The first time i played this disc, it concerned me that Harding pushed his orchestra so hard, these are certainly hard driven readings / interpretations, now i've got used to it, i even find the intensity thrilling, also Harding can be a bit clinical in stops and starts, but there's no dismissing his approach and professionalism, i'm sure he's thought long and hard about the results he wanted, the only thing that caused me concern on this listening, is the sharp sound, where's the warmth?, it sounds like a disc without any bass, it's a shame as everything else seems right, i think he took a page out of the historic performance book, lithe clean textures, fast tempos, maybe a thinner string sound, lots of nice brass, a nice heady mixture, this is a nice regular in my Blog, and this appeared only six months ago [12th May 2012 & 28th April 2011].
Daniel Harding is English, he's now 37 years old, he recorded this disc in 1999 at the young age of 23, his youthful exuberance really shows, the front cover photograph [by Ranald Mackechnie] is a great shot, a well composed portrait, i just love that pose, a serious look on the face, and hands clasped, the background is very interesting also, a white wall and trees beyond, and a small potted tree is the perfect addition, also the lettering is very well laid out, i like the way 'Overtures' is set apart in dark grey, the whole thing works on many levels.
Well this was a thrilling disc, the two Overtures i immensely enjoyed were Coriolan and Egmont, and Coriolan is all a Beethoven piece should be, real drama, phenomenal ideas, and a real sense of universal purpose, Karajan & Jochum [two favourites of mine] play the piece at the 9 minute mark, while Bruggen hits 7:17, much more nearer Harding's 7:22, so you can see which field of play he gravitates toward, the opening war like theme is played in the key of C Minor, Harding plays the opening hammer blows very clinically exacting [0:00-0:28], and straight after the speeds are thrillingly lithe, strong use of the timpani, Harding presents Beethoven as Heavy Metal to a degree, strong rhythms, lean string textures, and those timpani are really hit [2:01-2:04], sounds like the guy is having real fun [Stefan Rapp], the more lyrical theme is in E Flat Major, and these two themes intertwine like a dialogue, i love the way Beethoven welds the two themes together expertly, and the constant hammer blows are tremendous, only in the closing coda pages could Harding have slowed down things more and given us something more tender, as i believe it represents Coriolan's death, there could have been more pathos, but Harding gives it to us fairly straight and matter of fact, nevertheless there's so much here to enjoy, Beethoven sounds so involving.
Here's Carlos Kleiber conducting the Coriolan Overture on YouTube.
Here's Carlos Kleiber conducting the Coriolan Overture on YouTube.
