Artist: Valery Gergiev, Mariinsky Orchestra
Album: Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 15
Genre: Classical
Release Date: 2009
Audio Format:: FLAC (tracks) 24 bit, 96 kHz
Duration: 01:15:52
Total Tracks: 8
Total Size: 1,16 GB

Tracklist:

01. Valery Gergiev, Mariinsky Orchestra – Symphony No. 1 – I. Allegretto – Allegro non troppo (08:52)
02. Valery Gergiev, Mariinsky Orchestra – Symphony No. 1 – II. Allegro (04:40)
03. Valery Gergiev, Mariinsky Orchestra – Symphony No. 1 – III. Lento – Largo (08:45)
04. Valery Gergiev, Mariinsky Orchestra – Symphony No. 1 – IV. Allegro molto – Lento – Adagio – Presto (09:35)
05. Valery Gergiev, Mariinsky Orchestra – Symphony No. 15 – I. Allegretto (08:18)
06. Valery Gergiev, Mariinsky Orchestra – Symphony No. 15 – II. Adagio (14:59)
07. Valery Gergiev, Mariinsky Orchestra – Symphony No. 15 – III. Allegretto (04:04)
08. Valery Gergiev, Mariinsky Orchestra – Symphony No. 15 – IV. Adagio – Allegretto (16:36)

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Over 45 years separate the composition of Shostakovich’s first and final symphonies and yet both exude the same creativity and dark wit for which the great composer came to be known.
The First Symphony owes much to the influence of the composer’s Russian predecessors including Tchaikovsky and Scriabin. However, it also reflects contemporary artistic life and the optimism of the early years in the Soviet Union. By contrast the final symphony is a much more bitter work, which draws on many of the themes that recur throughout Shostakovich’s career, yet never resorts to melodrama.Following hard on the heels of Mikhail Pletnev’s fine SACD version of Shostakovich’s 15th is this impressively recorded version of the same work made in the sumptuous acoustics of the new Mariinsky Concert Hall. Needless to say, Gergiev’s interpretation is strikingly different from that of his Russian colleague. Whereas Pletnev emphasises the grim, almost nightmarish imagery of the first movement, Gergiev is much more playful and skittish, and the crystal clear recording focuses upon the chamber-like aspect of Shostakovich’s scoring.

In the darker resonances of the ensuing Adagio, Gergiev weaves a more continuous symphonic thread, whereas Pletnev’s view is somewhat halting and fragmentary. The brief third movement finds Pletnev once again opting for caustic wit, in comparison to Gergiev’s somewhat gentler approach. Only in the Finale do the two conductors follow a fairly similar conception, although the warmer perspective of the Gergiev recording brings a much greater depth and impact to the Symphony’s final despairing climax.

Gergiev’s coupling of the First Symphony is much more generous than Pletnev’s selection of movements from the Incidental Music to Hamlet. The performance is particularly impressive in the final two movements, when Gergiev whips up the tension to a frenzy, which reminds us, in certain climaxes, how influenced the young Shostakovich was by Scriabin.

Especially compelling is the way in which Gergiev negotiates the different tempo changes in the Finale without sacrificing the logical flow of the musical argument. Yet, earlier in the work, I found the playing neatly characterised but perhaps a little lacking in urgency. –Erik Levi, BBC Music Magazine