Franz Berwald - The Four Syymphonies; Konzertstück for Bassoon and Orchestra

Franz BERWALD (1796-1868)

Symphony No. 1 in g minor (Sinfonie sérieuse) (1842)

Konzertstück for Bassoon and Orchestra (1827) 

Symphony No. 2 in D (Sinfonie capricieuse) (1842) 

Symphony No. 3 in C (Sinfonie singulière) (1845) 

Symphony No. 4 in E flat (1845)

Christian Davidsson (bassoon)

Malmö Symphony Orchestra

Sixten Ehrling

Recorded June 1996 at The Malmo Concert Hall, Sweden

Review:

As might be expected, given Sixten Ehrling's excellent account of the Singulière and the E flat Symphonies with the LSO for Decca way back in the late 1960s and his no less impressive 1970 Swedish Radio version of the Sérieuse, the performances are echt-Berwald. Ehrling gives us plenty of space without ever lingering too lovingly. Even apart from the tempo giusto, you feel rather more comfortable with Ehrling's handling of phrasing and balance. He's very attentive to dynamic markings and sometimes, as at the beginning of the Sinfonie singulière, pianissimo becomes pianopiano-pianissimo! The recording reproduces these dynamic extremes flawlessly. The Malmö Concert Hall, where this set was made, has a good acoustic.

The recordings are generally excellent, though there seems to be more back-to-front perspective and air around the players in the Singulière and E flat Symphonies than in the Sérieuse. In short, Ehrling and his fine players bring us closer to the spirit of this music than do any of the current rivals.

The Gramophone Guide