James Conlon has proven to be an ardent champion of Zemlinsky’s music in his invaluable survey for EMI, and this recording of the Lyric Symphony maintains the overall high standard of the series. Conlon’s measured approach misses the edge-of-your-seat excitement generated by Michael Gielen in my benchmark version, but his performance still is persuasively passionate. For example, in the opening song Conlon carves out a weighty, well-articulated orchestral sound that through its very intensity of tone evokes the unease of Rabindranath Tagore’s poem. Conlon also allows for a greater ebb and flow of tempo within each song than does Gielen, and he’s more effective at getting his musicians to play with delicacy when appropriate, all of which helps to convey a broader range of emotion.
The only real disappointment in Conlon’s recording is Bo Skovhus. Certainly, the Danish baritone is more expressive than Gielen’s James Johnson, but his voice lacks firmness. Zemlinsky wanted an “heroic baritone” to sing the part, and at least in terms of vocal character Johnson comes much closer to that ideal. On the other hand, the soprano part never has been realized so glowingly as it is here by Soile Isokoski. Her voice soars over the orchestra with ease, and no other singer on disc hits every pitch with such pinpoint accuracy. She also is marvelously sensitive to both words and music, capturing the youthful excitement of the young girl in the second song and casting a truly magical spell in the fourth.
The disc concludes with a collection of operatic preludes and interludes, beginning with the blandly post-Wagnerian Prelude to Zemlinsky’s first opera, Sarema (1895). The composer found his own voice within a few years, though, for the Prelude and Act 1 Interlude from Es war einmal (1899) are glistening, tuneful gems that should be heard more often–and the same must be said for the two choice morsels from Kleider machen Leute (1909, rev. 1922). They and the excerpts from the late operas are all vividly performed.
At budget price, Gielen’s recording of the symphony cannot be recommended highly enough. Were it not for Skovhus’ thin tone, however, Conlon’s version also would have merited an unqualified rave. As it is, Isokoski’s radiant performance and the conductor’s powerfully projected interpretation make this an essential recording for Zemlinsky fans. [11/14/2002]
