本文发表在 rolia.net 枫下论坛The Furtwaengler style? I think of all of the descriptions that I have
heard or read, Yehudi Menuhin's thoughts on him are closest to the mark.
Furtwaengler came from a now-defunct, German Romantic style of conducting,
which began with Wagner and Liszt and proceeded through Nikisch, Furtwaengler,
and a Furtwaengler disciple, Jascha Horenstein. This style has been called
that of the German mystic, motivated by a philosophical idealism, working
with the certainty of one who has seen visions and followed them. The style
called for a search for the expressive soul of a piece, and emphasized
songful melody and phrase over the restrictions of the bar line. Ebbs and
flows in tempo were expected, to help advance the musical argument and
heighten the musical drama. The orchestral sound expected was different
from the whip-crack precision that we hear today; the sonority is deeper,
richer, with a curious sense of transparency and precision in the midst
of organic vagueness. It's the antithesis of the foursquare, no-nonsense
objectivist approach of Toscanini; Menuhin likens this to the difference
between specifying the dimensions of a geometric solid, delineating line
and angle with precision, and specifying the extent of an organic fluid
with the same precision.
The second key to the Furtwaengler style stems from the fact that WF
was a composer first, conductor second. He brought a composer's insight
into his conducting, attacking music from the inside, and using his
Wagnerian subjectivity to carry across his composer's vision. Performance
became as much a spectacle of re-creation as of reproduction of the notes.
Third, there was some peculiar mystique that the man carried around with him.
His beat was one of the most unorthodox of the century, nearly impossible
to follow, yet orchestras managed to follow his facial expressions, the
rhythms of his bodily jerkings, and gave out sound like they couldn't make
for anyone else. At his best, Furtwaengler could mesmerize orchestra and
audience alike, sweeping all along with the sheer power of his concentration,
making maddening distortions of tempo (but maintaining a strong internal
rhythm) and convincing listeners in concert, even if it doesn't come out
as convincing on disc. In the repertoire that mattered to him (Haydn and
Mozart down to Brahms, Wagner, and Bruckner), he made music in a totally
unique, powerful way, and won the adoration (often long after the fact)
of many (including this writer).
Of course, what one hears on a recording is probably much different from
what he was actually like in concert, not least because of the limitations
of early recording. Still, on disc, one gets the sense of three rough
phases in his career. (Oddly, this seems to be the case for many conductors
active before and after the war.) The first phase consists of acoustic and
early electrical recordings made largely for Polydor before the war.
To my ears, his style at this time bears a resemblance to that of his
predecessor in Berlin, Artur Nikisch. It is relatively fleet, but flexible,
with a keen sense for drama and much beautiful playing, despite the limitations
of acoustic and early electric recordings. By the 1930's, the late
Furtwaengler style began to emerge, with a more placid, glowing, contemplative
sheen stretched over the music. But war changed things.
The war years remain a source of great controversy. WF is honored by some,
reviled by others for the choices he made during the war. One way or another,
it is clear that he was under great stress during World War II, and this
stress becomes evident in the recordings of wartime concerts given in Berlin.
There is an unleashed fury in much of them, an intensity that borders on
hysteria. Perhaps it's his silent protest, perhaps his way of lashing out
against the authorities, perhaps his emotional outlet in an age of anxiety.
But some of his most ferociously intense recordings hail from this period,
filled with a spirit that the orchestra evidently shared with him.
After the war, Furtwaengler returned to a more autumnal style. He also
began making more studio recordings, both for EMI and DG, and the newly
created tape medium allowed for more uninterrupted music making, resulting
in some of the finest orchestral playing ever to be captured on disc. There
are also some royal turkeys in the postwar discography, I suspect largely
because of his growing deafness. But it's the postwar Furtwaengler that
is most readily available, and best known to most.
Suggested recordings? That's meat for another long-winded thread, and
also meat for angry discussion. I think that the essentials of the
Furtwaengler style can probably be captured in a handful of discs (both
for better and for worse). You may find the shifts in tempo maddening, or
you may be seduced by the otherworldly orchestral sound. Some personal
favorites (by no means complete):
Haydn: Symphony #88 in G. Berlin PO, 12/51. DG
Mozart: Symphony #39 in Eb. Berlin PO, 1942/3. DG
Beethoven: Symphony #3 in Eb. Vienna PO, 1944. Music & Arts, Tahra
Beethoven: Symphony #7 in A. Berlin PO, 4/53. DG
Beethoven: Symphony #9 in d. Bayreuth Festival, 1951. EMI
Beethoven: Piano Concerto #5 in Eb. Edwin Fischer/Philharmonia Orch, 2/51, EMI
Schubert: Symphony #9 in C. Berlin PO, 12/51. DG
Schumann: Symphony #4 in d. Berlin PO, 5/53. DG
Wagner: Tristan und Isolde. EMI
Wagner: Orchestral bleeding chunks. EMI 2-CD set
Bruckner: Symphony #5 in Bb. Berlin PO, 10/42. Music & Arts
Bruckner: Symphony #9 in d. Berlin PO, 1944. Music & Arts
There is, of course, much, much more, but this body of work (with the
possible exception of that Beethoven 7th) is generally judged to rank with
his finest work. Further questions, flames, corrections, etc. welcome.
If you'e made it this far, of course. Oh, and good luck listening!
--
/James C.S. Liu, MD "Computers in the future may weigh no more
j...@world.std.com than 1.5 tons."
Department of Medicine -- Popular Mechanics, 1943, forecasting the
New England Med Ctr, Boston MA relentless march of science更多精彩文章及讨论，请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net
heard or read, Yehudi Menuhin's thoughts on him are closest to the mark.
Furtwaengler came from a now-defunct, German Romantic style of conducting,
which began with Wagner and Liszt and proceeded through Nikisch, Furtwaengler,
and a Furtwaengler disciple, Jascha Horenstein. This style has been called
that of the German mystic, motivated by a philosophical idealism, working
with the certainty of one who has seen visions and followed them. The style
called for a search for the expressive soul of a piece, and emphasized
songful melody and phrase over the restrictions of the bar line. Ebbs and
flows in tempo were expected, to help advance the musical argument and
heighten the musical drama. The orchestral sound expected was different
from the whip-crack precision that we hear today; the sonority is deeper,
richer, with a curious sense of transparency and precision in the midst
of organic vagueness. It's the antithesis of the foursquare, no-nonsense
objectivist approach of Toscanini; Menuhin likens this to the difference
between specifying the dimensions of a geometric solid, delineating line
and angle with precision, and specifying the extent of an organic fluid
with the same precision.
The second key to the Furtwaengler style stems from the fact that WF
was a composer first, conductor second. He brought a composer's insight
into his conducting, attacking music from the inside, and using his
Wagnerian subjectivity to carry across his composer's vision. Performance
became as much a spectacle of re-creation as of reproduction of the notes.
Third, there was some peculiar mystique that the man carried around with him.
His beat was one of the most unorthodox of the century, nearly impossible
to follow, yet orchestras managed to follow his facial expressions, the
rhythms of his bodily jerkings, and gave out sound like they couldn't make
for anyone else. At his best, Furtwaengler could mesmerize orchestra and
audience alike, sweeping all along with the sheer power of his concentration,
making maddening distortions of tempo (but maintaining a strong internal
rhythm) and convincing listeners in concert, even if it doesn't come out
as convincing on disc. In the repertoire that mattered to him (Haydn and
Mozart down to Brahms, Wagner, and Bruckner), he made music in a totally
unique, powerful way, and won the adoration (often long after the fact)
of many (including this writer).
Of course, what one hears on a recording is probably much different from
what he was actually like in concert, not least because of the limitations
of early recording. Still, on disc, one gets the sense of three rough
phases in his career. (Oddly, this seems to be the case for many conductors
active before and after the war.) The first phase consists of acoustic and
early electrical recordings made largely for Polydor before the war.
To my ears, his style at this time bears a resemblance to that of his
predecessor in Berlin, Artur Nikisch. It is relatively fleet, but flexible,
with a keen sense for drama and much beautiful playing, despite the limitations
of acoustic and early electric recordings. By the 1930's, the late
Furtwaengler style began to emerge, with a more placid, glowing, contemplative
sheen stretched over the music. But war changed things.
The war years remain a source of great controversy. WF is honored by some,
reviled by others for the choices he made during the war. One way or another,
it is clear that he was under great stress during World War II, and this
stress becomes evident in the recordings of wartime concerts given in Berlin.
There is an unleashed fury in much of them, an intensity that borders on
hysteria. Perhaps it's his silent protest, perhaps his way of lashing out
against the authorities, perhaps his emotional outlet in an age of anxiety.
But some of his most ferociously intense recordings hail from this period,
filled with a spirit that the orchestra evidently shared with him.
After the war, Furtwaengler returned to a more autumnal style. He also
began making more studio recordings, both for EMI and DG, and the newly
created tape medium allowed for more uninterrupted music making, resulting
in some of the finest orchestral playing ever to be captured on disc. There
are also some royal turkeys in the postwar discography, I suspect largely
because of his growing deafness. But it's the postwar Furtwaengler that
is most readily available, and best known to most.
Suggested recordings? That's meat for another long-winded thread, and
also meat for angry discussion. I think that the essentials of the
Furtwaengler style can probably be captured in a handful of discs (both
for better and for worse). You may find the shifts in tempo maddening, or
you may be seduced by the otherworldly orchestral sound. Some personal
favorites (by no means complete):
Haydn: Symphony #88 in G. Berlin PO, 12/51. DG
Mozart: Symphony #39 in Eb. Berlin PO, 1942/3. DG
Beethoven: Symphony #3 in Eb. Vienna PO, 1944. Music & Arts, Tahra
Beethoven: Symphony #7 in A. Berlin PO, 4/53. DG
Beethoven: Symphony #9 in d. Bayreuth Festival, 1951. EMI
Beethoven: Piano Concerto #5 in Eb. Edwin Fischer/Philharmonia Orch, 2/51, EMI
Schubert: Symphony #9 in C. Berlin PO, 12/51. DG
Schumann: Symphony #4 in d. Berlin PO, 5/53. DG
Wagner: Tristan und Isolde. EMI
Wagner: Orchestral bleeding chunks. EMI 2-CD set
Bruckner: Symphony #5 in Bb. Berlin PO, 10/42. Music & Arts
Bruckner: Symphony #9 in d. Berlin PO, 1944. Music & Arts
There is, of course, much, much more, but this body of work (with the
possible exception of that Beethoven 7th) is generally judged to rank with
his finest work. Further questions, flames, corrections, etc. welcome.
If you'e made it this far, of course. Oh, and good luck listening!
--
/James C.S. Liu, MD "Computers in the future may weigh no more
j...@world.std.com than 1.5 tons."
Department of Medicine -- Popular Mechanics, 1943, forecasting the
New England Med Ctr, Boston MA relentless march of science更多精彩文章及讨论，请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net