The coupling of the
first and last Shostakovich symphonies
works very well. This is a substantial
improvement over Caetani’s Nos. 5 and
6 (review),
a disc that ultimately left me cold.
But still there are too many caveats
to allow for straightforward recommendation,
not least a resonant acoustic that seeks
to undermine the characteristic edge
that lies at the heart of Shostakovich’s
music.
The First Symphony
reminds one, on each hearing, of the
composer’s achievement. A graduation
exercise set by his teacher Maximilian
Steinberg, this is clearly the work
of a genius composer, not least in the
long, almost Mahlerian Lento. Caetani
tries to make this Lento a dramatic
journey and in doing so makes it the
most successful movement of his performance
- lovely oboe solo, a real ray of light,
by the way. It is the commedia dell‘arte
aspect of the first movement that is
missed due to a certain literalism.
Perhaps Caetani’s ideas are elsewhere
– he seems intent on suggesting Ives
at around 4:30, and does so in a very
thought-provoking way.
The dynamic range of
the recording is certainly impressive
in the finale; you have been warned.
So impressive, in fact, that the applause
that greets the performance seems remarkably
feeble.
The Fifteenth Symphony
is full of questions. The Milan players
rise to the challenge. The flautist
at the opening is nicely on his/her
toes, launching an action-filled movement
that is active, shifting, spooky and
cheeky all at the same time. Caetani
tries to squeeze every ounce of emotion
out of the Adagio - labelled Allegretto
on the box - helped by a well-balanced
brass section and an excellent solo
cellist. Curiously, the cellist is unnamed
yet the solo violinists in both symphonies
are credited, and neither is of the
same standard! It is true that the orchestra
is perhaps not fully up to the delicate
tuning required by the very, very quiet
chords. Too much to expect live, I suppose.
The finale again almost succeeds, fragmentary,
uncomfortable but not really mysterious.
The half-remembered dreams around the
15-16 minute mark are nearly successful,
but not quite.
There is much to admire
here, to be fair, and Arts‘ labelling
of the recording as ‘audiophile’ is
to be taken seriously, but the live
provenance means there are too many
little slips to enable these performances
to be ones to live with.
Colin Clarke
Orchestra
Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi/Oleg Caetani
ARTS
SACD 47706-8 [74:05] 
