Here’s a really interesting collection of French band music, as boringly played as we’re ever likely to hear. Florent Schmitt’s Dionysiaques hasn’t a trace of sultry, sexy exoticism, and as with all of the pieces here, it suffers from weak upper register winds (the saxophones are especially reticent). The Berlioz Grande Symphonie funèbre et triomphale needs far more textural richness from oboes and clarinets, and while Joe Alessi plays a mean trombone in the central Oraison, the finale completely lacks swagger. It’s interesting to compare this to the recent recording made by the winds of the Garde Républicain on Valois, where despite a slower tempo, that same finale has so much more impact and vitality.
The other three items fare somewhat better, and Eugène Bozza’s overture, essentially a rip-off of the opening movement of Respighi’s The Pines of Rome, adds a touch of genuine novelty. But overriding dullness still dooms what should have been a very interesting program. This isn’t, incidentally, a question of “ethnicity”. One of the very best performances of the Berlioz remains Colin Davis’ superb version with the London Symphony on Philips. Chandos’ overly ample acoustic doesn’t help either, offering resonance where clarity and brilliance would have been far preferable.
