Anton Bruckner, Symphony No.
9
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Conducted by Mariss Jansons
RCO 16002 (SACD/Multi-channel
DSD 5.0)
Anton Bruckner, Symphony No.
9
Staatskapelle Dresden
Conducted by Christian Thielemann
Unitel Classica/C major LC15762 (Blu-Ray)
Here are two very different
performances of Bruckner’s Ninth. Both are live, and both are contributions to
ongoing cycles, but the resemblance stops there. The stopwatch tells the tale.
Thielemann’s performance weighs in at just over 62 minutes of music, while
Jansons comes in at 54”44’. I have reviewed Thielemann’s Fifth and Eighth
favorably (here and here,
respectively). In both of those cases the weightiness of his interpretation worked
to good effect. Here I am not so sure. Jansons seems to me to provide a more
compelling interpretation, despite his less distingished pedigree as a Bruckner
conductor.
Thielemann’s interpretation
falls short in the first movement. His approach is too smooth. The problem is a
lack of contrast – not dynamic contrast (of which there is plenty), but rather
affective contrast. It fails to present enough tension for subsequent
resolution. The climax before the coda has all the trappings of drama, but
misses the depths that in the best performances make the coda more effective.
The legacy of the opening movement weakens the later movements. The Adagio is
more compelling taken on its own terms, and the affective contrast works better
– not surprisingly, given that this is some of Bruckner’s most dissonant
music. But considered within the
symphony as a whole it does not have the force that it should have, because it
rests on a weak foundation.
To my ear Thielemann is too
reverential. Many listeners, though, will find Jansons going too far in the
opposite direction. His tempi are definitely on the brisk side (some might say
rushed) and some of his accelerandi and ritardandi are very noticeable indeed.
Nonetheless I found his approach to the first movement more satisfying than
Thielemann’s. There is a real sense of urgency (in the build-up to the first
climax, for example) and as a consequence the tension and drama come across
more effectively. There is a real sense of release with the first movement
coda. Jansons’s scherzo has a more driving rhythm, which sets up the Adagio
nicely. He luxuriates much less than Thielemann in the third movement (and is
nearly six minutes quicker!), but the climaxes and overall structure are at
least as convincing.
Curiously, the Jansons
performance, which feels more authentically live, was actually recorded over
three different live performances in Amsterdam in March 2014, while the
Thiemann Blu-Ray appears to have been recorded in a single evening (May 24,
2015). The sound quality is good on both, with the Jansons recording from RCO
Live coming in SACD format with stereo and surround sound options (I listened
in 2-channel, as usual). The videography by Agnes Méth on the Thielemann Blu-Ray
is skillful, but occasionally a little too involved.
Of the two my recommendation
would be Jansons and the Royal Concertgebouw. But I would not dissuade anyone
from buying the Thielemann Blu-Ray.
