2. music
  3. 178614-74445

Dvorak Cello Concerto

  Some recordings imprint us with impressions of a piece that any other interpretation just doesn’t sound right, particularly if we have listened to that recording a bunch prior to hearing others.  In this work I had a recording by Maurice Gendron, a French Cellist known more as a teacher than a recording artist, and Haitink with the LPO, that I played the proverbial grooves off 40 years ago.

  The piece itself is one of Dvorak’s greatest.  He was a superb melodist..  Brahms once said that other Composers could make a career using the chips that flew off his workbench. However a lot of his works can sound formulaic, as he tries to make those gorgeous tunes fill up a structure they can’t support.  When he was inspired however, he soared, and this Concerto is one of his peaks.  Written after several years in America when he was pining to be home with his family, he also learned that his sister in law, who was his first love and with whom he stayed close after his own marriage, had died.  He incorporates some songs that he had written for her in the piece, and the juxtaposition of the symphonic scope of the work with the interludes of aching nostalgia is irresistible.

  It was years before I heard another recording and they all sounded somewhat slick in comparison.  They just don’t seem to be inside the work as my favorite.  Is this for real or was I so shaped by my initial impression.

  Lately I’ve been listening to Alissa Weilerstein with Jiri Behlolavak (who died soon after the recording) and the Czech PO.  I finally have a recording that has supplanted the long term favorite.  I still prefer some of the rubato in Gendron/Haitink, but Weilerstein still dishes the emotion but more as a Polka then a Waltz.  And her tone is golden.  She floats a pianissimo at the end that is to die for

mahler123
goofyfoot
1,340 posts
 

@melm yeah, well you asked me if newer recordings 'always' sound better than earlier recordings so I just answered the best I could. And, my reference to using master tapes means the original tapes from the original recording.

Microphone placement varies today just as it always has. The Jean-Guihen Queyras Dvorak recording from Harmonia Mundi  is open and natural sounding so I would guess that the microphone placement is further away from the cello. Also, the same types of microphones are available today just as they were back in the day. Telefunken still makes their ELA M 251E, U47 and C12 vacuum tube microphones.

I have no desire to argue, especially where it pertains to personal preference but recording technologies have progressed over the years. Whether a record label is capable or willing to use these technological advancements is questionable.

I've been amazed at the remastering job Analogue Productions did with the RCA Living Stereo of 'Scheherazade'. This recording is a simple three track recording from around 1958. The Analogue Productions remaster is nothing short of amazing.

I did state that I thought the performance practice of works is different now from what it used to be and for me, that is neither good or bad because there are great contemporary performances and great historical performances. I believe this applies to the Dvorak Cello Concerto as well.

mahler123 OP
3,101 posts
 

@melm I heard Weilerstein and the Czech PO perform the piece in Chicago, with Bychkov conducting, as Behlolavak had passed away.  Aural memories can fail us, but I think the Decca recording is very faithful to a concert perspective .

  Starker had a more laser like intonation and at least in his non Bach recordings had less vibrato than Rostropovich, Gendron, Du Pre, Weilerstein, etc.  I have his Bach recordings but its been a while since I last heard them so  I will except those. The contemporary Cellist that most reminds me of Starker is Capucon.

mahler123 OP
3,101 posts
 

I’ve been listening to the Rostropovich/Karajan the last few days and have been using it to do some system comparisons.  Regarding the performance, it is absolutely fine.  There is plenty of virtuosity on display, not the least being the burnished horns of the BPO.  This recording really shines in the slow movement.  Somehow it doesn’t sound as convincing to me as my two favorites, but its nothing to sneeze at.

  My CA streamer does AirPlay and Chromecast.  I recently added Apple Music as I have become dissatisfied with Qobuz for a few reasons and have been thinking of dumping it, and used this recording as a comparator this morning.  First I AirPlay from my iPad to the CA .  Next up was casting from Qobuz on my Android phone, and ended with Qobuz playing directly through the streamer.  It improved with each iteration, but the biggest jump was the last, as the Cello became distinctly fuller sounding and the sound stage snapping into place

bigquery
978 posts
 

Really enjoyed this conversation. Thanks for posting the topic.  Would be interested in any comments on the new Warner Recordings set of Jacqueline Du Pre.  I've started a new thread on this set.

More to discover