Lately We've Heard

Reviews by Deana Vassar and Curtis Brothers

Beethoven Symphony No. 3, “Eroica” Andrew Manze, Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra • Harmonia Mundi

“If Beethoven were sitting here, what would he want us to hear?” That is the approach that one of the most inspiring and passionate music ambassadors in the world, Andrew Manze, has taken with his new direction of one of Beethoven’s most enduring masterpieces: Symphony No. 3, the “Eroica.” This, Manze’s first recording as music director of Sweden’s famed Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra, is a complete delight.

The Beethoven 3rd is one of the standards in great symphonic repertoire, but under Manze’s direction, Helsingborg gives a fresh reading that will engage new lovers of classical music and astonish even the most stalwart fans. It is lyrical and elegant, never overwrought. Manze imagined pleasing Beethoven as he conceived the album, and though I can’t speak to that, I have appreciated hearing feedback from listeners after playing the disc on Preview! I’ve heard everything from “what was that gorgeous music?” to “I have all the great Eroica recordings, the New York Philharmonic and the San Francisco Symphony and Vienna, and now I must get this one!”

In this recording Russell offers performances of music by lutenists Silvius Leopold Weiss (1686–1750) and Jacques de Saint-Luc (1616–Ca. 1710) and transcriptions of favorites by J. S. Bach (1685 –170) and Francois Couperin (1668 –1733).

Musical performances during the Baroque period were approached in much the same way jazz is now; that is, the performer has as much to say about the interpretation as the composer. Most of Bach’s manuscripts have few markings as to time, loudness and phrasings. It is left to the artist to dress the skeleton.

Russell has done a masterful job of providing the ornaments and color for these pieces. He has also given us an extraordinary insight into the history and sometimes the political connections of these composers. The liner notes are rich in detail; Couperin’s family sat on the same organ bench for 173 years! Saint- Luc’s suite The Capture of Gaeta marks the victory of his patron, Eugene of Savoy, during the War of Spanish Succession. The final movement, Caprice en Passacaille, is a wonderful set of variations over a bass theme with an astounding conclusion.

It is obvious that Russell has studied intently the practice of grace notes common to the Baroque period. His ornamentation is bright and snappy without sacrificing the feeling and sonority that the guitar is more capable of than instruments like the harpsichord or lute. Bach’s Air on a G String is a complex piece with three parts. The bass is sweet and unhurried, the middle part well-articulated and the melody given its proper ringing against the others.

This is a wonderful album which will both entertain the beginning listener and reward the educated enthusiast.