Under the baton of the young Finnish conductor and cellist Klaus Mäkelä, the hr-Sinfonieorchester performs Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No.7 in C major, Op.60 "Leningrad". Recorded at Alte Oper Frankfurt, on November 1, 2019.
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The Symphony No.7 in C major, Op.60, by Dmitry Shostakovich, known as "Leningrad", premiered informally on March 5, 1942, at a rural retreat by the Volga, where the composer and many of his colleagues were seeking refuge from World War II. Five months later, it would be given in the city whose name it bore under highly dramatic circumstances; the work would come to stand for Russian courage in the face of crisis and still is imagined to represent survival against difficult odds.
Few important compositions ever been performed under quite so trying circumstances as Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No.7. It was August 9, 1942. Not only was Europe at war, but the German army stood at the gates of Leningrad. So long had the city been under siege that several orchestra members had succumbed to famine during the rehearsal period, and the ensemble, finding itself short of players, put out a call for help. The Russian military officer in command of defense forces released any soldier who could play an orchestral instrument reasonably well long enough for the performance, which was transmitted by loudspeakers around the perimeter of the city, both to hearten the Russian people and to make the point to the Germans that surrender was not at hand. During the concert, empty chairs were placed in the orchestra to represent musicians who had perished before the performance could be given.
That Leningrad performance had not been the Symphony's first hearing. Although he had begun the work in Leningrad the previous summer, that winter, Shostakovich and other prominent cultural resources of the nation had been forcibly evacuated for their own protection, sent to Kuybyshev in the Volga. The Symphony was finished there and premiered with a gathering of the composer’s colleagues on March 5, 1942. Then in a burst of foresight, Shostakovich arranged for the score to be microfilmed. In this form, it was then smuggled to Iran, driven to Egypt, and flown via South America to the U.S., where Toscanini and the NBC Symphony gave it an American premiere on July 19, 1942. So the Leningrad performance was its third hearing, though the first in the city for which it was named.
As for the composer himself, he was unable to attend the American performance in person, but was there in spirit, on the cover of Time magazine, with a photograph of him in fire-fighting gear. Given both his international fame and his near-sightedness, the Russian army had declined to give Shostakovich a front-line post and instead assigned him to a domestic fire-fighting team, quietly informing his colleagues that it was their responsibility to keep him out of harm's way.
Soviet authorities were quick to declare the Symphony a musical depiction of heroic military actions, though Shostakovich himself asserted that it was more emotional than pictorial. From either perspective, it is not exactly an optimistic work. The opening Allegretto movement sets powerful themes in contrast to gentler ones, the latter particularly for flute. A distant march develops, complete with snare drum, and growing gradually more fearsome. The procession, more sardonic than grim, is interrupted at times by outbursts of brass. Setting the march energy aside temporarily, Shostakovich brings in mournful themes for strings and an extended solo for bassoon, before closing the movement with a distant recollection of the martial theme.
The second movement, Moderato (poco allegretto), begins with the second violins, whose theme gradually reappears elsewhere in the orchestra in layers of counterpoint. A short spotlight for oboe adds further color to the textures, which until that point had largely been focused upon strings. The generally flowing spirit of the opening pages yields to increasing restlessness and anxiety, verging on desperation. As the close of the movement approaches, Shostakovich gives a prolonged solo to the oft-neglected bass clarinet, its low and somber voice contrasting nicely with the bassoon, which had been featured late in the first movement.
He does not label the third movement, Adagio, a "funeral march", but it is essentially that, with grim opening chords, despairing string lines, and a distant march beat developing. A melancholy theme heard first in the flute grows and evolves as it moves to other instruments. Brass and percussion bring a measure of even greater anguish as the movement progresses, though it will close with a return to the weary sorrows with which it had begun.
The last movement, Allegro non troppo, may be a vision of ultimate victory. Opening in a subdued fashion, it gradually builds in determination with a renewed march mood. It is not the despairing march of the Adagio, but rather one of firm resolution, as if to remind listeners of the forces lurking outside the city gates. Poignant passages appear, suggestive of remembered losses, though the last few minutes – built upon a repeating rhythmic fragment in the strings – brings back the firm energy of earlier pages. It is still not quite music of victory, but at least of survival.
Shostakovich's Symphony No.7, is indeed a work of heroic scope, roughly an hour in length and with an orchestra well supplied with additional winds and percussion. Although it set out to reflect a particular time and place, one can also perceive it in broader terms. Imagine it as a symphony reflecting any people persevering in the face of adversity, and it becomes a work with universal appeal.
Source: Betsy Schwarm, 2017 (britannica.com)
Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975)
♪ Symphony No.7 in C major, Op.60 "Leningrad" (1939-1940)
i. Allegretto
ii. Moderato (poco allegretto)
iii. Adagio
iv. Allegro non troppo
hr-Sinfonieorchester (Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra)
Conductor: Klaus Mäkelä
Alte Oper Frankfurt, November 1, 2019
(HD 1080p)
Klaus Mäkelä (b. 1996, Helsinki) has established a strong international presence through his instant musical connection with orchestras around the world. Mäkelä is Chief Conductor and Artistic Advisor Designate of the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and will assume the position at the beginning of the 2020-2021 season. He is also Principal Guest Conductor of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Artist in Association with Tapiola Sinfonietta, and Artistic Director of the Turku Music Festival.
In the 2019-2020 season, Mäkelä makes his first appearances with the NDR Elbphilharmonie, Münchner Philharmoniker, Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, Nederlands Radio Filharmonisch Orkest, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orquesta Nacional de España, London Philharmonic Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, The Hallé and Scottish Chamber Orchestra. He returns to the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, MDR Leipzig, Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, The Minnesota Orchestra, NAC Ottawa, Gothenburg and Tokyo Metropolitan symphony orchestras, and Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne. Mäkelä also continues his tenures with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and Tapiola Sinfonietta where he has embarked on a Beethoven Cycle which will continue over the next two seasons. This seasons' concert programmes also include masterworks by Bruckner, Rachmaninov, Shostakovich, and Debussy, Ravel and Berlioz.
Highlights from last season include appearances with Orchestre de Paris, Orchestre National de Lyon, Frankfurt Radio, Antwerp, Bern, and Malmö symphony orchestras, Bergen Philharmonic, Iceland Symphony Orchestra and Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse which have led to immediate and consistent re-invitations.
Also working in opera, Mäkelä made his operatic debut in with the Finnish National Opera conducting The Magic Flute and a concertante performance of Erkki Melartin’s Aino.
Mäkelä studied conducting at the Sibelius Academy with Jorma Panula and cello with Marko Ylönen, Timo Hanhinen and Hannu Kiiski. As a soloist, he has performed with Finnish orchestras such as the Lahti Symphony, Kuopio Symphony and Jyväskylä Sinfonia as well as appearing at many Finnish festivals including the Kuhmo Chamber Music and Naantali Music Festival. He plays a Giovanni Grancino cello from 1698, kindly made available to him by the OP Art Foundation.
Source: klausmakela.com
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See also
Sauli Zinovjev: Un Grande Sospiro – Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Klaus Mäkelä (HD 1080p)
Robert Schumann: Piano Concerto in A minor – Martin Helmchen, hr-Sinfonieorchester, Klaus Mäkelä (HD 1080p)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No.9 in D minor "Choral" – Lauren Fagan, Hanna Hipp, Tuomas Katajala, Shenyang, Oslo Philharmonic Choir & Orcestra, Klaus Mäkelä (4K Ultra High Definition)
Dmitri Shostakovich – All the posts
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