Philippe Hersant: Dreamtime
Saint-Saëns: Romance, Odelette, Tarantella
Chaminade: Flute Concertino
Poulenc: Flute Sonata (orch version by Berkeley)
Fauré: Fantaisie
Mozart: Sinfonia Concertante for Winds (ed. Levin), Flute and Harp Concerto
Emmanuel Pahud (flute)
Anneleens Lanaerts (harp), Gilbert Audin (bassoon), François Leleux (oboe), Paul Meyer (clarinet), Radovan Vlatković (horn)
François Leleux / Paris Chamber Orchestra (Warner)
(scroll down for English review)
碟名叫「莫扎特與長笛在巴黎」，其實兩張碟各有主題，碟一（軌一至九）是法國長笛樂曲，碟二（軌十至26）是莫扎特在巴黎寫的長笛配其他樂器的協奏曲。
先談莫扎特，軌十至23的《管樂交響協奏曲》現在多數以雙簧管、單簧管、圓號及巴松管作獨奏，但首先此曲是在莫扎特死後幾十年才被發現，是否他作也成疑。就算是他寫，單簧管不會是原曲所有，可能是莫扎特後來從長笛改編給單簧管的。這裏使用的Robert Levin版本就是嘗試復原原來的版本，但Levin不只是將單簧管的部分換成長笛，全曲好像用原來的旋律重新「裝嵌」過一樣。
其實我對這曲的演奏，甚至是接着的《長笛及豎琴協奏曲》（軌24至26）都覺得無可無不可。Pahud照舊有上乘的控制，發音零死角，但我不覺得碟二的莫扎特，除了做背景音樂、溫書音樂，值得細聽，因為碟一的法國音樂精彩得多。
開碟的Hersant《夢之時》（軌一）是當代作品，這幾天剛好在聽武滿徹同名的管弦作品，但我不肯定Hersant有否受影響。此曲18分鐘，算是一首長笛協奏曲，我現在毫無根據、純憑感覺詮釋此曲，覺得長笛就像一隻鳥，飛進了夢的國度。而這首樂曲的發展，我又再次大膽詮釋／亂說，就是淺度睡眠、深度睡眠、REM睡眠（因為開始發惡夢），最後緩慢醒來。信不信由你。
三首聖桑長笛作品也為今天的聖桑周年應景，當中我最喜歡《浪漫曲》（軌二），長笛的溫情旋律，令我聯想到老土電視劇的主題曲。早期作品《塔蘭泰拉舞曲》（軌九）多了一支獨奏：單簧管，不算特別熱烈，但都算好玩。
論Pahud演奏，我覺得浦朗克《長笛奏鳴曲》（軌五至七）最令我叫好，這是英國作曲家Lennox Berkeley改編成協奏曲的版本，他的改編很有創意，善用樂隊的其他木管。回到Pahud，全碟中他在這曲的揉音最為自由，並不是說他在莫扎特或聖桑沒有揉音，而是他只有在浦朗克才真正將揉音當成一種詮釋工具。雖然我以前已對此曲的原版有好感，但這次Pahud令我更領會它的深度，甚至對長笛的表達力有更深的體會。
Entitled “Mozart and Flute in Paris”, this is actually a double album with two themes. The first CD is French pieces while the second CD is two Mozart concertos written for flute while he was in Paris.
The Mozart K297b Sinfonia Concertante (tracks 10-23) is usually played with oboe, clarinet, bassoon and horn as soloists but this Levin edition is a reconstruction to its original state with solo flute instead of clarinet. But this edition wasn’t just a substitution of the flute/clarinet part but a wholesale rewriting. It was as if Levin was reassembling Mozart’s material by what he supposed was the true Mozartian form.
Personally, this concerto and the Flute and Harp Concerto (tracks 24-26) didn’t mean much to me in terms of the playing. Pahud’s masterful control and flawless sound production were still there but I couldn’t find an expressive touch in them. Better treat this Mozart CD as background music.
Maybe it was because the first CD was so brilliant. The opening track, Philippe Hersant’s Dreamtime (track 1) is a contemporary flute concerto written in 2013. The solo flute is like a bird flying in the realm of dreams. If I might speculate wildly, then the structure of the concerto would be shallow sleep, deep sleep and REM sleep as nightmare crept in.
The Saint-Saëns anniversary is represented by three of his pieces for flute. My favourite is the Romance (track 2) whose bittersweet melody is like a sig tune of nostalgic TV dramas. The early Tarantella (track 8) has a clarinet as the flute’s counterpart. It isn’t wild but still a playful piece for two soloists.
Pahud’s true mastery was revealed in the Poulenc Flute Sonata (tracks 5-7), here played in Lennox Berkeley’s orchestral version that utilizes the woodwind section creatively. I was already well disposed toward this work but Pahud’s playing enthralled me. I was especially in awe of his expressive vibrato that shed a different light on Poulenc’s melodies, and also the flute’s expressive power.