quasi-cadenza near the end, is a degree under-characterised, while a more generously singing quality would have been equally welcome. On the credit side, in this glorious movement Klumpp is not afraid to encourage his orchestra to play the unexpected fortes with bite. The minuet is splendid – both music and performance – and the trio is played with rhythmic swing and point. The trio section is delightful and the whole movement is easily as memorable as Haydn’s later minuets. Klumpp’s performance of the finale underlines the consistently superb quality of this symphony.

Symphony No 62 in D confirms my impressions – yet another characterful Haydn symphony, performed with both admirable musicianship and élan. Again, Klumpp is alert to dynamic contrasts without any exaggeration or distortion. The lightweight slow movement is unremarkable by Haydn’s standards,  the minuet is vividly rustic, and the finale, after a legato beginning, bristles with energy, ideally realised in this performance. Next on CD 2 is Symphony No 74, which opens innocently enough but proves to be unpredictable thereafter and moves into a muscular development section. Klumpp is totally engaged with all of Haydn’s sense of fun and his delight in surprising his listeners. At this point I have to say that – so far – his performances are probably the most idiomatic and characterful of any I have heard in this less familiar repertoire. He is so good that one wonders what he would make of Haydn’s mature symphonies. We find another suggestion of a wind-trio quasi-cadenza at the end of the Adagio, a delightful slow movement which has a main theme slightly reminiscent of the famous, mis-attributed serenade from the supposed quartet Opus 3 No 5, with a buoyant accompaniment. The trio of the minuet features Scotch snap rhythm, whereas the trio has the now-familiar melodic combination of bassoon and first violins. The 6/8 finale has some of Haydn’s most brilliant passages for the violins, played here with great style and panache. Again this is typical of Klumpp – alive and bracing. No 76 in E flat has an opening Allegro which accommodates muscularity and unobtrusive harmonic audacity. Klumpp’s exciting performance bristles with energy from the first bar (hyperactive violin figuration). In passing, it reminds me of the individual character of each of these symphonies. So many are wonderfully characterful, sub-standard works being very much the exception. The slow movement which – in common with that of No 74 – is a hybrid rondo/theme and variations, includes two powerfully contrasting minor-key sections. The brief, earthy minuet, like a ländler, is here given an infectious performance, then the finale – Allegro ma non troppo – is one of Haydn’s most genial, enhanced by numerous grace-notes. Typical silences add the element of surprise at which Haydn is unsurpassed. So No 76 is one of the best of this bunch and receives a super performance.

On to Disc 3 and Symphony No 77 in B flat: here an initially relaxed opening movement (“insouciant”, to borrow a word from Richard Wigmore’s highly recommendable Faber Pocket Guide) turns strenuous in the development section. Following an intimately lyrical Andante sostenuto – another rondo/variations hybrid, the minuet is a lusty dance with humour. The finale, once more after a relaxed opening, has some robust contrapuntal writing. Altogether this is a splendid symphony from Haydn’s top drawer. 

No 78 is one of that rare breed of minor-key Haydn symphonies. There are only ten in the total of more than 100, with three of them in the 40’s – at the height of the Sturm und Drang period. Here in this C minor symphony we have a powerful opening Vivace and an E flat major Adagio of unpredictable harmonic nature. The minuet, played with a lovely bounce and rhythmic swing, has a bizarre trio section, either drunk or simply cheeky, then a terrific Presto finale full of rough humour. Beethoven would have been proud to have composed this. Symphony No 81 begins with a big, themeless surprise – a loud chord followed by a repeated-quaver accompaniment in the cellos, then a sustained F natural in the second violins. This Vivace is stamped with Haydn’s genius, replete with harmonic ambiguity which he fully exploits. The elegant second movement comprises four variations on a siciliano melody, one variation being in D minor. After an earthy minuet spiced with many grace-notes – and a lyrical trio (bassoon and violins again) – the finale is wonderfully bracing, its development quickly interrupted by a pause. Haydn is supreme at creating tension/expectancy in this way.

Disc 4 begins with Symphony No 80, another minor-key work. First, a fiery Allegro spiritoso with an exposition accommodating an abundance of potentially developmental material and a second theme of casual waltz-like character. This latter unexpectedly takes more than its fair share of the development section. I like the way Klumpp relaxes ever so slightly into this casual theme in the exposition. The B flat major Adagio is notable for its animated episodes with busy sextuplet accompaniment, and its wide range of rhythmic elements, before the minuet returns to a sturdy of  D minor. Its strikingly beautiful, wind-dominated trio pits a Gregorian chant against a lively triplet accompaniment. The finale begins with a bare, syncopated theme of repeated notes designed to puzzle us. Where is the actual down-beat …? This is uniquely original music. Some brilliant semiquaver passage-work reassures us and again Klumpp is equally brilliant at conveying the terrific character of this music.

Symphony No 79 in F major begins with a typically genial idea but soon shows its muscles – all delivered with the panache I have come to expect from Klumpp. I especially like the startling onset of the development. Next is a graceful Adagio, quite innocuous until Haydn invites us to a brisk dance, as though we have found ourselves in the wrong symphony. A relatively unremarkable minuet gives way to a finale of charm and good humour. Apart from some tricky bassoon-writing, this is not among Haydn’s most memorable, falling a little short of his top-quality inventiveness.

Finally we arrive at the 90’s, but here we find a rarely played work in this context, No 91 in E flat major. Unusually Haydn begins with a dignified Largo introduction which gives way to a superb Allegro assai of wide expressive range. The perky Andante is a relaxed and engaging set of variations, as usual including an excursion into the minor but also a coda infested with trills. The robust minuet has a delightful ländler-style trio and the finale is terrific – music and performance. Just listen to the buzz of the accompanying quaver figuration.

For those who are rank the observance of repeats as a priority, I can say that Klumpp is very generous in this respect. Similarly, I mention the very sparing use of vibrato in the strings, but shouldn’t we be too busy enjoying the music to single out such a technicality? – unless of course it forces itself upon us in an unnatural or unduly obvious manner. I am in favour of the clarity and freshness which the modern approach allows, but equally admiring of Bruno Walter, Otto Klemperer and other great conductors of the old school. For instance, Bruno Walter’s Haydn 102, which I remember as very Beethovenian, is indispensable. Nearer to our time, Harnoncourt I find robust and alive to every aspect of Haydn’s genius. If a Haydn performance has maximum character, then I ask, shouldn’t that be enough?  

I am delighted to meet Johannes Klumpp and his orchestra in these symphonies. Never routine, his approach is free from mannerisms and affectation while full of life. The faster movements are energised and thoroughly musical. Slow movements tend towards intimacy, but this is an observation, not a criticism. This box is a marvellous way of getting to know thirteen symphonies by a wonderfully engaging and inexhaustibly inventive master of the form.

Philip Borg-Wheeler

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Contents:
CD 1 
Symphony No 66 in B-flat major (c1775-6)
Symphony No 71 in B-flat major (c1778-9)
CD 2
Symphony No 62 in D major (1780-1)
Symphony No 74 in E-flat major (1780-1)
Symphony No 76 in E-flat major (1782)
CD 3
Symphony No 77 in B-flat major (1782)
Symphony No 78 in C minor (1782)
Symphony No 81 in G major (1783-4)
CD 4
Symphony No 80 in D minor (1783-4)
Symphony No 79 in F major (1783-4)
Symphony No 91 in E-flat major (1787-9)