Customer Reviews

Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 5 and 9

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I give Haitink 5 stars for the Ninth, but 4 for the Fifth. The recording and performance are marvelous. This is the only version of the Ninth I've heard so far, but it's hard to imagine a better one. I enjoy imagining Stalin and his cronies fuming when they heard this sparkling little number instead of a grand, triumphant piece of bombast to celebrate the Great Leader's war victory.

My standard for the Fifth is Rostropovich's 1983 recording with the National Symphony Orchestra (DG #410 509-2). It is a brutal masterpiece, with a terrifying slow 4th movement. Haitink has more skill, a far better orchestra, and better recording quality, but I don't find his interpretation nearly as powerful. He brings out all sorts of romantic flourishes from the score which Rostropovich downplays to streamline the onward momentum. For instance in a passage in the 4th movement with strings and brass ricocheting back and forth, Haitink gives the trumpets equal weight, while Rostropovich buries them, focusing only on the strings. Of the Fifths I've heard so far, Haitink's is the second-best. I am not at all impressed with Bernstein's speedy finale -- he seems to miss the point entirely.

See my reviews of Mravinsky's 1984 recording of the Fifth, Gergiev's recent one, Rostropovich's new one with the LSO, and for more see my SHOSTAKOVICH: A LISTENER'S GUIDE list.

I'll weigh in amongst the fray debating the strengths of Haitink's "coolness" vs. Bernstein's pounding excitement, and those performances which fall into one camp vs. the other (I'm speaking of the 5th Symphony here; it looks like all revere the Haitink performance of the 9th). Without re-opening the Volkov/Shostakovich "Testimony" debate, I'll stake out a position quickly: this is not a happy piece, and performances which conclude with technicolor symphonic triumph miss the core of the work. That core is the Largo, containing some of the most pain-etched string writing that you'll ever hear. In non-musicological terms I'll put it like this: imagine a scene of utter and complete devastation, with an observer too defeated emotionally and psychologically to manage a sob. This kind of concentrated conducting and playing is not something that you run across often. Haitink accomplishes here what many of his detractors accuse him of being incapable of; it truly is magisterially heartwrenching. "Coolness," indeed.

This Decca disc combines two symphonies by Dmitri Shostakovich which couldn't be more different from each other: the weighty, epic Symphony No. 5, and the sly and witty Symphony No. 9. The first is performed by the Concertgebouw Orchestra and the second by the London Philharmonic, both conducted by Bernard Haitink.

The meaning of Shostakovich's 5th Symphony is controversial. It was aimed in part to please Soviet critics irked by his experiments in previous works, but there has always been speculation that under its socialist-realist surface lies a pointed jab at Communist brutes. I won't discuss the moral of the Symphony here, for in any event it depends on the authencity of TESTIMONY, Shostakovich's supposed memoirs as related to Simon Volkov. This symphony begins with a sinister opening which rapidly falls away, and from there the first three movements are mostly slow and pensive. There is some lovely string work in the second half of the third movement. The work reaches its highest point in the crashing and triumphant fourth movement, which is excellent handled by Haitink, a conductor who--in spite of his faults--has always been skillful at giving Shostakovich's loud parts the grand scale they deserve. The Symphony ends with a happy, joyful finish.

The 9th Symphony was written at the end of World War II, and most people expected a huge victory symphony after the 7th ("Leningrad") and 8th Symphonies. Instead, Shostakovich delivered a joyful little ditty which in places sounds as if it came out of a comic opera. Shostakovich doesn't praise Russia's invincible might in beating Hitler, he just expresses his happiness that things can finally get back to normal. However, a shadowy, intimidating rise suggests that normal life in the Soviet Union isn't something one would want to return to.

Both orchestras handle the material quite well. I expected this from the Concertgebouw, who have done some wonderful performances of other Shostakovich pieces (such as the jazz suites). The London Philharmonic surprised me, though I think that the Concertgebouw could have done better had it tackled the 9th.

The sound quality of this disc is generally excellent, and it won a Gramaphone award for engineering in 1978. Every item in the orchestra is well-balanced. However, the dynamic range is quite wide, so playing it a volume high enough to hear the serene parts will probably annoy your neighbours when the loud moments arrive.

All in all this is a fantastic disc, and after the 7th Symphony, it is my favourite of Decca's Shostakovich works with Haitink conducting.

I wish that Haitink made more amazing recordings like this one of the 5th and 9th symphonies by Shostakovich. He is usually thought of as being in the top rank of conductors, but by hearing this disc, you might think that he's just about the best. Maybe the amazing sound quality kind of makes him look good, but not really, this is just a greatly played superb interpretation. The Concertgebouw (which by the way is my favorite Orchestra at the present time) are on their toes throughout this version of the 5th. They are just truly amazing here, just as they are on most occasions. Did you know that this recording won the Gramaphone top prize for it's sound engineering? That was no surprise to me! Haitink alternated between the Concertgebouw and London Philharmonic for this symphony cycle, and of course the Londoners are in really fine form also, but still not the equal (in my opinion) of this fine dutch orchestra. I've never been quite so impressed with a classical cd's sound quality, except for a few cds of the conductors Christopher Hogwood and Trevor Pinnock. I haven't heard more than 8 or 9 different versions of the 5th, but this and Semyon Bychkov's version with the BPO in 1986 are my favorites at the present time. I think the Bychkov version has almost as good sound quality, and it's severely underrated, because I've never heard the Penguin Guide or any other classical magazine rate it, which is quite crazy, because it's a bold blistering performance that does deserve very high praise. This is also one of the best 9th's out there, but that is a symphony that I have not listened to very much to this point in my life, though I plan to listen to it more very soon. Haitink pretty much can't do wrong when he's conducting Bruckner or Shostakovich, but it you haven't listened to his Bruckner or Shostakovich, do yourself a favor and buy some, because he's definitely one of the top interpreters there are. If nothing else buy this for the demonstration sound quality, and I'm sure you'll fall in love with this incredible disc. ENJOY!!!

The Symphony No. 5 is one of Shostakovich's greatest masterpieces, which can hardly be ascertained from its origins as a piece to satisfy the Soviet state's artistically stifling demands in music (for example, all other aspects of music had to be subordinate to melody). The previous year Shostakovich was savagely attacked in the Pravda for his opera `Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk District', primarily because Stalin was shocked by its graphic sex and violence, and the fifth symphony was Shostakovich's reaction to this scathing criticism. (He was undoubtedly aware that the article extended further than trying to damage his confidence, if he didn't produce music along the lines of the states prerequisites he would be imprisoned or killed.)

It received the expected reaction: Rostropovich claimed that the ovation lasted for an hour. Whatever optimism and buoyancy the Soviet authorities may have seen in it; to me it seems more like a comic satire. The opening of the quasi-triumphant finale seems like a bitter, lacerating march fit to represent snide ridicule at its own hollow pomposity. This soon gives way to angry explosions in the brass which speak more of fury and violence than joyous optimism. Shostakovich himself said, `There is a feeling of rejoicing, but it is one of forced rejoicing. It is as if someone is hitting you over the head with an iron bar telling you "Your business is rejoicing" over and over again. Eventually, you walk away muttering "My business is rejoicing".'

The first movement is sombre and claustrophobic with its incessantly repeated, probing string melodies which for me speak of desolation and broken, empty landscapes, dead trees etc. etc. ... There are searching, melancholy oboe solos, warm horn chords, urgent string crescendos, pizzicato strings, pseudo-miliatary trumpet and snare drum jollity, and massive anger expressed through explosive brass. But it is also undoubtedly beautifully melodic, as is the entire symphony, and the symphony features enough material in major keys to bespeak at least forced hopefullness.

The second movement is brisk, occasionally pungently Russian, and bursting with Shostakovich's `forced' joy: an effect which is achieved through near superimposition of the melancholy and the mirthful; the minor and the major etc. The third movement can be summarised as one of subdued melancholy.

Haitink's performance is excellent, crystal clear, never over dramatic, and expressing the music with perfect musicianship and feeling. In comparison with this performance Bernstein's is demure, seeming like a piece designed more at ostentatious display than power and dignity. All I can say is buy this disk!!! You won't regret it.

This recording of Shostakovich's 5th for me, is one of the most haunting, bleak and impassioned accounts in recorded music. The effects that Haitink and his Dutch players evoke from this score are as tense and terrifying as the nights many thousands of Russians had to live through during Stalin's terror. This reading, with the unrelenting horn solo in the first movement development, the sarcastic and undercutting march-like second movement, the cold and deathly stealth of the the third (the ending of this movement is simply astonishing) and the banal 'stick-beating' of the fourth produce a recording to end all recordings. I've heard the other discs but it's Haitink's pacing that seems to bring out the best of what Shostakovich intended and these intentions, musical as they may seem, have more to do with the terror and blandness of living in Stalin's time than with making musicalogical points. I enjoy the 9th on this disc, but it's the 5th I bought it for because I wore out my old London vinyl issue. A supreme and unflagging interpretation; Russian to the core!!!!

When someone says that Haitink was heavy handed and too careful and very measured don't believe them. This interpretation of Shostakovich's 5th is absolutely amazing. the soviet marches, the forced rejoicing, it's all there in amazing color. Of all the orchestras I've ever heard I don't think any group can match the collective consciousness of the Concertgebouw of Amsterdam. Forget Bernstein's overhyped approach. There's no darkness there it's all a showpiece with no depth or contrasts. He makes Shostakovich sound like Mahler not like an individual composer who had his own ideas. Enough of my blabber buy this disc!

Dmitri Shostakovich's 5th Symphony give the listener a once-in-a-lifetime glimpse into the life and soul of a man who, more than perhaps any other composer in history, was chained and weighted down by his situation. Shostakovich poured all of his anger and fear of his government, as well as his love for his embattled country, into this work, and no musician has ever done a better job of depicting these feelings than Haitink and the RCO. Their rendition of the famous finale is terrifying, deliberate, and unstoppable, with the most beautifully and wrenchingly played version of the slow interlude I have ever heard. However, along with the powerful fourth movement, the Concertgebouw also does a masterful job depicting the different moods of the other three movements: the commanding first movement, building to its hysterical Mahler-like march; the dancable second movement, which I feel represents a brief moment in which the composer is able to escape the destruction of his government and relish in the simple Russian life (despite the omnipresent unrest that is the basis of this movement); and the heart-rending pathos and sadness of the third movement. The moment near the end of the third movement, where the xylophone couples the melody for a few bars, is one of the most anguished moments in all music.
The coupling with the 9th Symphony is ideal. Its satirical and mocking view of Stalin and the war are a wonderful complement to the 5th. Every music lover must own this CD!

Few superlatives can match the incredible performances which Haitink achieves in Number 5...this has long been one of my favorite recordings for various reasons. Simply put the winds and brass and strings are all on the same waveleagnth...there is not a single phrase in this performance that isn't perfect. On top of this are the incredible heights of the DECCA recording which matches perfectly the great scores.

As to Nine I also love Bernstein in NY...here it also well recorded too. The London Phil plays brilliantly here as well!!

Bought this the day after hearing our Anchorage Symphony do the 5th and felt the need to hear other versions to contrast with their performance. (My aplogies to Amazon since on the spot purchase requires a store). Again what especially interests me is seeing how my age ages these performances well. I still enjoy more the favorites from when I was younger but while then I may have felt dislike for Shostakovich, now I feel I understand the rationale behind the musical style. It reinforces my thinking that musical perfection lies somewhere closer to Mozart and Beethoven. (The Shostakovich was also coupled with the Mozart 3rd Violin Concerto with Chee-Yun.) It is also interesting noting how Stalin reacted to the music and wanted things to be more basic. I continue to learn that music can do other things.