James Conlon’s suite from Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk collects various scenes, arias, and orchestral interludes into a musical narrative of the opera’s tragic story. Although the first number is entitled “In the court of the Ismailovs”, the suite actually begins with Katerina’s pre-suicide meditation from the final scene before abruptly moving to the rollicking music of Scene 2’s introduction. Two love duets, “Katerina and Sergei” I & II, frame the great orchestral Passacaglia (from Act 2), followed by the comedic “The Drunkard”, which sets up the “Arrival of the Police”. The suite concludes with “In exile”, which contains the opera’s close.
For the most part Conlon’s layout and presentation make for an impressive stylistic consistency as well as providing effective contrast between sections. But it’s in Katerina’s music that the missing vocal element becomes a liability: after Galina Vishnevskaya’s harrowing portrayal of the title role, hearing an oboe approximate the same tunes just doesn’t cut it. Also, Conlon plays this very dramatic score close to the vest, giving us little of the razor’s-edge thrill Rostropovich provides on his complete recording. Still, for non-opera loving Shostakovich fans, this provides a tempting introduction to one of the composer’s greatest works.
Conlon’s suite shares the disc with Vladimir Spivakov’s taut and energetic reading of Shostakovich’s Violin Concerto No. 1. In contrast to the huge tone and morose intensity of David Oistrakh’s premiere recording with Mravinsky, Spivakov employs a somewhat sweeter sound, but his approach is rife with subversive insinuation. Conlon loosens the reigns this time around, resulting in a performance of notable emotional intensity. Nonetheless, there’s nothing here that burns itself indelibly into your memory, although this release has value for its unique and inventive programming and for its vibrant, well-balanced sound.
