Tchaikovsky’s Fourth, Fifth and Sixth symphonies, so
different from one another yet so unmistakably Tchaikovskian, were cornerstones
of Karajan’s career every bit as important as the symphonies of Beethoven or
Brahms. They entered his symphonic repertoire before WWII and stayed there for
some half a century or so. He recorded them commercially at least four times.
Three of these sets, in fine recent remasters, are conveniently available as
twofers.
1964-66,
BPO, DG; 2003, OIBP, Karajan The Collection
These are fine performances,
now available in better-than-ever-before sound. All the same, they are of
mostly historical interest. Both of the next two sets have, in their different
ways, vastly superior sound. This one tends to be a little muddy (woodwinds,
timpani) or harsh (brass, cymbals), pitfalls of Jesus-Christus-Kirche as a recording
venue which Günter Hermanns, Karajan’s Tonmeister for DG, didn’t always avoid.
(Neither did Wolfgang Gülich on EMI, for that matter.) And the sound does
matter – unless you still believe the old hokum about Tchaikovsky’s amateurish
orchestration. Karajan’s interpretations didn’t change much over the years, but
they did become more refined and better nuanced. It was all “smoothing the
edges” more – according to the Karajan detractors who claim that he never made
another fine recording after those DECCA sessions with the VPO in 1959-60. But
that’s another story.
The Sixth is notable for the
relatively slow, Karajan-wise, climax in the first movement. Also, it is the best
recorded of the bunch, although it was actually recorded first (1964). The Fifth
is given a very dramatic reading. I don’t know how Richard Osborne decided it
is “the most gracious and urbane” of all recordings of this symphony made by
Karajan. Then again, Mr Osborne is no stranger to writing nonsense in his liner
notes. Again according to him, the Fifth is “less troubled (and less original)”
than the other two. Ha! You bet!
On the whole, this twofer is
a very good place to start. All the same, for the real thing we have to enter
the 1970s.
1971,
BPO, EMI; 2007, remastered
If you are used to the DG
sound, this one will come as a shock. Don’t worry. Stay calm. Keep listening.
Things will normalise again. Trust me, I know. I’ve been through it.
I don’t know about early
editions, but the 2007 remaster boasts incredible sound: spacious, deep,
natural. The strings are unbelievable! So many details for which you have to
listen carefully on DG here leap to your attention. Unlike some other EMI
recordings from the 1970s, the woodwinds are not distant, nor the timpani
overblown. My only quibble is that the brass is not clear enough in the grand
climaxes. But you can’t win them all.
Sound apart, these are leaner,
more athletic performances than the ones on DG. There is a sense of abandon
that’s almost apocalyptic. I use the word in its literal sense. The Berliners
play as if the End of the World is coming and there is no tomorrow. All three
symphonies are superbly performed, but the Sixth is special. It may be the best
Karajan ever did. I do not agree, and never will, with his rather fast take of
the climax in the first movement, but here, for once, it sounds almost right.
The prominent strings work miracles. The Scherzo sounds totally different, the
Waltz is spookier than ever, and the finale will displace your furniture. I
guarantee. Just listen to the low strings after the first climax. All in all, stupendous
performance in stupendous sound!
1975-76,
BPO, DG; 1997, OIBP
This is, on the whole, my
favourite set. The sound was already superb on the old box-set edition (4 CDs,
6 symphonies, 1975-79) and, fortunately, the remastering didn’t change that. Compared
to EMI, the strings here remind one of a chamber orchestra; but the tone is
rich and deep. The sound is brighter – some would say brittle – and that is not
to everybody’s taste, but I have no problems with it. The dynamic range in
general and the brass in particular are totally superior to EMI: the climaxes
are magnificent yet clear. Just listen to the three cataclysmic chords in the
end of the Fourth’s first movement, while the main theme wails high in the violins,
and the following sound hurricane. Swept you out together with the armchair you
were sitting in, didn’t it? The Fourth, indeed, is a standout. Karajan
surpassed himself. None of his other five studio attempts comes close. The
Fifth is rather different than the EMI version, but it stands well to
comparison. The Sixth on EMI is unsurpassed, but this one is no slouch either.
1984,
VPO, DG; 1994, OIBP, Karajan Gold, not available as set
This is the most
disappointing “set”. Only the Fourth (Karajan’s forte) reminds, from time to
time, of his finest Tchaikovsky. The climaxes in the Fifth and the Sixth are
strangely tepid. They give the impression of routine drudgery made for the sake
of the digital catalogue. This is worthy neither of Karajan nor of the VPO. The
sound is, of course, crystal clear and very detailed, but awfully flat and with
somewhat limited dynamic range. The balance is rather off: trumpets far too
prominent, horns and trombones quite the opposite. The strings are dreadfully thin
and weak! Surely the string section of the VPO can do better than that!
The best about these
performances is that they were captured on video and released on DVD. They are much
better seen than listened to; the camera is often revealing about some less
obvious details of the orchestration. And they make for an interesting
comparison with the younger and considerably more vigorous Karajan from the
“bonus track”. If you are a Tchaikovsky or a Karajan aficionado, you probably
won’t regret the purchase. Then again, you just might. The bad news is that the
sound on the SONY DVDs, especially the 2007 editions “re-recorded at the
original venues” (what for!?), is even more dreadful than the one on the DG
CDs. The dynamic range is flattened to death! And the balance is by no means
improved. Judging by the Fourth symphony alone, the problem with the balance
was already there in the early SONY DVD (2000), but the limited dynamic range
is largely a result of the re-recording procedure. Get the VHS from the 1980s
if you can. They are probably superior to both DVD releases.
Bonus
track: 1973,
BPO, Unitel/DG, Live, DVDX2
Coming from the years between
the EMI and the DG sets, these live performances are rather disappointing, at
least by Karajan’s somewhat exalted standards. Neither the sound nor the
performance lives up to the studio recordings. To be sure, they are hugely
preferable to the videos with the VPO. But that doesn’t say much, does it?
(To be exact, there is one "set" more, with Philharmonia
for EMI (1953-56), as well as isolated recordings of separate symphonies
(Fourth for EMI with BPO from 1960, Sixth with BPO for DG from 1939 and with
VPO for EMI from 1949), but these are of interest only to fanatical Karajan
collectors who want to trace his development.)
Bottom line
Karajan’s Tchaikovsky may not
be idiomatic enough for the connoisseurs, but for me great music transcends
national borders (at least the ones between Russia
