Dvorak: Symphony No. 6 & 2 Slavonic Dances

The tempos are quick, the articulation somewhat clipped, and the brass sections don't leap from your speakers as on some of the bestrecordings of this symphony. I would particularly attach these shortcomings to the 1st movement. It would also have been nice to have a more substantial coupling, such as one of the tone poems, rather than two Slavonic Dances. If you can find it, the Cleveland recording conducted by Dohnanyi is outstanding, or get one of the reference complete sets such as Rowicki, Kubelik or Kertesz, all of which can be found used inexpensively.

This is the second of a series of recordings with Maestro Orozco-Estrada and the Houston Symphony. It is part of a Dvorak 'Final Four' set. For background, please see my review of the Dvorak 7th & 8th which was the first release of this series.This is a hybrid release. There is the standard CD layer, and an SACD 6-channel layer. I have listened to the stereo tracks on my Sony professional headphones. The sound is excellent. I have listened to the SACD layer in my living room, and it is natural sounding, and well-balanced.Another reviewer mentioned that the brass is not "leaping from the speakers" as is true of some recordings. I think this is by intent. The Dvorak 6th was modeled after the Brahms 2nd. Brahms was a classicist at heart. His handling of the orchestra was masterful, and allowed all sections to be heard at all times. The HSO's brass section is one of the very best in the world. They could easily cover the entire orchestra, but don't. Instead, they give a beautifully blended sound with gorgeous tone. True, they aren't blasting away. That's a good thing.The orchestral playing is first-rate from top to bottom, from beginning to end. The other reviewer also commented on too fast tempi. I didn't notice that at all. Nothing sounded rushed to me. The tempi sounded perfect, and where appropriate exciting.The notes in the box are brief but informative. The musicians are listed, too. Unlike the first release, there was no coupon code to download the tracks for use on a PC or smart phone.David Hurwitz gave this a 6/7 review on Classics Today. Looks like I won't be renewing my insider subscription. He either needs to get his audio equipment re-calibrated, and/or his hearing checked. I'm serious. This is not only the best Dvorak 6th I have heard. It's one of the most satisfying recordings I have ever heard. The playing is simply gorgeous. And, the audio engineering is exactly right for listening at home or on high quality headphones. This isn't the first time I have sharply disagreed with a professional reviewer (including this one), and I'm certain it won't be the last.There are too many standouts to mention. But, the Houston Symphony can take great pride in this series of recordings so far, especially this one. And, I will very much look forward to their future releases. Next up will be the Dvorak 9th Symphony in 2017. It was performed last weekend in conjunction with NASA video of "The Cosmos", the final part of a trilogy that includes "The Planets", and "The Earth".

Without too much argument, the Houston Symphony Orchestra is one of those orchestras that has flown under the radars of many classical music listeners during its existence, even though it boasts a list of past music directors that includes Leopold Stokowski, Sir John Barbirolli, Andre Previn, Sergiu Comissiona, and, more recently, Christoph Eschenbach and Hans Graf. Part of this is perhaps due to a certain regional snobbery on the part of outsiders who don’t exactly think of this great city in southeast Texas as anything more than the home of oil, bayous, and the Johnson Space Center. But the truth is that the Houston Symphony has always been one of our nation’s secret cultural weapons, even if it faces stiff competition from its counterparts in New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Chicago, and Los Angeles.And most recently, under its current, Colombian-born music director Andres Orozco-Estrada, it is continuing that tradition. Just recently, Orozco-Estrada and the orchestra released their recording of the Seventh and Eighth symphonies of Antonin Dvorak. And here, they take on another Dvorak symphony, one that, so far as I know, only two other American orchestras have taken on: the Sixth.One can safely say that the Sixth Symphony is where Dvorak really became a great symphonic composer. Its five predecessors were arguably mere Germanic in nature; but the D Major Sixth, while it still retains the familiar Austro-German structure, includes more of the Slavic and Bohemian influences that mark much of the composer’s output. Dvorak clearly took a lot of inspiration for the concept of the symphony from Brahms (specifically, that composer’s Second Symphony, which is also in D Major). The ethnic Bohemian elements are well to the fore in the vigorous third movement, a combination of a Scherzo and a Furiant; while the final movement has most of what will be seen as the connection between this work and Brahms 2.This recording is topped off by two of the composer’s Slavonic Dances: No. 3 in F Major, from the second set (Opus 72); and No. 8 In G Minor, from the first (Opus 46). These are more than capably performed by the orchestra and evenly handled by Orozco-Estrada’s conducting. This recording, their second for the Pentatone label, marks another renaissance emanating from the southeast Texas landscape, one that should yield big dividends.