Rudolf Tobias (1873-1918)
Joonas [Jonah], oratorio (1909)
Raiko Raalik (bass), Taavi Tampuu (baritone), Kai Rüütel-Pajula (mezzo-soprano), Mirjam Mesak (soprano), Mati Turi (tenor)
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, Estonian National Opera Boys’ Choir
Tallinn Chamber Orchestra/Tõnu Kaljuste
rec. 2023, Methodist Church, Tallin, Estonia
Ondine ODE1456-2D [2 CDs: 108]
Rudolf Tobias, widely regarded as one of the key figures in shaping Estonian music culture, is frequently described as the “patriarch of professional music in Estonia”. He was the first Estonian composer to receive advanced academic training in composition (at the St Petersburg Conservatory), and he went on to write the country’s first symphonic work. He is well known among Estonian classical musicians and informed audiences, and his name features prominently in national music education and cultural institutions. Yet, much like the British public’s indifference toward many of their own 19th‑ and 20th‑century composers, the wider Estonian public is similar unaware when it comes to Tobias.
The oratorio Joonas was only performed once in Tobias’s lifetime – he conducted the premiere in Leipzig – but it was never published. Tobias only conducted extracts from it at home and in Germany.
Tobias had taken German citizenship and was living in Berlin at the time of his death. This was during the final months of WW1, when privation was rife and the Spanish flu began its toll of tens of millions across Europe. The cause of his death is unknown, but it would not be surprising if he had succumbed to the virus; the records were lost during the chaotic end to the fighting.
Tobias’s daughter Silvia worked tirelessly to promote her father’s work, and by 1970 had prepared a piano reduction of Joonas. A musician of note, she did her best to collate texts relating to all of his music, but when it came to preparing an orchestral score of the work, much had to be done. In the end, the Estonian composer Vardo Rumessen worked on the score and re-orchestrated it section by section; he also wrote the missing ending. That version has been performed and recorded by BIS in 1995 with Neeme Järvi at the helm of Estonian forces (Rob Barnett’s review).
I concur with Rob’s opinion: that version is grand, symphonic and dramatic. On the other hand, the present version appears much nearer to Tobias’s original intention. It is orchestrally and chorally transparent, and liturgical in spirit. That we can hear this difference is entirely due to the work done by Silvia Tobias, conductor Tõnu Kaljuste, choirmaster Mai Simson and staff at the Estonian Music Information Centre. There may be other contributors: the booklet note is somewhat vague on this point.
The first disc contains the Prologue and two of the five scenes, scored for baritone, tenor, chorus, orchestra and occasional organ. The baritone, taking the role of Jonah, sings intermittently in these scenes; the tenor provides an ongoing commentary on Jonah’s actions. Tenor Mati Turi often sounds strained in what is not a particularly melodically grateful part.
The sung text is extracted from various books of the Old Testament, sometimes just for a single phrase, and the libretto annotates the text as such. Tobias also used lines from Uus Lauluraamat, the Estonian Lutheran Hymnal of 1901.
The chorus sings the short prologue in which God slates the Ninevites and tells them that Jonah is “a sign unto them!”. When Jonah sings the following arioso, it becomes clear that he is far from happy, but knows that defying God’s command puts him in the way of God’s wrath: – “whither shall I flee from They presence?” Baritone Taavi Tampuu is in good voice here and elsewhere.
The section for tenor, chorus and orchestra, headed “Thus Sayeth God”, is devoted to God’s remonstrations with humans who do not obey His wishes, and the lamentations and protestations of humanity in response, with quotations from Jeremiah, Psalms and Job. I found it difficult to warm to this section’s fragmented thematic and melodic nature. This goes for the next section, “Whither shall I go from Thy spirit?”, in which the singers ask how can they escape from God’s watchful presence, with texts from the books of Jeremiah and Jonah sung by the same forces. It is clear that Tobias was a master of contrapuntal writing. His use of the choirs, split into multiple parts yet still singing with clarity, demonstrates that he learned well from Rimsky-Korsakov in St Petersburg.
The fifth section is of the severe storm at sea, where Jonah tells those with him to throw him over the side, because he is convinced that God has sent the storm to punish him as he tries to escape from His instruction to go to Ninevah. The writing sounds complex in multi-parts. Fortunately, Taavi Tampuu’s voice is far better suited at cutting through the general din than Mati Turi’s. The orchestration is suitably impressive when portraying the terror of the storm and its violence, with bass drum and the splendidly recorded organ.
Next comes the chorus of thanksgiving as the sea calms after Jonah has gone over the side. The text from Psalm 77, sung by all soloists and the chorus, succeeds by virtue of its forward momentum and fervent thanks. The introduction has the organ and orchestra begin on a triumphant note; the soloists and chorus enter to join them. The soprano soars above the tumult to sing “And the waves then saw Thee, they saw Thee O God.” The section end with a thundering brass-dominated climax.
The Chorus Mysticus essentially compares Jonah’s three days and nights in the whale’s belly to the three days and three nights when “The Son of Man” lay in a rock grave. There are quotes from Matthew and Isaiah. In this quiet, reflective piece, the organ gives gloomy subterranean support to the orchestra.But Tobias was unable to supply music of any memorability, and the same goes for the next section where quotes from Lamentations and Isiah proclaim “It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed.”
Next comes Jonah’s Prayer, a direct setting of Psalms 2:2-8 in which Jonah thanks God for rescuing him from the deep. I find the music dull and uninspiring. That is a pity, because if any part of a religiously-based oratorio should inspire the listener, one would think that a prayer would be that part.
The next three-minute section employs the male soloists who plead that God will give Jonah comfort and will not leave his soul in hell. This short dirge follows the preceding section, employing the same motifs. It is followed by all the soloists and choir singing ‘Oh give a thousand tongues unto me’ as Jonah expresses his desire to sing the praises of God. The final section on the first disc is a celebratory chorus extracted from Psalm 18:2-3. At last, Tobias stirs up his performers to sing the triumphal fugue ‘I love thee, my God’, and the music becomes exalted. All the performers raise the roof, aided by the organ. I found myself thinking that it has been a nearly hour-long road to this finale – of the first part of the work.
Tobias was deeply involved in shaping the oratorio’s theological and textual framework, and could draw apt phrases from what often are – at least to modern readers – obscurely worded books of the Old Testament. That strongly suggests that he had a thorough grounding in the language and content of the Bible.
The second disc conveniently contains the second part of the oratorio. It is the story of Jonah obeying God’s instruction to go to the sinful city of Nineveh, preach to the residents about God’s glory, and turn them away from their godless practices.
It begins with a Psalm of Vengeance to the text from various psalms which are liberally spiced with exhortations to God to end the wickedness of others. This section is sung by women’s and children’s choir, largely monotone until its end, the transition to the next section in which Tobias has the female soloists announcing “Behold the Lord cometh with ten thousand of his saints to execute judgement on all”. This section, taken from Jude 1:14-15, is beautifully sung by soprano Miram Mesak and mezzo-soprano Kai Rüütel-Pajula; the former soars ecstatically above the others as she sings of “executing judgement”.
The short-spanned relief from the monotone chorus gives way to the two-minute section “Holy, holy, holy” with text taken from the books of Revelation and Isaiah. This is probably the best section thus far. Tobias has his orchestra and organ thundering out appropriately triumphant music, whilst the soprano once again soars above the rest. It is very effective despite the unmemorable music. Even so, I suspect that repeated listening would impress its melodic contours on my memory. Given the effect, such repeated listening would hardly form a penance.
Now Jonah declares his willingness to preach of God’s glory; texts come from Palm 40 8-10. The music continues in a vigorous style, and the baritone has a decent-ish tune to sing. It ends triumphantly with the exhortation “Oh giveth a thousand tongues unto me”, one of the occasions where lines are taken from Uus Lauluraamat, hymn No 41. This is a more-or-less direct translation of the Wesleyan Chorale of 1739 “Oh for a thousand tongues to sing my Great Redeemer’s praise”.
Next, rather doleful lamentation bewails the small number of the faithful, with texts taken from the Psalms and Isaiah and Uus Lauluraamat. The same can be said of the next section where the choir ask God to look down on them in pity. Here the music eventually becomes fugal. There follows a section where the soprano asks God to look down on Nineveh to see if any of its people have tried to obey His teaching, and if there have, not to harden His heart against them. Once again, I regret the lack of memorable music, no matter how good the soprano.
Tobias answers the above text by setting a scene where the Ninevites feast and make merry. They insult Jonah while he tells them in no uncertain terms that they are sinful unbelievers and that God will send a great whirlwind to fall grievously on the heads of the wicked. They respond that God is not greater than their great city. A furious burst on the organ precedes Jonah’s reply: in forty days the city will be overthrown. There comes another brief burst of the organ and orchestra.
In a two-minute section for the children’s choir, organ and orchestra, the words speculate whether the innocent will be saved from the wrath of God. To have any hope they must pray, and indeed the next section is the De Profundis “lord have mercy”. Appropriately, this setting should be rather grave, but there has been a lot of doleful music in this oratorio, and too few powerful, impulsive settings to enliven the proceedings. In the matter of orchestral colour, Tobias seems to have taken little notice of that supreme master of orchestration, his teacher Rimsky-Korsakov. He probably thought that the texts available to him did not really call for much colourful orchestration.
The final scene of the oratorio opens with the chorus singing “None pitied thee, none had compassion upon thee”, followed by “When the last day of judgement is here”. The soloists interrupt the chorus every now and then, singing that the people who wish to be saved “shall come forward to walk in the light”. Tobias really does not change the tone of the setting to reflect the power and glory of God at such points. I do wish that he had done so, because the work needs it.
The penultimate section is a duet for soprano and mezzo-soprano. They declare “I am not worthy of Thy faithfulness and mercies”, and “Thy truth is there, where travel the clouds”. The soloists are very good indeed in managing to sing such melodically ungrateful music. It leads quietly into the final section “Behold, the tabernacle of God”, essentially a paean of praise to God. The music rises gradually in intensity and power as the praise is repeated, but it is not maintained, as the composer ends the work quietly with repeated Amens.
The recording is technically very fine. It balances soloists, chorus, orchestra and organ with notable clarity without any hint of dryness or compression. All the principals, very good indeed, have clearly committed themselves to the work. So has conductor Tõnu Kaljuste, who was also involved in rediscovering the work and who ably guided the orchestra. The booklet accompanying contains a full Estonian sung text with English translation, and English biographical notes of Tobias and the performers. It also contains photographs of the recordings sessions, together with the soloists and Tobias himself.
Jim Westhead
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