Astonishing rendition of Pacific 231, and two other Cook "Sounds of Our Times" goodies (1955).

 

It must have been 25 years ago when I found this ten-incher within rows and rows of thrift store Classical vinyl.  I bought it for Arthur Honegger's Pacific 231, which is just about my favorite "modern" Classical work of them all--though, on first listen, I felt then (as now) that there are better renditions out there.  Don't get me wrong--this is a very, very good performance, but just not as good as it could have been, and possibly because the group was playing to impress.  As the mostly illiterate liner notes note, "Honegger's PACIFIC 231 was recorded on the first 'take!' (Musicians will recognize this as a kind of musical miracle considering the muscular complexity of the score.')"  That's not hyperbole--it's just reporting the facts.  But I think the performance, as amazing as it is, loses something in its race to the finish.  That's kind of a pun, given the work's subject (a fast-moving train--though I've read that that inspiration came to Honegger after he'd written the score).  I just think that more attention to detail in some of the sections would have easily put this in the top five 231s.  Maybe even some quick microphone rearranging along the way.

Anyway, I quoted the closest-to-English part of the 231 album notes.  More typical of the back-cover essay is this attempt at assembling words: "Honegger's locomotive is prominent in all the textbooks...but conspicuously absent from recording rolls.  The awful stigma of being 'dated' does not, however, weaken the fierce crushing power of this score."  The really scary part is, I sort of know what the writer was trying to say.

But logic, please.  1) Pacific 231 was not, far as I know, ever difficult to find on disc.  There's that marvelous 1927 78 I posted in 2016, for instance, and there was Honegger's own early recording.  And 2), if Pacific is so "dated," what's it doing in the "Sounds of Our Times" series?  "Modern orchestral textures"--the jacket's words, not mine (though I agree).  So modern, it's dated.  I hate it when things are dated in their currentness.

However, bad liner notes can be pretty entertaining, and these fill that bill.  And, after all of my fake-hit posts this year, a set of good liner notes might put me into shock.  Anyway, I was certain I didn't know the other two works, which I think fare even better (because the musicians aren't trying to set a first-take record, no pun intended)--Debussy's delightful Danse, superbly orchestrated by Ravel, and Samuel Barber's indescribably gorgeous and moving Adagio for Strings. Turns out, the two works are old friends--I just didn't realize it.  Two standards that I've heard sometime along the line, and obviously more than once.  The best description of the Barber piece may be pure agony in music--a timelessly beautiful expression of pain and grief.  Great art has the power to turn anything into beauty, and we have all the proof we need here.

By the way, I can't believe Bernard Herrmann wasn't influenced by Adagio when writing the score for the Twilight Zone classic "Walking Distance."

A superbly balanced program, and though I do think there are better 231s out there, this one is certainly as exciting as they come--and it may set a 231 virtuosity record (no pun intended, Part 3).  I really can't complain about it, but I am anyway, because I think it's a squandered opportunity--few groups could have done it better, but this one could.  But, yeah, the "first take!" part does impress the heck out of me.  I'd be lying if I said it didn't.

The period fidelity is astounding.  And I haven't even mentioned the orchestra's name--it's  the New Orchestral Society of Boston (not lower-case "new," as printed in the liner notes), and it's conducted by Willis Page.  The notes, again: "Knowing Willis Page is to understand the key to the nature of the orchestra."  As TV comic Roger Price said, "In fact, to understand bop, one had to be... drunk.  That helped."  Same for these liner notes.

Oh, and things get loud during 231.  I mean, really loud.  I found that out while editing the MAGIX project at a loud volume at the wrong point.  My ears have almost recovered, I'm happy to say.  I sort of need them to do this blog.

DOWNLOAD: Pacific 231, Danse, Adagio fro Strings (Cook 1068; 1955)

Pacific 231 (Arthur Honegger)

Dance (Debussy, orchestrated by Ravel)

Adagio for Strings (Samuel Barber)

New Orchestral Society of Boston, conducted by Willis Page (Cook 1068; 1955)

Lee