Customer Reviews

Penderecki: Orchestral Works, Vol. 01

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As an admirer of Penderecki's 1960 composition, "Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima", I was delighted to see that Naxos has issued a line of this composer's works at a bargain price. The Threnody is incisively played by the strings of the National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra. The Third Symphony is very approachable, and indeed is almost Beethoven-esque in some of its stylistic elements. The symphony's forceful and demonic final movement (Vivace) is not one you would like to listen to alone in a dark house on a stormy night! "De Natura Sonoris II" and "Fluorescences" round out a generous collection of Penderecki's early and later compositions. The recording has lots of definition and somewhat forward balanced. A CD that is well worth the money!

This is a great start, not just to this cycle, but to anyone new to Penderecki. The bulk of the disc is the 45 minute Symphony No. 3, started in 1988 and completed in 1995. Like most of Penderecki's work of the last 30 years, it is very approachable and "neo-romantic", showing hints of everyone from Beethoven to Bruckner to Prokofiev, but mostly centering around Penderecki's unique and deeply personal style. It is certainly wild at times, with conductor Wit pushing the orchestra to its limits, but it is also highly melodic and memorable. Of special note is the virtuoso trumpet solo in the 2nd movement as well as the entire 3rd movement, an adagio that sits at the calm heart of the work; it reminds me of Bruckner with its glowing sonorities and long-breathed, expressive string melodies.
The second half of the disc takes us back to Penderecki's radical work of the 60s. The Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima is a modern classic, scored for 52 strings, though you will swear you hear woodwinds and percussion through Penderecki's revolutionary performance instructions. Their is little melody to be found in the work, but it is intense, harrowing, and gripping. Wit's performance may not be quite as wrenching as Penderecki's own with the same orchestra, but Wit brings out some details I had not heard in this dense score. The two remaining works, Fluorescences and De natura sonoris II, are not as intense as the Threnody, but are similar in their exploration of using unusual sounds in musical ways. Fluorescences features a brief appearance by a typewriter(!), the pounding on its keys in a catchy rhythmic pattern that will make you reassess where noise ends and music begins!
Special note has to go to conductor Antoni Wit and the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra. They play these works like men possessed, adding to an already impressive recording resume that includes the orchestral works of Lutoslawski, and concertos by Shostokovich and Prokofiev.
Finally, a word of thanks to the recording company, Naxos. Penderecki has been underserved on CD, and I am glad to see any new recordings, let alone at budget price! Why it took this long to get a work as exciting, melodic, and expressive as the 3rd Symphony to reach CD is nearly criminal.
Needless to say, I highly recommended purchasing this disc.

Sorry, but I can't agree with the previous reviews in one aspect: Is it that nobody has listened to Penderecki's own rendering of the astonishing "Threnody"? That one (*) is the now-and-forever reference for that work.

(*) released by EMI on a CD (Matrix series no.5, with superb cover art by artist Peter Nevin) together with some other fine works as "Anaklasis", "Capriccio" and "De Natura Sonoris" I & II; and more recently on a 2-CD set (Double Forte series) together with also "Emanations" and the First Symphony (excellent works previously available separately in Matrix series no.17)

I had listened to that performance quite a lot of times, I knew the whole work by heart (and I had also read its ground-breaking graphic self-speaking score). Then I bought this disc, and I must say I was highly disappointed with Wit's rendering. Well, some timbral aspects of it aren't that bad (in fact, really interesting), but his overall comprehension of the work seems to me quite poor. He and the string orchestra didn't get the right dynamics and seem lost in details while losing the tremendous impact of the whole, as you can get in Penderecki's fabulous rendering. Penderecki's is an overwhelming and neatly tied performance, Wit's one sounds rather like a bundle of lost-in-labyrinth cries.

On the counterpart, I must say that his reading of "Fluorescences" is certainly the referential one. Here Wit really got it right. Every aspect of his performance here is excellent.

For the other two works: the Third Symphony is well performed, but the work itself is not at all comparable to such masterpieces as the "Threnody" and "Fluorescences" (Penderecki's best orchestral scores, along with "Polymorphia"). "De Natura sonoris II", on the other hand, has again been better performed by Penderecki himself in the already-mentioned recording.

So, buy this disc!! Its price is almost laughable, and some of its performances are first-class. But if you're interested in the amazing "Threnody", buy the one in EMI (which is mid-priced, even the Double Forte). And if you can afford it, you'd better buy both!!

Thank you Naxos for your commitment to adventurous music at affordable prices. That alone should put this CD on a must have list. Add to that the fact that for the most part, the performances are stellar and it makes this the Penderecki CD to have, if you want to explore this seminal late 20th century composer.

The Symphony is one of my favorite Penderecki neo-romantic works. The neo-romantic tendency in Penderecki is evident even in his work of the late 60s. Certainly it is present in the choral music such as the St. Luke Passion. But in the Third Symphony it comes to the fore. This Symphony has echos of Bruckner, Mahler, and even Shostakovitch, but it is uniquely Penderecki. There is the same interest in orchestral effect and brooding melodic material that could be found in earlier works. For me, this Symphony and the Violin Concerto are the most successful pieces by Penderecki in this vein and certainly more interesting than many pieces by neo-romantic composers. (Give me Penderecki over Rouse any day!)

The other works on the CD are from an earlier time in Penderecki's career, one in which sonority was everything. The sound experiments in De Natura sonoris III and Flouresences are well developed, but more interesting as experiments than moving as music.

That leaves the Threnody. I have to agree that this is a disappointment. The performance has no arc to it. The final cluster, which should be devastating, doesn't seem to exist sonically. In fact, I missed it the first time I heard the CD. Wit seems to approach this piece in the same manner as he approaches the other pieces from the 60s on this disc, and it just doesn't work for a piece dedicated to the Hiroshima victims. (Though interestinly, I saw a lecture with Penderecki once in which he explained that the subtitle of the piece was an afterthought. He had never intended to depict bombs in the tone clusters of the piece.)

Aside from the Threnody, Antoni Wit conducts this music with conviction and he has a great pedegree with the music of Penderecki, second only to the composer himself. He has conducted many premiers of the composer's music. And the Polish Radio knows the music through and through.

So in conclusion, buy this CD. This is a great introduction to an important 20th century composer. But try to find the Double Forte twofer with the composer conducting the Threnody. That's a much superior performance.

I cannot add much to the other reviews except to confirm the wonderfully seamless performances and impassioned committment to Penderecki's music. The Threnody still stands profoundly the test of time, on both dimensions that there is still oppression in the world, and the piece remains a true masterwork for strings within the full meaning of that definition. The musicians here really throw themselves into the extended sonorities Penderecki so painstakingly prepares, the screeches, playing the highest tone possible as at the opening, and the col legno battatuto, tapping with the wood of the bow. The well spaced clusters residing within each string section also sends goose-bumps up and down anyone's flesh. The Third Symphony sounds like Penderecki was born of another generation, and it is interesting because of that. Like he is choosing to speak another language. But it sounds like Penderecki not Shostakovich, that argument doesn't work anymore.

Naxos strikes gold with this fantastic bargain priced CD of Penderecki's works. If you are at all interested in contemporary music, this is a must have! The performances, supervised by the composer himself, are superb; the pieces extremely interesting. Penderecki is most known for his avant-garde works like the Threnody and Fluorescences--these pieces explore wild sonorities and extreme techniques, but always within the context of emotional expression. After exploring these techniques Penderecki turned to a rather different stylistic world, as shown by the Symphony #3, which is more or less tonal, although not entirely conservative. This is his best symphonic work of the first five symphonies, in my opinion--the fourth movement is a wonderfully moving climax to the work. De Natura Sonoris II lies somewhere in between these two stylistic worlds, but more toward the avant-garde world. I recommend this CD most highly.

It was the soundtrack for The Exorcist that led me to Penderecki. Previous reviewers have, pretty much, said it all. 77 minutes of amazing music, potent, beautiful, disturbing, excellent recording and great price - what more do you want? With such an approach Naxos, I feel, should get a special recognition of the Polish government for popularizing the work of one of the greatest composers of our time.

Note, if you're new to Penderecki's music, the unanimous 5 star ratings of all reviewers and how no one seems to have enough of his music ("customers who bought this title also bought...").

"What I have been doing has been to collect and to transform the experience of the entire century", said Penderecki. As one of the previous reviewers noted, the National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra play like they are possessed. My only concern is... health: this, sometimes moving and beautiful, sometimes radically cruel, deeply disturbing, exploding orgy of sound makes me turn up the volume beyond reason.

This CD is a must for anyone who enjoys the music of Krzysztof Penderecki. It is superbly recorded and the performances are all magnificent. The disc is very effective in showing the different aspects of Penderecki's music, and these pieces span over 30 years of his long career. The first work on the disc - and the disc's centerpiece - is his Third Symphony (though actually his Fifth in order of composition), completed in 1995, and running nearly 45 minutes. It begins gently with a somber introductory movement, but quickly picks up speed in its amazing second movement, full of important brass and percussion parts. The gentle world of the first movement comes back in the third movement, a beautfiul 12-minute Adagio full of tender woodwind sonorities. The fourth movement is almost minimalistic in its continual use of the note A, and the fifth brings the work to a dramatic conclusion. Though always sounding like Penderecki, the symphony is very accessible and is a stark contrast to the other works on the disc.

The next work on the disc - arguably Penderecki's masterpiece - is his chilling "Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima" scored for 52 screeching strings playing very high microtones and creating sounds that a full orchestra probably couldn't muster. The work is nothing short of ravishing, and the performance is top-notch (only Penderecki's own recording of it could top this one). Along the same vein is another Penderecki classic, his "Fluorescences," also from the early 1960s and also full of unusual sound textures. Penderecki goes all-out in this work, expanding the percussion section to include cowbells, Mexican güiros, a siren, typewriters, and other noisemakers, and pushing the limits of tonality once more to the extreme. Finally, a gentler work is his "De natura sonoris II" written in 1971, and scored primarily for percussion and strings, though not nearly as aggressively as in the prior work. This almost-meditative score even includes a part for the musical saw, and though brief, is chock-full of very interesting sounds and textures.

As a whole, this disc is essential for anyone who loves the music of the 20th-century. The recorded sound is unbeatable, and the price is great! Fans of this kind of music are really missing out on a great recording if they don't already own this one.

... and not (a huge strong NOT!) for the "Threnody" and "De Natura de Sonoris No. 2"; Antoni Wit, although a well-respected conductor of Penderecki, has completely butchered the emotional impact the pieces were supposed to convey, as in the EMI Matrix 5 (or a 2 CD set) recording conducted by Penderecki himself.

"Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima", is perhaps the most famous Avant-Garde work by Penderecki, if not the "St. Luke Passion". Scored for 52 strings, the disturbing tone-clusters, novel effects, and the overall outpour of emotion depict the horrors of the world's first atomic attack.
Originally it was titled "8:33" in tribute to John Cage. In this performance, at least the very beginning "scream" was impressive, but the remainder of the piece turned out to be a threnody of its own. The chaos scene when different sections accumulate making random novel effects sounded like mush, and much of the harsh tone clusters lacks the emotion, especially in the final brutal 52-note cluter. In short, it sounded like "8:37" and should have been considered a purely experimental piece.

"De Natura de Sonoris No. 2", like the "Threnody", is a disturbing texture piece. This work, along with "De Natura de Sonoris No. 1", was used in the Stanley Kubrick horror film, The Shining. From the suspenceful strings to the a barrage of wailing brass (I jokingly called it "Elephants Imperil", but now I tend to imagine the multi-headed "Beast" - certainly the last thing people want to see especially Christians), it's indeed a frightening piece... at least in the EMI recording. The brass in Wit's performance, especially the horns, didn't sounded like monstrous wails, but mere flutters.

And now for the good news - "Flourescence" and Symphony No. 3. "Flourescence" is probably the wierdest piece of music he ever written. Unlike "Threnody", this texture piece is probably not meant to give emotional impact, but to witness what an orchestra can utilize using new sounds. This is probably the only recording available, so there is no comparison to make.

Penderecki's musical style drastically changed by the late 60's. His music became more Neo-Romantic; not as fascinating as his previous radical style. His Symphony No. 3 is still an impressive and haunting piece, with a hint of styles by Beethoven, Bruckner, and Shostakovich. The ominous fourth movement, with strings stubbornly playing the low D and brass producing sinister chords, gives way to inescapable horror like an opener to some suspense film. For those who like more traditional Romantic style music, this is probably a good work to get started on (the latter) Penderecki. Like the previous piece, done well by Wit, but it's the only recording available.

This disc has been something of a baptism by fire for me into the world of Penderecki's music. To say this music can be challenging to the listener is a gross understatement. Those considering this disc keep in mind that the listening samples fail to give you a full concept of the music contained within--sampling only the more accessable Symphony No. 3. The other three pieces are nightmarishly dissonant works which, masterpieces as they are, are most definitely not for everyone. I am not trying to steer you away from what is wonderful music, only give a friendly warning. Now if you are brave enough to dive into these turbulent waters you will be rewarded by some of the most powerful and visceral music of this century. And after all six dollars isn't that much to spend is it?