Sibelius: Symphony No.1 & 2
Leopold Stokowski / “His” Symphony Orchestra (No.1), NBC Symphony Orchestra (Signum)
(scroll down for English review)
史托哥夫斯基雖是發燒友很喜愛的指揮，但他的成就當然不能只用發燒碟衡量，而這個錄音未必能合他們的口味，因為是1950及1954年的單聲道錄音，假如立體聲能早來幾年，這兩個演奏可能會非同少可。
西貝流士頭兩首交響曲基本上不會放在同一張CD，因為一般演奏根本會超出CD的時間。不過這個《第一》奏得極快，我覺得速度本身不是優點，而是史托哥夫斯基的手法非常罕見，多數指揮想帶出西貝流士的遼闊，史托哥夫斯基的方向卻是生死鬥，尤其是第四樂章令我聯想到貝多芬《命運》、或者柴可夫斯基《第四》及《第五》。
《第二》是和托斯卡里尼的NBC交響樂團演奏，但我就覺得不夠《第一》灼熱，快是夠快，但正如之前所說，單是快並不夠，尤其是聽完《第一》就會相形見絀。
Stokowski is still a favourite to audiophiles, but his legacy can’t be evaluated on his audiophile recordings alone. This Sibelius disc might not to the audiophiles’ taste because the recordings are in mono, from 1950 and 1954. If stereo had arrived sooner these recordings would have been phenomenal.
Sibelius First and Second Symphonies won’t normally come in one CD. But Stokowski’s tempi were fast, especially in the First Symphony. The briskness itself wouldn’t make it great but it was the Stokowski treatment. The orthodox approach is to come up with a vast image of Scandinavia but Stokowski made it a duel to death. The fourth movement reminds me of Beethoven Fifth or Tchaikovsky Fourth and Fifth.
The Second Symphony was played with Toscanini’s NBC forces but it paled in the face of the First Symphony. It’s also quick, just not fiery. As I’ve said the quick tempi don’t necessarily mean much.