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Backhaus

Beethoven
Sonatas Vol. 3

 

Piano Sonatas 10-13   

Rec. 1950-53

"This disc shows Backhaus's great gifts in their most enjoyable light. ... The piano tone is good, and altogether the disc takes a high place in the long list of Backhaus's Beethoven recordings."

The Gramophone, 1954

   

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PAKM 053 

I had been hoping that Andrew Rose would be turning his attention to these classic performances and the results are very gratifying. The XR re-mastering process adds enormous depth, weight and clarity to the sound. The nearest competition to these four discs is the 3CD set on EMI Références which offers the same recordings of the first two symphonies but different versions of the Third and Fourth. The recordings of all four symphonies on both sets are live; however, Pristine opts for Furtwängler's final Berlin concert in April 1954 for the Third but goes back to a wartime broadcast for the Fourth, whereas EMI have chosen recordings from 1949 and 1948 respectively.
 
From an artistic point of view, it doesn't always so much matter which of Furtwängler's live recording of Brahms symphonies is selected, in that he was a very consistent interpreter; thus the main criterion for choice of recording might instead be the quality of sonics on offer. While I heartily endorse these Pristine re-masterings as easily the best available, I would not necessarily urge anyone who already owns the EMI set to acquire these latest Pristine issues, as although the EMI re-mastering by Andrew Walter from 1995 is thinner with a little more hiss, it remains very listenable. Furthermore, although I recognise that Andrew Rose has done wonders in restoring and preserving this terrific performance of the Fourth Symphony from 1943, for the purposes of general listening the 1948 version on EMI is easier on the ear and freer of the bronchial eruptions which mar the December 1943 concert, when the Berlin audience sound especially afflicted by the winter chill.
 
The watershed in the history of recording between the jettisoning of 78s and the advent of magnetic tape and the LP is evident from the consequent leap in sound quality of the newer technology; it is thus all the more regrettable that the tape machinery used by EMI in 1949 to record the Violin Concerto in Lucerne produced such a gritty sound in the higher frequencies, especially of Menuhin's violin. Those who already have these recordings on EMI or another label might consider giving priority to purchasing the third Pristine disc above, in that although a bargain coupling of the Violin and Double Concertos is available on EMI, Rose has done much to tame the scratchiness and give us the most satisfying re-mastering so far. Furthermore, the Pristine CD couples the Violin Concerto with a superlative performance of the Third Symphony. This is the most recent of the recordings here, made shortly before Furtwängler's death in 1954 and hence not only in the best sound but also the fruit of the conductor's conviction that he had finally understood the work.
 
The performances themselves have long been a by-word for emotional intensity and fluid mastery of the scores. Furtwängler is merciless and uncompromising in driving home the searing emotional honesty of Brahms' symphonies; nothing is prettified or extenuated, so you hear the gritty reality of Brahms' struggle with music that expresses his metaphysical battle with despair and discouragement. Chords are driven home like structural supports into the earth; there is astonishing energy and attack in the emphatic passages contrasting with the swooning, elastic Schwung of the lyrical episodes. Furtwängler was always able to apply the myriad fluctuations in his tempi without their sounding applied or self-conscious; here they sound spontaneous and organic, and the effect is often overwhelming. The opening of the First Symphony becomes a titanic effort first to depict and then to shake off the weight crushing the human spirit. Nobody, except perhaps Karajan in his live performance in the Festival Hall in October 1988, quite catches the desperation of that turmoil. Similarly, despite the papery sound and the occasional distortions at climaxes, the "Allegro energico e passionate" finale of No. 4 is devastating; the brass and timpani emerge with real impact. Yet Furtwängler is also wholly capable of capturing the delicate grace of the Allegretto of the Second and the bitter-sweet lilt of the Poco allegretto in the Third.

The Violin Concerto commemorates a happy collaboration between the conductor and Yehudi Menuhin. Never the possessor of the most succulent tone, Menuhin does not achieve Milstein's sweet rapture or Oistrakh's burnished glow but his serene, radiant account is mercifully free of the intonation problems which could afflict this great artist in later years.
Furtwängler's impassioned accompaniment lends great intensity to Brahms' sweeping melodies and the soloist responds in kind. The much improved sound allows the beauty to emerge not only of Menuhin's violin but also of other solo instruments such as the gorgeous principal oboe in the Adagio. The Allegro finale stays close to its gypsy roots, played not too hectically but with great élan.
 
The First Symphony, Double Concerto and Haydn Variations are all from the same concert in the Grosser Musikvereinssaal on 27 January 1952 - what a programme! It might have been even better: it was originally envisaged that Oistrakh and Casals were to be engaged but as it turned out Furtwängler had to settle for his own concertmaster and principal cellist in the Vienna Philharmonic - not too much of a compromise given that they were Willi Boskovsky and Emanuel Brabec. Furtwängler's conception is sombre, tragic and Romantic; the performance starts a shade tentatively but soon catches fire despite a certain deliberateness in the phrasing. The Andante is serene without dragging and the textures are rich, requiring the soloists to dig deep to ensure that they are heard against the orchestral tutti.

Of the two "Haydn Variations" here, the later 1952 performance is weightier - even a little ponderous - and in considerably better sound than the slightly swifter, lighter 1943 account, with less audience noise. The EMI Références set offers yet a third recording from 1949, the only studio recording. All three are very fine but not so different that I think you need them all; they are all affectionately and exuberantly played but the Andante in 1952 is particularly grand and my preference would be for that later version in best, if slightly tubby, sound.
 
The three Hungarian Dances on the first disc are similarly joyous and released; as always Pristine have done a wonderful job in cleaning up the hiss and providing a rich, warm ambience.
 
These four discs may be purchased bundled as a download. For those who have noticed that the CD serial numbers are not sequential, PASC 343 is a Cantelli issue. My review copy of PASC 340 has a misprint in the listings which will no doubt be corrected: it contains Hungarian Dance No.3, not No.2. 

(PASC 340,  75:06)
(PASC 341,  75:57)
(PASC 342,  76:24)
(PASC 344,  60:30)

 

These recordings offer proof - if proof were needed - of what a great conductor was the tragically short-lived Guido Cantelli (1920-1956). I've had these Tchaikovsky and Ravel recordings in my collection for many years on Testament CDs (SBT 1316 and SBT 1017 respectively).
 
I presume those Testament discs came from EMI masters, since they were issued under licence from EMI. The source of these Pristine transfers is rather more unusual and I think it's worth reproducing Andrew Rose's note on the subject.

"The recordings here, all of which were generously lent by [Cantelli biographer] Keith Bennett for the purposes of this release, were drawn largely from a rare and unusually high quality source. During the 1950s, His Master's Voice recordings could be purchased on disc, normally both 78rpm shellac and, from 1952 onwards, on the quickly popular 33rpm vinyl format. However, they also ran a short series of "High Fidelity Tape Recording" issues, the "HTA" series, and at the time the highest-priced issue format the company offered. Each tape consisted of a 7-inch spool of 1/4 inch EMITAPE with two mono tracks, one on each side, running at 7.5 inches per second. A printed paper inlay contained the sleeve notes, and a small slip which referenced the Batch Number was hand-initialled by the tape operator, an inspector and a packer. Despite their undoubted high fidelity, especially when replayed as here on a modern, broadcast-standard Studer tape recorder, these tapes failed to attract much public attention at the time, quite possibly as a result of their exorbitant cost. It has to be said that they have been a pleasure to work from - offering the highest quality of any domestic medium I've encountered from the era."
 
The resulting transfers are excellent though I have to say that I couldn't detect a great deal of difference between the Pristine and Testament issues, except, perhaps - and this is a very minor matter - the tiniest suspicion of hiss around the 1:40 mark in the Ravel recording on the Pristine transfer. However, anyone wanting these recordings can invest in Andrew Rose's transfers with complete confidence.
 
If you appreciate great conducting then you should want these recordings for, as recorded performances they are superb. Cantelli was a very fine conductor of Tchaikovsky and I admire his recording of the 'Pathétique' enormously. These recordings were all set down in conjunction with concerts that Cantelli gave with the Philharmonia and, experimentally, they were recorded in the same venue as the concerts, the recently-opened Royal Festival Hall. In a fascinating note about these recordings the aforementioned Keith Bennett points out that in his entire - and short - career Cantelli performed this symphony just six times; he then goes on to point the contrast with Karajan who alone made seven commercial recordings! Perhaps that's why Cantelli's recording, though undoubtedly scrupulously prepared, sounds so fresh and unalloyed. The big melancholy tune in the first movement is judged to perfection; it's expressive but not overwrought. The interpretation is aided by some fabulous playing by the Philharmonia who, collectively, are on sovereign form - the woodwind principals are superb. The allegro vivo (8:44) is trenchant and full of drive yet it never tips over into hysteria as lesser interpretations can do. The 5/4 waltz is nicely turned and is gracefully played. The march is tightly controlled and the Philharmonia's articulation is razor-sharp. In the finale Tchaikovsky's marking, lamentoso, if not the music itself, invites the wearing of the heart on the sleeve. Cantelli, however, is dignified. He's ardent too, however, and delivers a reading that is powerful without tipping over into sentimentality. This is, in fact, one of the finest recorded performances of the Pathétique that I know.
 
Apparently the recording of Ravel's exquisite Pavane required many takes to satisfy Cantelli's exacting standards. Not that you'd know that from the performance that we hear, which has a lovely, natural flow. The great Dennis Brain is the principal horn and the wonderful wind soloists match his excellent playing. The performance is beautifully judged and balanced and there's great clarity. The string playing can only be described as silken. This is a wonderful recording.
 
For dessert, if you like, Cantelli serves up a keen, sprightly performance of the Rossini overture.
 
This is a most desirable collection of performances by a great conductor. Since the sound quality is fully worthy of the playing and interpretations, what more could one ask?
 

(PASC 269, 58:13)