Shostakovich: Symphonies 4, 5 & 6

Finnish conductor Klaus Mäkelä starts this album with one of Shostakovich’s greatest symphonies. Composed in 1935-36, the Russian composer’s boldly expressionist Fourth was considered too daring, too modern to perform in Stalin’s lifetime. Under Mäkelä’s direction, the Oslo Philharmonic—firmly associated with Shostakovich’s symphonies since the late Mariss Jansons was its artistic director—gives a sharply defined performance. From the opening rasping horns and string tremolos to the final dull heartbeat of the basses, every detail plays its vital role. Symphony No. 5 (1937) follows, famously if rather misleadingly dubbed the Soviet composer’s “creative reply to just criticism” (written as it was in response to brutal official disapproval which had forced his temporary withdrawal of the Fourth). The Fifth has been recorded a great deal over the years, but the Oslo Philharmonic reveal details here often glossed over by other orchestras, including the absurd-sounding trumpet flourishes in the finale. Passion effectively wells up, too, under the apparently calm surface of the lamenting third movement. Finally, perhaps the greatest test: Symphony No. 6 (1939) with its remarkable opening “Largo,” in which textures are at times reduced to just a single instrument over several bars of music. Mäkelä and his players reveal the surprising beauty of this movement, while later bringing into focus the exuberant finale’s acid dissonances.