Hey everyone! Welcome to Day 69!
For today I listened to seven works that Toscanini recorded on the same day in 1952. I initially felt dubious about doing all of these in one day's entry, but I figured that if Toscanini could record them in one day, I could write about them in one day.
These performances mark the final series of studio recordings Toscanini made during his prolific fifteenth season with NBC. More of his official discography comes from this year during any other of his long career. These performances are for the most part consistently satisfying, and lay at the core of his surviving legacy. These seven pieces discussed today come from the end of that productive season, and are all lighter works, suggesting that Toscanini was ready to have some fun. I had fun, too.
Bizet: Carmen Suite - August 5th, 1952
This is more or less the standard Carmen Suite No. 1, but Toscanini departs from it in a number of respects: the order of movements is switched around, there is an added harp cadenza (composed by Toscanini), and the Toreador music is taken from its appearance in the final act, rather than from the Prelude.
This is a wonderfully energetic performance that perfectly captures the spirit of Bizet's drama. Not every NBC woodwind soloist is absolutely, 100% immaculate, but the overall effect is one of strength and beautiful exoticism.
Catalani: Dance of the Water Nymphs from Loreley - August 5th, 1952
Arturo Toscanini was in many respects a far from admirable person, but whatever he may have been, he was always unfailingly loyal to his friends. Alfredo Catalani was a successful composer of traditional (in other words: not verismo) Italian opera, and a close friend of Toscanini who died much too young. The maestro conducted a number of Catalani's operas throughout his career in the theatre, and occasionally performed two excerpts from those works in the concert hall.
Though I admit I have little to go on, Catalani's music strikes as a sort of poor man's Puccini. They share a similar melodic sweep and dramatic intensity, but the latter composer is consistently more compelling in his use of those materials. Toscanini's performance of this dance is certainly a lovely one, but it does not really draw one into the dramatic content of the opera (not that I know what that content is, but this performance should at least suggest it).
Catalani: Prelude to Act IV from La Wally - August 5th, 1952
Toscanini always performed this Prelude as part of a set with the dance discussed above. The conductor obviously felt a great affinity for this opera: he named his eldest daughter Wally, after the lead heroine of the Catalani opera. My feeling for this excerpt is a bit like the Loreley dance. I find it to be a bit bland and characterless, and Toscanini's performance just doesn't draw me in any closer.
Hérold: Zampa Overture - August 5th, 1952
The Zampa overture is another one of those works that I will always associate with a cartoon. In this case, the cartoon was the amazing 1935 Disney short The Band Concert. This is a Mickey Mouse cartoon that centeres around a band that overcomes pretty remarkable adversity (including playing through a tornado) to perform music such as the Zampa and William Tell overtures. Interestingly enough, Toscanini was himself evidently a big fan of this cartoon, and it's probably not that much of a stretch to think that The Band Concert may have inspired him to perform Zampa himself. This 1952 recording is wonderfully fresh and exciting, and immaculately played by the NBC Symphony.
Humperdinck: Hansel and Gretel Prelude - August 5th, 1952
It has become a bit of a cliché to describe this opera as "children's Wagner," but from how Toscanini performs this overture I think it's an apt way to put it. There is a serious depth of of sonority in this recording, but it possesses a fresher, more innocent feel than Toscanini's Wagner performances.
Sibelius: Finlandia - August 5th, 1952
Wow, this is fabulous. Toscanini grew up hearing tales of his father serving in Garibaldi's army towards the cause of Italian statehood, and carried with him that zeal for national independence for the rest of his life. Finlandia was the ultimate expression of Finnish nationalism, and I'm sure that it tremendously appealed to Toscanini's sensibilities. The maestro could be very uneven in his Sibelius interpretations (his recording of the Symphony No. 2 was utterly dreadful, while Pohjola's Daughter was breathtakingly beautiful), but he gave Finlandia an unfailingly dignified and moving grandeur.
Weber: Oberon Overture - August 5th, 1952
This is certainly breathlessly paced, but very exciting. This overture is usually taken at a more deliberate speed than Toscanini takes it, but this opera is, of course, about fairies. It makes little sense to approach this music with a weighty gait, and Toscanini gives it all the fairyland atmosphere one could hope for.
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That's it for Day 69!
Check back tomorrow for three solid German works, only one of which ends with someone being hanged.
Happy Tuesday!
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