Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5; Romeo and Juliet Fantasy-Overture
San Francisco Symphony, Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor (SFS Media)
The latest release in the steadily growing SFS discography of performances recorded live in Davies Symphony Hall will be available May 5 on hybrid SACD and as a digital download. The album is also mastered for iTunes. As a rare exception to the rule, hearing the gorgeously recorded disc at home is actually more than the next best thing to being there.
The performances in DSH from 2014 seemed a little too meticulous at the time, but listening on good equipment without public distractions allows us to fully savor MTT's emotional bond with Tchaikovsky. His elegant approach to two warhorse staples of the Russian symphonic repertoire is a dazzling celebration that coincides nicely with the 175th anniversary of the composer's birth.
We wanted more theatrical passion in the concert setting, although the orchestra responded to the maestro's measured control with exceptional energy and flawless style. The playing remains as rich and assured as remembered, and actually gains in dramatic force as a purely aural experience. I can imagine returning to these deeply thoughtful interpretations often, and easily recommend the handsomely packaged disc as a library selection for the simple reason of MTT's avoidance of excess.
What is it about the Russian master's gift for song that never ceases to move us? The big melodies still swell and soar inexorably without ever going over the top, and MTT's grasp of the marvelous structure of the Fifth Symphony is seamlessly fulfilled.
Again, Romeo and Juliet doesn't convince as much, but heard without the usual interpretive torment, it refreshingly becomes more an opulent fantasy than the traditional emotional rollercoaster.
MTT started his 20th season with the SFS conducting both works on different concert bills. A lifelong appreciation of Tchaikovsky's genius is beautifully realized on the new recording, with tremendously sympathetic response from his musical colleagues.
Leonard Bernstein (music); Betty Comden and Adolph Green (book and lyrics): On the Town (New Broadway Cast Recording)
Tony Yazbeck (Gabey), Jay Armstrong Johnson (Chip), Clyde Alves (Ozzie), Megan Fairchild (Ivy Smith), Alysha Umphress (Hildy Esterhazy), Elizabeth Stanley (Claire) (PS Classics, 2-CD set), also available as Digital Download
Bernstein, Comden & Green were kids themselves when they teamed up with ballet genius Jerome Robbins to create a revue-style book musical based on the adventures of three boisterous sailors on a frenetic 24-hour pass in New York City, 1944.
Some of the onstage characters' real-life counterparts were living much the same story in Times Square outside the Adelphi Theater, where the show was playing, and the wistful qualities of the score must have seemed especially poignant to the audiences inside.
The show was a hit, running more than a year. It went on to Hollywood in a 1949 version that scrapped virtually all of the wonderful music (too sophisticated for the average folk), but kept the basic concept. The film at least had the energy of Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra to propel it, and the iconic opening number "New York, New York" was retained. There have been a few revivals over the years, and our own Michael Tilson Thomas recorded almost all of the score (still available on DG) with a great singing cast that included Thomas Hampson as Gabey and Tyne Daly as Hildy (the lovably libidinous taxi driver) from semi-staged concerts at the Barbican Centre, London 1992. That production was repeated at Davies Symphony Hall in 1995, and the SFS has announced another incarnation, with a cast to be announced, for late May 2016.
New Yorkers and Big Apple tourists can catch a full and very well-reviewed production at the Lyric Theatre on 42nd St. right now. The two-disc set capturing the joyful experience is now available, and for fans of the show and of its beloved creators, it's a real treat.
It can also be strongly applauded for recalling an era when Broadway used full-sized orchestras to support singers and dancers of Golden Age musicals. A 28-piece band opens the new On the Town with a snappy "Star-Spangled Banner" that serves as an overture to the cavalcade of delightful tunes and dance numbers that follow. "Lonely Town," "I Can Cook, Too," "Some Other Time," and of course, the thrilling "New York, New York" get the big brassy Broadway treatment, but the gorgeous ballet music that makes so much impact on the heart of listeners is also served beautifully.
The young cast (triple-threat performers: actors, singers and dancers!) may not surpass previous performers on disc, but hearing them in the context of a very vibrant homage to a bygone time and brand of show is a continual pleasure. Best of all, the original orchestrations have been reconstructed to give an authentic feel to those wonderful songs and dances. If anyone needed a reminder of just how witty and warm Comden & Green were, it can be found here.
We're looking forward to attending MTT's next go at the legendary show. He is even less than six degrees of separation from the late lamented Lenny. But for now, the adorable new cast recording will do nicely.