The Georg Tintner Memorial Edition Finally Arrives
Posted by: Todd A on 25 May 2003
A while back I wrote about a prospective series of releases on Naxos featuring Georg Tintner conducting music other than Bruckner. Well, the first disc in the series has finally hit US shores, so I figured I’d buy it. The first volume is devoted to Mozart symphonies, and since I’m in a sort of Mozart binge at the moment, the timing was perfect.
Three symphonies make up the inaugural volume: the Paris (31), the Haffner (35), and the great G minor, number 40. The band is the Symphony Nova Scotia, and the recordings were taken from single performances (no mixing and matching here!) in 1989, 1991, and 1994, respectively. I listened to them in order.
Tintner definitely favors a big-boned, old-style approach; it sounds as though he had no time or concern for period practice. He didn’t need it. While the Paris symphony can tend to plod a bit in the outer movements, it is saved by a wonderfully executed middle movement, and is generally quite pleasant. The Haffner, on the other hand, is truly outstanding. There is a constant forward momentum truly befitting this (relatively) underrated symphony. The strings play very well and the dynamic contrasts in the work seem a little more pronounced than in some recordings. At no point does this piece drag; here’s a perfect case for Mozart being played in a more “modern” style. (If any case were needed.) The G minor is very good. Here, the big-band treatment is allied with a slightly romanticized approach. The opening movement is a little slower than one might expect nowadays, though the rest of the work moves along at a fine clip. The Andante, especially, is paced to near-perfection. As an interesting note, Tintner opts for the “original” score without clarinets. I found that quite intriguing, if not overly important. Overall, it’s more like Beecham than Hogwood, if you will, so if you must have period or period-informed performances, this may not be for you.
The sound is more than acceptable, though it is a little boomy and ill-defined in the bass at times. I will say that at times it seems that these are studio recordings, so quiet is the audience and so well do the orchestra play. Indeed, while no one will ever confuse them for the Berlin Philharmonic, the Symphony Nova Scotia play very well, and it is clear that Tintner had drilled into them exactly what he wanted them to play. I cannot say that Tintner was a truly great Mozartian, but he was one worth hearing. At the price, I would be embarrassed not to buy this disc. Now I await the next disc: Schubert’s last two symphonies.
Three symphonies make up the inaugural volume: the Paris (31), the Haffner (35), and the great G minor, number 40. The band is the Symphony Nova Scotia, and the recordings were taken from single performances (no mixing and matching here!) in 1989, 1991, and 1994, respectively. I listened to them in order.
Tintner definitely favors a big-boned, old-style approach; it sounds as though he had no time or concern for period practice. He didn’t need it. While the Paris symphony can tend to plod a bit in the outer movements, it is saved by a wonderfully executed middle movement, and is generally quite pleasant. The Haffner, on the other hand, is truly outstanding. There is a constant forward momentum truly befitting this (relatively) underrated symphony. The strings play very well and the dynamic contrasts in the work seem a little more pronounced than in some recordings. At no point does this piece drag; here’s a perfect case for Mozart being played in a more “modern” style. (If any case were needed.) The G minor is very good. Here, the big-band treatment is allied with a slightly romanticized approach. The opening movement is a little slower than one might expect nowadays, though the rest of the work moves along at a fine clip. The Andante, especially, is paced to near-perfection. As an interesting note, Tintner opts for the “original” score without clarinets. I found that quite intriguing, if not overly important. Overall, it’s more like Beecham than Hogwood, if you will, so if you must have period or period-informed performances, this may not be for you.
The sound is more than acceptable, though it is a little boomy and ill-defined in the bass at times. I will say that at times it seems that these are studio recordings, so quiet is the audience and so well do the orchestra play. Indeed, while no one will ever confuse them for the Berlin Philharmonic, the Symphony Nova Scotia play very well, and it is clear that Tintner had drilled into them exactly what he wanted them to play. I cannot say that Tintner was a truly great Mozartian, but he was one worth hearing. At the price, I would be embarrassed not to buy this disc. Now I await the next disc: Schubert’s last two symphonies.