Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)
Orchestral Music
Sinfonia of London/John Wilson
rec. 2025, Church of St Augustine, Kilburn, London
Chandos CHSA5385 SACD [63]
Puccini’s orchestral music is of course considered very secondary to his operatic output, especially as it is the product of his youth, and usually finds a place as supplementary or “bonus” items in recordings of vocal music, as per recent recordings of two other early works, his songs (review) and the Messa di Gloria (review).
Nonetheless, much of it is of real quality – and some of it good enough to have been recycled in those operas which gave him immortal fame; hence a collection such as this, lasting over an hour and played by an orchestra and conductor who have earned a reputation for the depth and beauty of their sound via a succession of first-rate recordings for Chandos, is a tempting proposition. This is just the kind of music in which you might expect Wilson and the Sinfonia to excel: lush, melodious and passionate; even the pieces from the early 1880s already display recognisable Puccinian musical tropes as their music sighs, heaves and weeps. Wilson is not afraid to apply some heavy-duty rubato, as the idiom cries out for it, right from the lovely first number, the Preludio sinfonico. The Capriccio sinfonico is a favourite that appears on both the recordings referred to above; it strikes modern ears now as odd, in that the music recycled for the very first notes of La bohème hardly seems designed for anything else other than to depict a bunch of bohemian lads in a garret but that is just a few seconds in an extended piece packed with different moods and colours. Its quiet conclusion is especially enjoyable.
I picked a new recording of Le Villi as one of my Records of the Year last December, remarking on its tunefulness despite the weak libretto, and the two highlights here, played in spirited fashion, confirm its quality. The little Scherzo and Adagetto form a nice contrasting pair, the one perky, the other lyrical, then we move into more familiar territory with the orchestral excerpts from Manon Lescaut, very delicately played as if in homage to the opera’s occasional retrospective 18th-century pastiche style. The opening of the Intermezzo, which Puccini marked “con sordino, molto sostenuto e espressivo” is seductively played by lead violin Charlie Lovell-Jones. The most celebrated orchestral piece here is Crisantemi, written in memory of Amedeo di Savoia, Duke of Aosta, elements of which were also recycled for Manon Lescaut. Its tender, yearning character is beautifully caught here. The three minuets are again redolent of 18C elegance; not “major” music perhaps but they fall easily upon the ear. We return to early opera with the two Preludes from Edgar, both of which Puccini revised to make them briefer, tighter and hence more dramatic – which could not remedy one of the silliest plots in opera but makes for impressive set pieces.
Is there a risk of sentimental overdose with so much Romantic emotionalism? Perhaps, but the succession of richly scored melodies is most beguiling and it is good to have all these orchestral highlights collected on one disc and played so elegantly.
Ralph Moore
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Contents
Preludio sinfonico, SC 32 (1882)
Capriccio sinfonico, SC 55 (1883)
Le villi, SC 60 (1883-84):
Preludio to Act I
La tregenda
Scherzo-Trio, SC 34a (1882-83)
Adagetto, SC 51 (1883)
Manon Lescaut (1892-93):
Preludio to Act II
Intermezzo to Act III
Crisantemi, SC 65 (1890) (Adapted for String Orchestra by John Wilson)
3 Minuetti, SC 61 (1881; revised 1898) (Adapted for String Orchestra by John Wilson):
No. 1, A S.A.R. Vittoria Augusta di Borbone Principessa di Capua
No. 2, All’esimio violinista prof. Augusto Michelangeli
No. 3, Al’amico maestro Carlo Carignani
Edgar, SC 62:
Preludio to Act I (1889; revised 1892)
Preludio to Act III (1889; revised 1892 & 1905)
