Touching the Sublime

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Although Johannes Brahms carried great pain over his apparently unconsummated relationship with Clara Schumann, the heartfelt beauty of his most popular music speaks far more of resolution and transcendence rather than enslavement to suffering. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the great German Requiem, Op. 45, with which Michael Tilson Thomas has chosen to close San Francisco Symphony’s three-week Brahms Festival. Ein Deutsches Requiem is huge and monumental, if not as heaven-shaking as Verdi’s masterpiece. The work’s biblical texts mainly concern themselves with the comfort, peace, and joy that spring from faith and transcendence (aka “deliverance”).

Although MTT conducts his fair share of Romantic repertoire, from Schubert to Richard Strauss, he seems to eschew romantic indulgence in favor of a no-nonsense approach. Occasionally, when an unusually persuasive and passionate soloist on the order of Yefim Bronfman joins the orchestra, he allows romantic sway to take hold of the proverbial baton. But much of the time, at least to these ears, he embraces straightforward, let-the-music-speak-for-itself musicianship. The results — as in this final program of Brahms, or as in Leif Ove Andsnes’ performance of the Piano Concerto No. 2 — are often immaculately sculpted, and unfailingly beautiful, but they ultimately fail to scale the firmament.

Having said that, MTT and his forces got mighty close in this German Requiem. The singing was especially glorious when the chorus opened up full voice, as at the end of “Denn alles Fleisch es ist wie Gras” (For all flesh is as grass). Here, you could only marvel at Brahms’ mastery of massed forces.

The soprano choristers were especially ideal, with voices ever warm, radiant, and consoling. The tenors often matched them in caressing sweetness, although their thinner sound and lack of corresponding body when opening up led to an unfortunate imbalance in the great fugue at the end of the penultimate section, “Denn wir haben hie keine bleibende Statt” (For here we have no continuing city). But most of the time, as in the conclusion of the opening section, “Selig sind, die da Leid tragen” (Blessed are they that mourn), Ragnar Bohlin’s chorus sang sublimely.

Superb Soloists

The soloists, too, were something special. In Davies Hall, at least from orchestra row J, the full body of baritone Matthias Goerne’s ever-caressing, warm midrange glowed as it cannot in the drier confines of Herbst Theatre. Even his oft-distracting physical movement, more restrained than in his recent performance of Brahms’ Four Serious Songs in Herbst, actually made sense — his body language spoke of the soul breaking free of its earthly confines. Goerne is one of the most profound and contemplative singers we have. He may initially appear pondering and burdened, but his singing reveals that is because he is ever probing deeper into the music his voice brings to life.

Soprano Laura Claycomb achieved what relatively few singers can — the absolutely right, exquisitely radiant, soaring tone that grants transcendent comfort. It’s not easy to sit silent as long as she did, and then open your throat to deliver an impeccable stream of heavenly sound, as a little glitch in the opening phrase and a few minor intonation problems suggested. But she did a marvelous job of getting a handle on her voice, and delivered one of the finest renditions of “Ihr habt nun Traurigkeit” (Ye now have sorrow) that I have ever heard live or on recording.

(Speaking of recording, few sound systems can realistically convey the profundity of the low organ notes that Brahms uses to underscore his message. If ever there were an argument for live performance over Memorex, this was it.)

Yes, But

So, what’s the quibble? Mainly that MTT’s no-nonsense tempi failed to sufficiently differentiate between sections. Everything felt a bit too similar, without the contrasts and shadings that make for greatness. The soprano solo, as beautiful as it was, felt too strict in time, and shifts within choral movements weren’t radical enough. As in the performance of Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 that I recall from several years back, we were led right up to heaven’s door, gave it a firm knock, and then stepped back, rather than allowing God to carry us the rest of the way.

The concert began with the lovely Geistliches Lied, Op. 30 (Song of the Spirit), here performed by four-part chorus and organ. In the Four Songs for Women’s Chorus, Two Horns, and Harp, Op. 17, actually written four years later, the high sopranos and low altos seemed from different planets; the sopranos sounded round, warm, and angelic; the altos, thinner and a bit edgy. My husband described the performance as balm applied to the forehead, but I found the lack of vocal consonance disturbing. Such are the ways of the world.

MTT’s comprehension of text was especially apparent at the end of “Es tönt ein voller Harfenklang” (The sound of the harp is full of love and longing). There, Robert Ward and Jonathan Ring somehow managed to make their horns wail, as the heavenly sopranos joined Douglas Rioth’s harp in offering consolation. Marvelous.

Jason Victor Serinus writes about music for Opera News, Opera Now, American Record Guide, Stereophile, San Francisco Magazine, Muso, Carnegie Hall Playbill, East Bay Express, East Bay Monthly, San Francisco Examiner, Bay Area Reporter, hometheaterhifi.com, and other publications.

Comments

As usual, Jason got it perfectly right. Sublime was the word on everyone’s lips. Matthias Goerne knows how to expose every tender nerve and impulse in Brahms’ smokey, burnished humanitarianism. He had me riveted. And, as Jason says, this was the best Brahms MTT ever cooked up. Bravo!

Posted by Denny Smith on May 25, 2008 at 5:35 pm
There was only one horn playing (me) in that first song - “Es tönt ein voller Harfenklang” - but glad you liked it… :)

Posted by Bob Ward on May 26, 2008 at 6:54 pm
I have accompanied the Requiem on the organ, I have rehearsed it as a pianist, I have sung it as an alto, I have heard many live performances, and now at last I know what it should sound like. It was so marvelous I came back the next night, sat in the left side of the Terrace, and was transported to heaven all over again.

Posted by Eleanor Hammer on May 27, 2008 at 12:16 pm
“For all flesh is grass… it withers and falls away.”

If only this performance of the Brahms Requiem was as brief. It went on, and on…..

The first half of the program was a delight though.

Posted by Beeri on May 27, 2008 at 12:26 pm
Just a note of correction: Choruses perform, but organs do not perform — only organists. Glad you liked the piece, though.

Posted by Jonathan Dimmock on May 27, 2008 at 5:21 pm
Mr. Serinus reveals his bias near the beginning of his review when he states: “Ein Deutsches Requiem is huge and monumental, if not as heaven-shaking as Verdi’s masterpiece.” To me the “heaven shaking” in Verdi is mere melodrama, and Brahms’s masterpiece is truly divine. But good for Mr. Serinus for letting us know where he stands, so at least we have a basis for judging his comments on Brahms and this performance.

“But much of the time, at least to these ears, he [MTT] embraces straightforward, let-the-music-speak-for-itself musicianship,” which our reviewer bemoans, gives “results…[that] ultimately fail to scale the firmament.” While I agree that MTT is a conductor who tends to let the music speak for itself, I disagree heartily that the result is anything less than spectacular and, in this case, transcendent. I have heard way too much over-conducted, heavy-handed Brahms. MTT gets out of Brahms’ way and lets the inherent drama of the Requiem speak for itself. Plus MTT is unparalleled in his ability to enunciate rhythmic complexities, in which Brahms abounds, but which most conductors ignore. For me Brahms is a classicist first and a romanticist second, and that is my bias.

Like Mr. Serenus, I sat in row J, so our experience was, at least from that vantage point, similar. His quibbles with Ms. Claycomb’s and Mr. Goerne’s performances, while all things I noticed as well, seem petty in the context of what Mr. Serinus himself describes as Ms. Claycomb’s “soaring tone that grants transcendent comfort” (I agree) and Mr. Goerne’s “ever probing deeper into the music” (again, I agree). Why not leave it at that?

This was a stunning performance of the Requiem. MTT, the SFO, and the SFO chorus performed brilliantly. That may explain why almost all of the audience in the orchestra section rose to their feet spontaneously when MTT finally let his baton drop, after holding the audience in rapt suspense for several seconds.

And thank you, MTT, for programming these too-seldom heard choral pieces that started the program. The opus 17 pieces are especially lovely, showing a more youthful, heart-on-sleeve Brahms of the opus 5 sonata and opus 10 ballades.

Posted by Aaron Percefull on May 27, 2008 at 7:31 pm
Well, after any number of my reviews have generated nary a peep, this one has generated a lively response. Good. One of the goals of art criticism is to stimulate thought, which this review has certainly done. Nor would I ever wish to be immune from criticism, either positive or negative.

My thanks to Bob and Jonathan for their corrections. I seem to have had a particularly bad time with horns and organs last week. I wonder if there is a Freudian subtext to my boo boos. I haven’t been in therapy for well over 30 years, but maybe it’s time once again. My apologies to both the musicians and the English language.

I regret that some of the nuances of my review may have been lost in translation. For the record, I LOVE Brahms’ German Requiem. Love it. And I love Brahms in general. That should be clear from the opening paragraph.

I also loved the soloists, enough to go backstage with my husband to thank them both. It was a joy to give Matthias a hug - I’ve interviewed him twice in person - and to appreciate the words of recognition between Laura and my tenor husband when he told her how hard it must be to sit up there silent for so long and then have to sing such a difficult solo. When I say that Laura’s voice was absolutely right for the part, I mean it. She was wonderful.

As for why I mentioned all aspects of the soloists’ performances, I’ve spent years reading reviews where aspects of my reality as an audience member are ignored as though they don’t exist. Many people are put off by Goerne’s body language, for example, and it affects their appreciation of his artistry. (I seem to recall a review from years back that declared he’s better heard than seen). I thus made a decision to acknowledge his body language and Laura’s minor glitches while praising their vocal supremacy.

The chiropractor is going to kill me for being late…

jason victor serinus

Posted by Jason Victor Serinus on May 28, 2008 at 10:56 am
“Bulow has made a fool of himself for all time; only a genius could have written that.”
–Brahms on Hans von Bulow’s assertion that the Verdi Requiem was “Verdi’s greatest opera.”

Posted by Michael Zwiebach on May 30, 2008 at 9:26 am