Search - Shostakovich, Previn :: Symphony 8

Powerful performance of a Shostakovich masterpiece

N. Daniele Pietro | Milano, MI Italy | 07/21/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"When the 8th symphony came out, audiences & critics alike were admired but somewhat perplexed: two years after the 1941 "Leningrad"symphony , everybody was expecting something closer to a triumphal "Victory" symphony , but they got a very different thing. For sure the 8th is long&monumental, but it's a very dark, craggy monumentality indeed, complicately laid out in several movements. So, until recently , the 8th has been overshadowed in popularity by other Shostakovich "war" symphonies, sometimes understandably (5th), sometimes not (7th, which sounds somewhat dated nowadays). The I movement sets the tone: it's an immense , incredibly tense Adagio dominated by the strings, building up to a shattering, anguished climax. This movement also features the famous cor anglais solo, here beautifully played in all its desolate poignancy. The II mov. is spectral and menacing, something like a waltz genetically contaminated by a march. The III mov. is perhaps my all-time Shostakovich favorite highlight : it's a relentless, machine -like ostinato in the vein of the so-called "Nazi-march" of the "Leningrad", but even more inexorable and totally terrifying. With Shostakovichian dark humour, it leads directly to a grotesquely chilling Scherzo section , halfway between vaudeville and Greek Tragedy. The IV is a "suspension" mov. , delicately scored for woodwinds and strings, so providing the necessary repose for the long finale. This begins deceptively, in almost neo-classical gestures, but then it gradually builds up to a last series of clashing chords. After them, the hushed conclusion of the symphony is entrusted to ethereal but somewhat "exhausted" string textures. No final apotheosis, not even one of the very ambiguous kind that uniquely Shostakovich could write ( 7th, 10th). Just a hint of hope, maybe, but not for the present. Andre' Previn already made a milestone recording of the 8th with the LSO in the 70's and it's very good that he chose to re-record it in digital sound, because the results are striking. I've always regarded Previn's straighforward approach to Shostakovich as the best "non-Russian" approach to this music: polished without being superficially glossy, well aware of the anguished undercurrents without the anxiousness to find a portrait of Stalin every five bars . (a very common and annoying practice , these days). Also, the LSO plays superbly for him, with, for example, strings which display that "razor" quality normally associated with the best Russian orchestras. The DG sound is big and full, somebody could find it overbearing, but I think it's perfectly suited to the massive, block-like orchestration of this magnificent symphony. Also recommended: Shostakovich 10&13/Previn/LSO/Emi"

Even Stalinist Russia wasn't this bland.

Timothy Mikolay | Pittsburgh, PA | 03/08/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Deutsche Grammaphone has captured the London Symphony in a spectacular recording using its 4D technology. Unfortunatley, this is all it is. Previn's earlier Shosty's, the 5th with the Chicago Symphony and the 13th with this disc's ensemble, were superb. This 8th suffers from vastly overstated musical ideas, superficial lines and terribly slow tempi. Although the orchestra plays with exceptional virtuosity, the intensity is totally lacking. The opening figure has too much breadth, is too slow and, unfortunately, is reinforced thoughout with much predictability. Although the march is somewhat spirited, Previn undercuts its overall scope but sucking the breath out of it. By the time I reached the third movement climax, I stopped the CD player, exasperated from the incredibly banal experience.Previn has become notorious in his later years for charging exhorbitant fees and less than exemplary recordings. His concert appearences fare much better, but after studying quite a number of accolades for this 1994 release, and buying and listening to it, I was terribly dismayed. Great recordings are becoming just that, marvels of aural engineering and nothing much else and this 8th, far surpassed in breadth, scope and nuance by Previn's former orchestra, the Pittsburgh Symphony on EMI, is or has become another forgettable addition to the classical CD catalog. If you don't care about solid interpretation or profound music making, but just a good sonic, digital recording, this is a good buy."

Excellent performance, brilliant symphony

Paul E. Harrison | Stuart, FL | 03/24/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Shostakovich's attack on war, Symphony No 8, is a profoundly disturbing piece of music. Written in a period of weeks after the composer had been whisked away from the danger in Leningrad, it was written at a moment when the composer thought it was safe to be more openly negative about the events unfurling around him. Alas, immediately after the war, this brilliant symphony was used as evidence of Shostakovich's disloyalty to the Communist Regime and tendency to "formalism" and he was blackballed by the Soviet musical establishment.This is a symphony that attacks every aspect of war, from an initial, long, overview, through a vicious lampooning of the politics that lead to wars occuring, a graphic metaphorical depiction of the war machine as some unstoppable train, and a tremendously sad, hopeless ending. It's graphic, it's relentless, and it's a brilliant Shostakovich work.Andre Previn conducts the LSO for this performance. It's played slowly and carefully and is a brilliant performance. My personal favourate is that of Bernard Haitink/Concertgebouw Orchestra (ASIN B00004WFQD), but this is a great alternative and worth having in your collection."