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Shostakovich: Complete Symphonies / Kitajenko / Gürzenich-orch Koln
Release Date: 09/27/2005
Label: Capriccio Records Catalog #: 49545 Spars Code: DDD
Composer: Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Number of Discs: 12
Recorded in: Stereo
Length: 12 Hours 32 Mins.
Works on This Recording
1. Symphony no 1 in F minor, Op. 10 by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1924-1925; USSR
2. Symphony no 2 in B flat major, Op. 14 "To October" by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1927; USSR
3. Symphony no 3 in E flat major, Op. 20 "First of May" by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1929; USSR
4. Symphony no 4 in C minor, Op. 43 by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1935-1936; USSR
5. Symphony no 5 in D minor, Op. 47 by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1937; USSR
6. Symphony no 6 in B minor, Op. 54 by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1939; USSR
7. Symphony no 7 in C major, Op. 60 "Leningrad" by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1941; USSR
8. Symphony no 8 in C minor, Op. 65 by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1943; USSR
9. Symphony no 9 in E flat major, Op. 70 by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1945; USSR
10. Symphony no 10 in E minor, Op. 93 by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1953; USSR
11. Symphony no 11 in G minor, Op. 103 "Year 1905" by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1957; USSR
12. Symphony no 12 in D minor, Op. 112 "To the Memory of Lenin - 1917" by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1961; USSR
13. Symphony no 13 in B flat minor, Op. 113 "Babi Yar" by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1962; USSR
14. Symphony no 14 in G minor, Op. 135 by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1969; USSR
15. Symphony no 15 in A major, Op. 141 by Dmitri Shostakovich
Conductor: Dmitri Kitayenko
Orchestra/Ensemble: Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1971; USSR
Notes and Editorial Reviews
Featuring vocal soloists: Arutjun Kotchinian, Stefan Lang and Marina Shaguch in Symphonies nos. 14 and 15.
This is a hybrid Super Audio CD playable on both regular and Super Audio CD players.
Kitajenko or Barshai? Or who? That's really the question as the Shostakovich centennial year of 2006 is well served by two sets of the complete symphonies. To answer the question straight out: Barshai's Brilliant Classics set, taped in excellent CD sound in the 1990s, edges Kitajenko, despite the latter's often superior 2001-2004 SACD sound. What Barshai has in particular is his clear understanding of the music's subversive subtext, exemplified by the harshness and brutality of some of the sounds he makes. Kitajenko's performances keep the recognition of evil under the surface, concealed by a lyrical, even "classical" approach analogous to the way Kubelik or Bertini seek structural clarity and singing lines in their Mahler sets. In places where Barshai produces raw, shocking sounds, Kitajenko's tone is more likely to remain musically poised.
Kitajenko's lyricism pays dividends in Shostakovich's numerous slow, lonely passages, which sing to heartbreaking effect, most notably in the Sixth, Eighth, Tenth, Eleventh, and the final movement of the Fourth. And guess what? Even though Kitajenko refrains from telegraphing the message, the underlying meaning sneaks out, albeit undercover rather than in your face.
It's the rule that large-scale boxed-set surveys of this sort always have high and low points. In the present case, in which nearly every performance is very respectable and sound tends to be excellent, Barshai has fewer lapses than Kitajenko. For some reason, neither contributes a first-rate Fifth. While Kitajenko rules in the Seventh, and his Nos. 6, 10, 11, and 15 match Barshai's, Kitajenko is too light-hearted in the Ninth, doesn't unify the First, and is let down by lightweight bass singing (choral and solo) in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth. The outer movements of the Eighth never have been sung so touchingly, but the two demonic fast movements are too tame and the passacaglia is not dark enough. Barshai is better in the front part of the Fourth, Kitajenko in the finale. Kitajenko scores with magisterial control of the complexities of the Second and imbues most of the Twelfth with tremendous energy, then deliberately lets it dissipate into banality at the end. As for the Third, both Kitajenko and Barshai confirm that piece of trash as a lost cause.
West German Radio engineers produced stupendous sound in the nine symphonies that were taped in the studio. However, Nos. 1, 4, 7, 8, 11, and 15 were "taped live" in concert, and only Nos. 7 and 15 match that clean, solid, natural sound. The other four get "splashy" when Shostakovich's extremely loud scoring overwhelms the Köln Philharmonie. Except for those four, the symphonies here sound better than I've ever heard. Orchestral playing is outstanding, featuring particularly powerful, solid brass.
--Joseph Stevenson, ClassicsToday.com
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Review by James Leonard [-]
When this cycle of the symphonies of Shostakovich with Dmitri Kitajenko conducting the Gürzenich-Orchester Köln was released in 2005, Shostakovich cycles were no longer the novelties they had been in the latter years of the twentieth century. There were already several superlative cycles in circulation -- the monumental Kondrashin, the modernist Rozhdestvensky, the anguished Barshai -- and a pair of superlative cycles nearing completion -- the commanding Jansons and the compelling Gergiev -- when the Kitajenko -- Köln cycle was issued on Capriccio in superaudio sound. Listeners who knew Kitajenko only from his recordings made before the collapse of Communism for Melodiya were caught off guard by his complete mastery of the music, of his grasp of its every nuance of heroism and subtlety of irony, of his understanding of its gradations between pathos and bathos, of his control over its most desiccated melody and its most crushing sonority. Listeners who knew the Gürzenich-Orchester Köln from its tremendous recordings with Wand and Conlon were not so much surprised as pleased to hear the orchestra sound so splendid here. The power of its tone, the brilliance of its colors, the strength of the rhythms, and the depth of its commitment proved no less than the finest orchestras of the former USSR. While longtime Shostakovich listeners were amazed, they found that in the Kitajenko/Köln cycle they had a cycle in the same league as the best that had heretofore been released. Made during the early days of superaudio sound, Capriccio's sound is incredibly lifelike; when it was released, listeners were stunned by the delicacy of the bells and staggered by the immediacy of the tympani.
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Dan Morgan
MusicWeb International, January 2013
I generally prefer different conductors and ensembles rather than unified sets, on the premise that it's rare for one maestro and band to excel in all the chosen works. Well, I'm prepared to make an exception here, as this cycle is more consistent than most. It's also chockful of insight and inspiration, with several performances that rank with the best available. In terms of sonics this is a remarkable achievement as well…
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Immensely satisfying; a traversal to treasure. © 2013 MusicWeb International
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SACD Lives, February 2009
This set of Shostakovich's Complete Symphonies by Dmitrij Kitajenko conducting the Gürzenich-Orchester Köln is overall the best Shostakovich musically and sonically I have ever heard. Bravo Capriccio!... Kitajenko's Symphony No. 4 is sonically and musically superb; it may very well end up being my favorite Shostakovich Symphony. I was also surprised by home much I loved Symphony No. 14, as I was never taken by it before, this one is really enjoyable.
Sonics vary ranging from excellent to magnificent and the dynamic range is huge, timbre is accurate and soundstaging is excellent. Some are live recordings and others are studio recordings. Some sound closely mic'ed while others more distant. The engineering is near perfect as is the conducting. Mr. Kitayenko's tempos are slower on some symphonies than some other conductors however the more I hear his versions, the others sound rushed. This is Shostakovich done right!
Every symphony in this set in performance beats all other versions I've heard with the exception of Symphony No. 10, although it is an excellent performance as well. This is the best Shostakovich complete symphony cycle sonically and musically. Shostakovich is one of my favorite composers so this being on SACD is a total blessing for me.
I highly recommend this set!
Review is of the 2 channel stereo high resolution DSD layer.
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Pressestimmen
FonoForum 08 / 05:
"Erstmals liegen die Symphonien jetzt komplett auf SACD vor. Gemeinsam mit dem glänzend disponierten Gürzenich-Orchester Köln hat Dimitri Kitajenko sie seit 2002 eingespielt. Der Klang dieser neuen Edition ist grandios. Durch die Surround-Technik gewinnt die Musik noch an Plastizität, Tiefenwirkung und Transparenz."
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