Dmitri Shostakovich - Symphony No. 8 (Vasily Petrenko)

Information

Composer: Dmitri Shostakovich

1. Symphony No. 8 in C minor, Op. 65: I. Adagio - Allegro non troppo
2. Symphony No. 8 in C minor, Op. 65: II. Allegretto
3. Symphony No. 8 in C minor, Op. 65: III. Allegro non troppo -
4. Symphony No. 8 in C minor, Op. 65: IV. Largo -
5. Symphony No. 8 in C minor, Op. 65: V. Allegretto

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
Vasily Petrenko, conductor
Date: 2010
Label: Naxos
http://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=8.572392

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Review

ARTISTIC QUALITY: 10 / SOUND QUALITY: 10

This may not be the most harrowing version of the Eighth, but of its type it’s unquestionably a great performance. Often this symphony consists of hair-raising climaxes interspersed between acres of nothingness. Not here. This symphony also is one of Shostakovich’s most formally masterly and imaginative, and this performance reminds us in the most compelling way. Petrenko’s flowing tempos in the first movement and passacaglia keep the music moving, not lurching, forward at all times. The 25 minutes of the first movement seem to pass by in half that time. Its opening threnody in particular has even more expressive power than usual for being phrased in long melodic arcs that never turn static.

After an aptly gawky scherzo, the toccata is as brilliant and menacing as any (with a dashingly militant central section), but it’s the finale that really sets the seal on this performance. The Eighth always is a tough piece to project convincingly, but Petrenko is at his absolute best here, pacing the music perfectly and timing the climax in such a way that (for once) it doesn’t sound like a less impressive recapitulation of the first movement–and this isn’t because its previous occurrence is underplayed in any way. Excellent playing from all departments of the orchestra plus vividly natural engineering complete what is easily the best installment of this ongoing cycle to date. [6/10/2010]

-- David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday

More reviews:
BBC Music Magazine  PERFORMANCE: **** / SOUND: ****
MusicWeb International  BARGAIN OF THE MONTH
http://classicalsource.com/db_control/db_cd_review.php?id=8261
http://www.classical.net/music/recs/reviews/n/nxs72392a.php
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/classicalcdreviews/7693436/Shostakovich-Symphony-No8-CD-review.html
http://www.limelightmagazine.com.au/Review/244628,shostakovich-symphony-no-8-royal-liverpool-philharmonic-orchestra/petrenko.aspx
http://www.allmusic.com/album/shostakovich-symphony-no-8-mw0001989911
http://www.naxos.com/reviews/reviewslist.asp?catalogueid=8.572392&languageid=EN#44278
https://www.amazon.com/Shostakovich-Symphony-No-~-Petrenko/dp/B003DQWPEM

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Dmitri Shostakovich (25 September 1906 – 9 August 1975) was a Russian composer and pianist, and a prominent figure of 20th-century music. Shostakovich achieved fame in the Soviet Union, but later had a complex and difficult relationship with the government. Shostakovich's music is characterized by sharp contrasts, elements of the grotesque, and ambivalent tonality; the composer was also heavily influenced by the neo-classical style pioneered by Igor Stravinsky, and (especially in his symphonies) by the post-Romanticism associated with Gustav Mahler.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dmitri_Shostakovich

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Vasily Petrenko (born 7 July 1976, Leningrad, USSR) is a Russian conductor. Petrenko studied conducting principally under Ravil Martynov, also learning from Mariss Jansons, Yuri Temirkanov and Esa-Pekka Salonen. Since 2006 he has been principal conductor of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and is chief conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra since 2013. He is noted for his recordings of Shostakovich symphonies on Naxos and Rachmaninov on EMI.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasily_Petrenko

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