Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Adagio & Fugue KV 546 (1788)
Sinfonia Concertante for violin, viola & orchestra in G major KV 364 (1779)
Symphony No. 27  in G major KV 199 (1773)
Alessandro Milani (violin); Luca Ranieri (viola)
Nuova Orchestra Ferruccio Busoni/Massimo Belli
rec. 2022, Trieste, Italy
Dynamic CDS8012 [58]

By co-incidence, I moved directly from reviewing the seventeen-year-old Schubert’s String Quartet No. 8 to Mozart’s Symphony No. 27, written when he was the same age, forty years before, and part of a famous group of symphonies written in 1773, of which the most famous is No. 25 (as per the movie Amadeus). Even more celebrated is KV 364 – although I have an heretical preference for the other, possibly spuriously attributed and textually corrupt, Sinfonia Concertante for Four Winds; as a bonus to those two more substantial works we are given the six-minute Adagio & Fugue, closely related to the four-voice fugue in C minor written for two pianos.

I could not resist comparing the recording here of the Sinfonia Concertante with the “Penguin Rosette Collection” reference recording from another era: the live performance of 1982 in Israel with Perlman and Zukerman, conducted by Mehta. The tempi in the two outer movements are similar but at 11:56, the Andante in the Israeli account is considerably more leisurely than that in Trieste. There is also a huge difference in sound quality; the old DG version has served its purpose but despite being recorded in digital sound now sounds very tame and muffled compared with the startling immediacy of this new studio recording. It is recorded at an unusually high volume which needs taming but balances are excellent, even if the solo instruments are very forward. For all the justified fame of the two older soloists, I cannot say that they outshine Messrs. Milani and Ranieri here; the playing is spirited, technically dazzling, their rapport sensitive and their coordination with the orchestra flawless. The rich, grainy tone of Luca Ranieri’s viola, beautifully balanced by the silvery purity of Alessandro Milani’s violin. The main question is whether the Andante is too rushed. It should have the authentic pulse of the ‘Andante’ instruction and not the ‘Adagio’ Mehta flirts with – presumably to showcase the tonal effulgence of his two distinguished soloists – and from our modern perspective, his drags a little. The orchestral backing by Belli is light and transparent but not too lean for what is one of Mozart’s ripest “proto-Romantic” works and his direction most considerate. The Presto finale is delightful: sprung and effervescent. For all that the DG recording has cult status, I must say that I would now prefer to listen to this new Dynamic issue for both sound and interpretation – and I had not in the least expected that outcome.

Similar qualities of alertness and rhythmic spring inform the performance of the three-movement symphony; kudos to the pair of horns paired with the flute, the absence of oboes bringing them into special prominence. The middle slow movement is…stately or rustic? Hard to tell; in fact, this symphony abounds with high spirits and even musical jokes, such as the way the Andantino concludes lamely and apologetically and the finale begins stiffly with “fugal pretensions” but gradually mutates into a rapid, jolly 3/8 waltz. The name “Nuova Orchestra Ferruccio Busoni” might be a bit of a mouthful but there Is nothing laboured about their zestful execution of this captivating music. As with the Sinfonia Concertante, comparison of this Dynamic release with older – albeit digital – recordings gives the listener a new appreciation for the brilliance of its sound engineering.

The dark grandeur of the Adagio makes a stark contrast to the playful insouciance of the succeeding works, and given that it was a late work echoing Don Giovanni, placing it first in the tracklist seems an odd choice to me; no matter – it is an arresting, almost disturbing piece and I admire the way the orchestra transforms its sound to match the brooding, insistent intensity of the music.

The wordy and abstruse Italian notes have been inelegantly translated into English of a kind and are probably best skimmed or skipped – again, that is of no consequence, the programme being so varied and accomplished.

Ralph Moore

If you purchase this recording using a link below, it generates revenue for MWI and helps us maintain free access to the site