October 9, 2015

  • Two Modern Tenths From the LSO

     

    Davies: Symphony No. 10; Panufnik
    Markus Butter, baritone.  London Symphony Orchestra and Chorus/Sir Antonio Pappano
    LSO 767
    Total Time: 57:51
    Recording:   ****/****
    Performance: ****/****

     

    The present release presents two tenth symphonies by modern masters in the form: Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Andrzej Panufnik.  The pieces were composed about 25 years apart which makes this a rather unique opportunity to hear these works from live concerts recorded in February and October of 2014.

    Davies’ work takes its inspiration from the Baroque architect Francesco Borromini (1599-1667).  The turmoil of Borromini’s life, faced with severe rivalry and competition that would lead to his suicide, is something that undergirds this intense work.  It also has a more personal connection as Davies began the work while facing the effects of leukemia and the possible near end of his own life.

    The symphony is cast in four movements aurally constructing a massive cathedral.  The first is a rather intriguing exploration of sound.  At times it is as if Davie is constructing a building right in front of our ears.  Part of this is due to the clever interweaving of percussion.  The other is the occasional lyrical lines that feel like one is stepping back to see what is coming together.  A solitary violin line seems to serve as a more personal reflective moment.  From the building site we move into part two which include some projection of text by the architect himself describing the construction of the Oratorio de Fillippini.  Another text from a period opera by Stefano Landi is taken up by the chorus as a sonnet to Borromini.  Musical quotations are incorporated from the work, though these will be lost on all but the most specialized of listeners.  Truly, it does add a more cerebral significance to how the movement is constructed in relation to the aesthetic being explored in the symphony as a whole.  For the third part, essentially a “scherzo”, tuned percussion are interchanged from the more metallic sounds of the opening as the movement reflects further on how things are coming together.  The final movement sets the sonnet which begins, “Now you can rest forever” and will take us to an almost hymn-like moment as the movement winds down.  While the work seems to take an at tiooooooooooooooooooo==mes darker turn, there seems to still be some fight left to resist what is eventually inevitable.

    The tenth symphony is perhaps Davies’ own look back on his own creative life and work.  The sense of melancholy, transitory nature of life, can be caught in some of the truly gorgeous, almost ethereal choral sections.  There is something about this work that seems to pull the listener in to the sound world and intense musical argument.  The result is a compelling, and at times very dramatic, work that seems to breeze by from movement to movement.  The shifts of orchestral color also serve to add to the intriguing musical arguments.  Sometimes sections of the orchestra enter into dialogue with each other over motivic ideas or fragments of lines.  There is much here to plumb and reflect upon over time.

    Panufnik’s tenth symphony was commissioned by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for their centenary year (1988).  The brief fifteen-minute work unfolds in one long movement with four unique sections.  There is a three-note pattern that becomes a unifying component.  Each section is a meditative exploration of tonal qualities of the different orchestral sections.  On a structural level, like many of the composer’s works it follows a sort of ellipsis structure based on the Fibonacci series.  Perhaps the mystical aspect of the work belies the turmoil that was running through Poland during the time of the work’s composition.  Panufnik takes these ideas and lets them slowly unfold throughout different sections.  One idea will move along, only to be recessed while another comes slowly to the forefront.  Harmonies are generally fairly modern, but when they line up into more traditional sounds the effect is almost magical.  The work itself is a good introduction to some of the composer’s aesthetic and dramatic style.

    The London Symphony Orchestra is in top form here for these performances.  The chorus is especially adept at taking on the challenge of this music.  They and the soloist are balanced very well within the audio picture of these live performances.  Certainly this will be a release worth tracking down for those who are intrigued by this latest symphony by Davies and with an interesting bonus of another modern symphonic essay by an orchestra that has always championed Panufnik’s work.