Erdmann: Symphony No. 3 / Capricci

Album review

The decline of interest in Eduard Erdmann's orchestral music immediately following World War II may be attributed to some discomfort over the composer's unwise membership in the Nazi party. But what seems a more likely cause for its neglect was the widespread, adverse reaction to post-Romantic music, which was strongest in the late '40s and '50s, and which continued until several important revivals of the 1960s and '70s brought much-needed reappraisals. Even though Erdmann's works are not always easy to pigeon-hole as post-Romantic -- his music can at times sound as angular and tense as Berg's or Schoenberg's -- there is an expansiveness of line, a richness of harmony, and a heightened dramatic quality to make such a late-blooming piece as the Symphony No. 3, Op. 19 (1947), seem almost as old-fashioned as Mahler or Zemlinsky (so it must have seemed at the time of its premiere in 1951, when postwar avant-garde music was dominated by concise ideas, sparse textures, and dry timbres). However, at nearly 50 minutes in length and cast in four broad movements of brooding intensity, the Symphony No. 3 is not an easy piece to follow since its pensive themes are long and meandering, its pace leisurely and fairly Brucknerian, and its long-term trajectory unclear until well into the spiky Scherzo. Listening to this symphony requires clear-headedness and considerable patience, but it is possible to appreciate its elegiac moods and contrapuntal argumentation after hearing it a few times, and to respect Erdmann's efforts, if not exactly love the piece. Much more enjoyable is the Capricci, Op. 21, subtitled, "A Little Kaleidoscope for Orchestra," which offers music of the same general style as found in the symphony, though much more engaging, sprightly, and melodic. The performances of these works by the Brandenburgisches Staatsorchester Frankfurt are confident and committed, and Israel Yinon draws out many subtle points in the scores to sustain interest. CPO's sound quality is, as usual, splendid.
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