Customer Reviews

Shostakovich: Symphony No. 11

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Although this piece is now very well-represented on recordings, this one still holds up quite well. This shattering, sorrowful symphony is in four movements, played without pause, depicting the Soviet uprising and massacre in 1905. It is an intense experience, but it more than rewards the listener with sheer visceral excitement.

James De Preist is absolutely in the driver's seat here, capturing the eerie, sorrowful quietness in the opening pages, all the way through the monumental ending that will take your sound system by storm. This piece gives an orchestra quite a workout, and De Preist encourages the Helsinki Philharmonic to deliver a powerful sound befitting the urgency of the music. If they are not known as one of the world's "great orchestras," it hardly seems to matter here; they certainly play their guts out.

Delos' sound quality is magnificent, given the work's enormous dynamic range. If the orchestra sounds as if it is positioned slightly further back than usual in the soundstage, this may be the engineers' decision, making sure they capture every bit of the sonic wall coming at them.

This is definitely not a recording for anyone seeking a quiet evening, but as a powerful, often draining musical experience, it will stick with you for a very long time. Newcomers to Shostakovich are usually steered toward the Fifth or Tenth symphonies - both masterpieces - but this one more than holds its own, and some listeners may respond more to the heart-on-sleeve, immediate impact of this one.

This recording, now over twenty years old, earned accolades from the Gramophone, guaranteeing that it would be referred to positively forever. the same is true of Stokowski's version of the Shostakovich 11th from Houston, but both have been challenged on almost every ground since then. Has DePreist been superseded? Without fillers the timing is stingy, so there's no bargain here. The year Delos released this CD, 1989, marked the fall of the Soviet empire and the rush of talented Russian conductors to the West. They also rushed to record Shostakovich in abudnace, so buyers can choose among Rostropovich (two versions), Bychkov (two versions), and the recent engrossing readings from Gergiev and Petrenko.

I can't see how DePreist survives the competition, given that his energized and committed recording is no longer unique. The recorded sound is a major plus, good enough to call demonstration quality. However, the Helsinki orchestra, although it plays well, is outclassed by Gergiev's Mariinsky band, not to mention the stupendous Berlin Phil. under Bychkov (and out-of-print Philips CD that can usually be found on the used market). Yet there may be no compelling argument for anyone who owns and loves this recording to go any further. The Shostakovich 11th is by no means great music, and DePreist delivers an exciting ride.

To me, the Shostakovich 11th, premiered in 1957, is a suspiciously mawkish tribute to the innocent citizens mowed down by the Czar's Cossacks in the bitter cold of January, 1905. The music is programmatic and as easy to follow as a Hollywood soundtrack -- we witness historical tableuax from the first public gathering at dawn in Palace Square, St. Petersburg to the massacre, a period of mourning, and then the wild ringing of the tocsin that sounds the promise of a victorious future, i.e., the October Revolution of 1917. It's always uncomfortable when Shostakovich does his duty as a loyal Soviet artist-- a "people's composer" -- and it helps only somewhat that he later told interviewers that this work, although supposedly a paean to revolutionary glory, was actually a covert criticism of Moscow's brutal suppression of the Hungarian uprising of 1956.

To overcome its weaknesses, Petrenko and Gergiev both avoid the wow factor in exchange for sobriety and cultivated phrasing. DePreist is more inclined to plow through the score with maximum energy and sharp contours, letting sheer momentum ride over patches of dubious writing. who can resist the pounding drums and ear-splitting tam tam strokes captured here by the engineers, or the runaway thrills that DePreist unabashedly stirs up? He outdoes Stokowski, with only the second Rostropovich recording, on LSO Live, as a rival for visceral impact. I found that reading too raucous and raw, so if I had to choose, DePreist wins. His recording has been strongly challenged without actually being toppled.

I now have Depreist's Shostakovich 11th, plus Haitink and both by Rostropovich. So far, I have not heard a performance of this symphony I didn't like. The 11th has been criticized for being overly cinematic and not symphonic enough. The best approach really is to just take it and go with it. I know of no other work which has such pure danger, horror, or unyielding resoluteness throughout its one hour plus length. (Depreist's timing of 68 minutes is average. Haitink is just over 61 and Rostropovich's 2nd recording is the longest at 72.) The pianissimo writing for the work's first several minutes is atmospheric in itself but also creates suspense as the listener begins to realize that at some point things are going to open up.
Shostakovich uses agitated strings to communicate much of his intensity and punctuates his writing with fierce brass and aggressively militaristic percussion. He balances those elements with tender woodwind work, including a gorgeous English Horn solo in movement 4, played especially well by Helsinki's soloist.
Depreist's performance has much to recommend it. He takes a matter-of-fact approach to the music at times, letting the composer's writing speak for itself, but also knows when to turn the orchestra loose. The gong part is stronger and clearer in Depreist's version, which may not seem like a big deal but is. It noticeably adds to the impact. On the negative side, there is some occasionally sloppy trumpet work in mvts. 2 and 4--nothing major but perhaps a retake should have been done.
Shostakovich specified that the tocsin at the symphony's end was to cut off with everyone else, which Depreist observes. Rostropovich chose in both his recordings to let the tocsin's ominous ring hold over after everyone else has stopped. His decision may not be authorized, but I believe it adds to the overwhelming emotional wallop of the symphony.
Depreist has the best sound of the four 11's that I own, but the sound of the other three is good.
Although I have a few reservations as noted above, this performance is mostly quite fine. Do hear both Rostropovich recordings, though, especially the LSO Live.

I remembered the time when I first heard that piece. It was in a PBS series "Cosmos" with Carl Sagan. I didn't know what that piece was until I heard it on the vinyl LP "The Music Of Cosmos." It included an excerpt of the Stokowski version with the Huston Symphony Orchestra (the 1st movement). Later I got the cassette of the whole symphony (that was before I got my first CD player). It sounded like something out of "Star Wars" in some parts (sorta like "Imperial March"). I remember one instance when I listen to the cassette in the AM/FM cassette player in my car. I was listening to the last movement, entitled "The Alarm," and (wouldn't you know?) I happen to be passing by a fire depatment with the alarm going on! That was a suprise. Good thing I'm the type of person that don't let a thing like that distract my driving ability.

A few years later, I listened to a Delos sampler CD that featured an excerpt from the DePreist version. The sound from the Helsinki orchestra is more distinctive (such as, the occasional drum roll in the first movement). Later I got the Delos CD of the "1905" symphony itself. The performance seems to match that of the Stokowski verion and the sound is great for trying out your sound system.

I highly recommend it!