Wilhem Furtwangler - Symphony No.1

Wilhelm Furtwängler (1886-1954)

Symphony No.1

Staatskapelle Weimar

George Alexander Albrecht

Drop the needle anywhere within this initial effort by one of the twentieth century's most famous conductors and you will certainly be drawn in -- if only for a minute or two. Wilhelm Furtwängler was a notorious perfectionist and, like his idol Bruckner, a tireless revisionist. Never satisfied with the finished product, Furtwängler continued to revise the Symphony No. 1 throughout his life, even after he had already finished writing his later two.

"The feeling of being able to create forms organically -- that is to say, as nature herself does -- outweighs anything else." In his own words from Barenboim's website, www.danielbarenboim.com, this was the basic premise of Furtwängler's musical existence, in both his compositions and his conducting. This also, in part, echoes the sentiments of the Schenkarian movement, of which Furtwängler was a follower (and personal friend). The work is strongly Brucknerian in scope and feel, and the melodies have that feeling of timelessness and emotional ambiguity also reminiscent of that composer. The intricacies, however, owe much to Brahms, especially the complex harmonic palette.

If one can imagine a Mozart or Brahms symphony as a somewhat hardened, primordial liquid gel being held within a classical structure (say the Parthenon, for instance), then Furtwängler's Symphony No. 1 has melted and escaped in the form of a giant runaway amoeba, slowly engulfing every nook and cranny available and morphing around whatever it can, taking whatever shape it happens to run into. It is a slow-moving amoeba, though, and George Alexander Albrecht, who has devoted considerable effort into recordings of all three of Furtwängler's symphonies, is featured here with the Staatskapelle Weimar in a recording that clocks in roughly five minutes slower than the competition, a recording by Alfred Walter on Marco Polo. The first movement, in fact, is over a half-hour alone; this sprawling work, at least upon first listening, seems to be a collection of great moments and effects as opposed to a work of coherent thought. But according to the liner notes, Daniel Barenboim, who has recorded Furtwängler's Symphony No. 2 and is a strong admirer of the piece, "In terms of craftsmanship, his music is absolutely perfect: but aesthetically the seams are visible."

The Staatskapelle Weimar is a good orchestra, but not a first-class one; while it plays with a lush sound and good overall technical ability, there are unfortunately some jarring mistakes, especially in the brass and during some of the more delicate string passages, which Arte Nova should have clearly edited out. The disc's sound, though, is generally good and has a bit of warmth in the lower register, which helps Furtwängler's deep bass lines come through at least somewhat convincingly. For those with the patience, this recording has a few amazing moments. The best things here, though, will only come to those who wait -- perhaps for the next release of a work that thus far seems to have defied interpretation.