Monday, April 18th, 2011
There are few recordings available on CD of the work of conductor/composer Walter Goehr (1903-1960). Although he worked primarly with 2nd or even 3rd-tier orchestras, he managed to raise their performance levels up several notches with his sympathetic approach to conducting. Most of his recordings were to found on budget subscription labels such as Concert Hall and Music Masterpieces Society (an offshoot of Concert Hall), and have not been reissued in any format. I have been trying to rectify that situation on Klassic Haus. The recording featured here has the NDR (Hamburg) Chorus and Orchestra in performance of Haydn’s “Die Jahreszeiten” (The Seasons) with Teresa Stich-Randall, soprano, Helmut Kreschmar, tenor, and Erich Wenk, bass. The recording was originally released domestically on Nonesuch, licensed by Tono (Zürich), and is overall quite good, with decent balances between orchestra, chorus and soloists. Following are the comments posted on Klassic Haus Restorations:
KHCD-2011-035-2CD (STEREO) – Haydn: Die Jahreszeiten (The Seasons) – Teresa Stich-Randall, soprano; Helmut Kreschmar, tenor; Erich Wenk, bass; Symphony Orchestra and Chorus of the Norddeutsche Rundfunk, Hamburg/Walter Goehr – The design of “The Seasons” differs fundamentally from the structure of the Handelian oratorio, which is influenced by the spirit of musical drama. The “Seasons” is in the nature of a cantata cycle, and the illustrative element undoubtedly appealed to Haydn, who had attempted a similar task in 1761 when he wrote the symphonic triptych “Le Matin, “Le Midi” and “Le Soir” (Nos. 6, 7, and 8, see KHCD-2010-032). The “Seasons” has a distinct autobiographical ring; here speaks a man who was born in the country. lived most of his life in rural surroundings, and was deeply attached to nature. This 2-disc set, derived from a 3-LP set licensed to Nonesuch by Tono (Zürich), is an enthusiastic, well recorded sojourn through the German countryside. The NDR Chorus sings with lusty precision, and the soloists are at their lyrical best. Walter Goehr conducts with vigor and tenderness where required. A welcome reissue of Haydn’s pastoral picture book of Seasons.
I have more to come, fruit of the past two weeks of transcriptions – keep checking! Cheers – Curt TImmons