Composer: Hector Berlioz
Orchestra: Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: Marek Janowski
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Pentatone
Catalogue: PTC5186338
Release: 2010
Size: 1.09 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14
01. I. Reveries: Largo – Passions: Allegro agitato e appassionato assai
02. II. Un Bal (Valse): Allegro non troppo
03. III. Scene aux Champs: Adagio
04. IV. Marche au Supplice: Allegretto non troppo
05. V. Songe d’une Nuit du Sabbat: Larghetto – Allegro
06. V. Dies irae
07. V. Ronde du sabbat (Witches’ Round Dance)
08. V. Dies irae et Ronde du Sabbat ensemble
09. King Lear Overture, Op. 4
The Pittsburgh Symphony is an ideal ensemble for Symphonie Fantastique with its huge scoring. This orchestra has previously recorded a Brahms symphony cycle and Strauss’ Alpine Symphony on PentaTone, all of which have been reviewed extremely well.
Even though Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique is one of the most familiar classical works, performances are often surprising for the variety of sonorities that can still be found in it and for the exciting ways it can be interpreted. Berlioz was the Romantic showman par excellence, and he made this piece a showcase for what the modern orchestra could do, from conventional playing to special innovative effects. These include the famous timpani chords at the end of the “Scène aux champs,” the grotesque brass pedal tones in the “Marche au supplice,” and the eerie use of col legno battuto in the “Songe d’une nuit de sabbat,” among many others. Of course, the novel aspects of Berlioz’s orchestration come off best in live performance, but the next best thing is this hybrid super-audio CD from PentaTone that captures Symphonie fantastique in all its hallucinatory strangeness and vividness. Marek Janowski and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra present the symphony and the King Lear Overture with exquisite polish, and the marvelous audio production practically gets inside the ensemble and allows each part to have its distinctive — and sometimes disturbing — place in the mix. Beyond the fabulous sound, this is also an incredibly gripping interpretation because Janowski conveys all the passion and impulsiveness of the drug-addled artist in the work’s program. Indeed, the music is as hot-headed and deranged as the composer intended, and listeners will feel compelled to listen to the whole SACD in one sitting, so riveting is this live performance for its high energy and seemingly endless array of skillfully crafted sounds. Highly recommended.