Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Symphony “Unfinished” D 759
Symphony “The Great” D 944
Dresdner Philharmonie/Marek Janowski
rec. 2020, Kulturpalast Dresden, Germany
Pentatone PTC5187065 SACD [79]
This new Pentatone issue of Schubert’s last two symphonies does away with the numbering confusion by using only their sobriquets and Deutsch numbers, so that they are no longer nos. 7 or 8 and 8 or 9 , just D 759 “Unfinished” and D 944 “The Great”. A section of the notes discusses how and why this discrepancy has arisen. There is also the question of repeats; Schubert asked for them and again, modern practice is decidedly in favour of them, as am I; Janowski takes them all; other celebrated recordings by such as Sinopoli do not.
It is futile to try to recommend just one recording of these two great works; I can only opine that I have found some older, classic versions of both symphonies by such as Furtwängler too stodgy but conversely remain utterly convinced by Hans Knappertsbusch’s 1957 account of the ‘Great’, albeit live and mono. I have always enjoyed Szell’s energised accounts, which seem to me to anticipate the brisker, more “classical” – as opposed to “Romantic” – approach of more modern practitioners, yet Bernstein’s indulgent Schubert works for me too. Ultimately, however, I think Sinopoli’s highly individual and compelling recording with the other Dresden orchestra, the Staatskapelle, here could stand as the most interesting comparison, especially as for me he finds the right balance between grandeur and refinement.
The opening of D 759 is brooding and menacing yet somehow engaging, in that curiously ambivalent manner so typical of Schubert’s idiom. Janowski is a little tauter and resists swooning over the lovely tunes than Sinopoli but there is precious little difference between their respective ways with this music; the timings for the first movement of the ‘Unfinished’ are similar but Janowski is again considerably brisker in the Andante and less inclined to underline the forte tutti, whereas I find Sinopoli’s combination of a dreamier, more affectionate way with the lyrical passages and his readiness to lean on the weightiest chords both more touching and more exciting respectively. There is no lack of focus or intensity, however, in Janowski’s playing of the most dramatic passages where Schubert sets off in search of the home chord by way of a wonderfully convoluted and roundabout route and he enjoys marginally fuller, more vivid sound than Sinopoli, for whom the recording in the Lukaskirche in 1992 is slightly more diffuse. What secure, mellow horn playing we hear in this new account, and the strings – both low and high – sing so euphoniously.
Janowski is rather more leisurely and statelier than Sinopoli in the introduction to the ‘Great’ but the accelerando around 3:20 is neatly manoeuvred; in fact all his changes of gear in this movement are well judged even if I rather prefer Sinopoli’s urgency; his central development section is taken much faster and I find that more exciting. A contrast between the two conductors is also apparent in the opening of the Andante, where I find that Sinopoli creates an atmosphere both eerier and more varied by means of his shading of tempo and dynamics. There is nothing wrong with Janowski’s delivery but Sinopoli is almost invariably more interesting there – unless you object to his “interventionism”. There are also very noticeable differences of tempo in the Scherzo, this time reversed; Sinopoli does not take repeats and is three minutes faster but Janowski’s basic pulse is almost frantic and I much prefer Sinopoli’s more measured pace, which brings out rustic jollity rather than the near-hysteria of Janowski’s headlong rush. Then Janowski slows right down for the Trio, which sounds odd. To me, the tempi relationships in this movement are miscalculated. Both conductors take the finale very fast, as does Szell – Kna is much more measured – but the dynamism, accuracy and virtuosity of the Dresdeners are a marvel and they bring it off triumphantly.
In the end, despite the many virtues of this, Janowski’s first ever orchestra Schubert recording, the accumulation of small gripes means that my loyalty to established favourite remains unaltered but there is still much here to admire and enjoy – not least the spectacular sound and playing.
Ralph Moore
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