Egon Wellesz - Symphonies 3 and 5

Egon Wellesz

Symphonies 3 and 5

Radio Symphonieorchester  Wien

Gottfried Rabl

Like the previous ones, this fourth installment in CPO’s Wellesz symphony cycle is a bit of a mixed bag. Symphony No. 3 (1950) reveals Wellesz’s continued (if increasingly tenuous) allegience to tonality. The dramatic opening, with its imposing theme on brass and low strings, immediately creates an atmosphere of conflict and tension, but this is soon offset by the lyrical second subject–a pattern of abrupt juxtaposition that continues right through to the first movment’s closing bars, which blaze in affirmative consonace. The subdued adagio is more tonally ambiguous, while the brightly colored scherzo skips along buoyantly. The stately opening of the finale indicates an eventual triumph, but one that will be hard-fought through jagged rhythms and prickly chords. But the tonally definitive conclusion clears away all confusion, bringing the symphony to a satisfying close.

By 1955 Wellesz had become enamored with Schoenberg’s 12-tone technique, which shows in the harder-edged Symphony No. 5. But even here Wellesz’s instincts for color and dramatic narrative show through, and at times the symphony (particularly the first and last movements) sounds like expertly crafted film music. But, and perhaps it’s due to the very nature of the compositional premise, few of Wellesz’s musical ideas sound original, or even particularly memorable. Still, it’s atmospheric enough listening, not particularly difficult either, especially when the music is presented with such excellence and devotion by Gottfried Rabl and the Vienna Radio Symphony. CPO’s large-acoustic recording gives the orchestra solid presence and impact, particularly effective in Symphony No. 3′s powerful first movement.