Shostakovich: Symphony No. 12 'The Year 1917'; Symphony No. 15

by John Storgards, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra

Overview

Conductor John Storgards has issued two Shostakovich symphony albums since becoming chief conductor of the BBC Philharmonic. It is not clear whether he is going to undertake a whole cycle, but on the basis of his reading here of Shostakovich's swan song, the Symphony No. 15 in A major, Op. 141, one certainly hopes so. The performance reflects Storgards' years as guest conductor of the Philharmonic; his control over the group is impressive, and the players reflect his ideas faithfully in a performance that is entirely distinctive. The Symphony No. 15 is a pretty grim work, of which Shostakovich himself said that it reflected the passage from life to death, and Russian interpretations, from the first one by the composer's son Maxim on down, tend to be broad and funereal, with a real sense of grotesquerie in the first movement. Storgards goes in a different direction. The music in his hands has the feel of fantasy and of memory, of scenes from the composer's life (one of them a production or performance of Rossini's William Tell Overture) flitting across the mind like little scenes. The Mahlerian textures, with lots of exposed solo instruments, challenge but do not defeat the orchestral players. The slow movement and finale have an uncanny sense of peace. One wouldn't choose this release for a recording of the Symphony No. 12 in D minor, Op. 112 ("The Year 1917"), a splashy paean to the Russian Revolution where one definitely wants more oomph in the triumphal finale. With excellent MediaCity sound, this is a major new statement in Shostakovich's remarkable final symphony, and it landed on classical best-seller charts in early 2023. ~ James Manheim

Product Details

Release Date:	03/17/2023
Label:	Chandos
UPC:	0095115533420
Rank:	11137

Tracks

1. Symphony No. 12, Op. 112 "The Year 1917" in D minor~Revolutionary Petrograd. Moderato - Allegro - Più mosso - Allegro -
2. Symphony No. 12, Op. 112 "The Year 1917" in D minor~Razliv. Allegro (L'istesso tempo) - Adagio -
3. Symphony No. 12, Op. 112 "The Year 1917" in D minor~Aurora. L'istesso tempo (Adagio) - Allegro -
4. Symphony No. 12, Op. 112 "The Year 1917" in D minor~The Dawn of Humanity. L'istesso tempo (Allegro) - Allegretto - (Allegro) - (Allegretto) - Moderato
5. Symphony No. 15, Op. 141 in A major~Allegretto
6. Symphony No. 15, Op. 141 in A major~Adagio - Largo - Adagio - Largo -
7. Symphony No. 15, Op. 141 in A major~Allegretto
8. Symphony No. 15, Op. 141 in A major~Adagio - Allegretto - Adagio - Allegretto

Album Credits

Performance Credits

John Storgards   Primary Artist,Conductor
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra   Primary Artist,Orchestra

Technical Credits

David Fanning   Liner Notes
Dmitry Shostakovich   Composer
Marco Borggreve   Photography
John Cole   Assistant Engineer
Olivier Martel   Cover Photo
Alexander James   Editing
Michael Smith   Assistant Engineer
Cass Cassidy   Typesetting,Design
Sue Shortridge   A&R
Yuri Torchinsky   Leader
Marie-Stella Paris   Liner Note Translation
Andreas Klatt   Liner Note Translation
Brian Pidgeon   Recording Producer
Stephen Rinker   Engineer
Finn S. Gundersen   Booklet Editor