Robert Shaw’s reading of Harmonium is quite lush, luxuriating in the score’s shimmering harmonic contours. Full-bodied, sonorous singing from the Atlanta Symphony Chorus illuminates Adams’ carefully chosen and wonderfully varied colors, while the choir’s superb diction effectively communicates the texts by John Donne and Emily Dickinson. What’s missing is the sense of mystery found in Edo de Waart’s recording with his San Francisco forces. De Waart also generates greater tension in those sweeping crescendos, giving the feeling of mini-sunrises. Still, Shaw’s lower level of energy proves less of liability in this work than in The Bells’ first and third movements, where excitement is the order of the day. Again, the sheer sound of Shaw’s ensemble is lovely, but this work (reportedly Rachmaninov’s personal favorite), thrives on the type of forward momentum Ashkenazy provides in his thrilling Concertgebouw performance.
On the other hand, Shaw has fine trio of soloists at his disposal, led by a radiant sounding Renée Fleming, and his use of English texts will be an enhancement for some listeners. Leonard Slatkin on Vox also chooses the English version, and his St. Louis performance is more idiomatic and involving than Shaw’s, though it has nothing like the spectacular sound of this Telarc recording. In sum, an intriguing and well-planned coupling, but not the last word in either work.
