GEORGE ENESCU : Symphonie Concertante, Op. 8; Sept Chançons, Op. 15; Chamber Symphony, Op. 33 (Cristian Mandeal) (1997-2006) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

There is an old saying: give a monkey a typewriter, and in time, he/she will write "the Great American Novel." The compositional output of Romanian composer of George Enescu is a remarkable and singular achievement; although dominated by his Romanian Rhapsody No. 1 -- a bellicose violin virtuoso piece from the post-Romantic 1890s -- Enescu's music stretches into the 1950s and has something unique and vital to say about most of the musical trends of his time. The vast majority of Enescu's modest musical legacy had remained unrecorded until the 1990s, when it was taken up by the Bucharest Philharmonic George Enescu Orchestra under Cristian Mandeal on behalf of the now defunct Olympia label, later finding a home on Arte Nova. This, sadly, is tantamount to entrusting Enescu's extraordinary lifework to a monkey with a typewriter. Needless to say, Arte Nova's George Enescu: Symphonie Concertante -- Chamber Symphony is not the "Great American Novel," nor is it a "Great Romanian Novel," but it is a great disservice to the composer.

An excellent illustration is this performance of the late Romantic, tending toward modern Symphonie Concertante, Op. 8, for cello and orchestra, composed in 1901. Cellist Marin Cazacu has lived with this piece, learned it to the last rest, he has internalized it and lived it. You can hear that in the way he plays it, and it's pathetic to hear his fine interpretation marred by the sloppy and disinterested support he gets from Bucharest Philharmonic George Enescu Orchestra. The ensemble comes in late, is often behind the soloist, is only weakly present when Cazacu needs underpinning but is overpowering and ungracious when it's "their turn." It is a bad and disappointing recording, but it is not as bad as the song cycle Sept Chansons de Clément Marot, Op. 15. Although the orchestra is marginally better in terms of playing, it sounds scattered all over the sonic landscape, and the least well heard of all is tenor Florin Diaconescu, who seems shuffled off to one side and is not centered as he should be. Diaconescu seems uncomfortable with the French he is singing, and even if not, he sings in a hooty, nasal, and unmusical tone. Combined with the scrappy, cluttered sound of the orchestra and its poor intonation, this performance of Sept Chansons de Clément Marot, Op. 15, is frankly comical.

The Chamber Symphony in E major, Op. 33, dating to 1954, is an interesting piece; although set in a key and couched ostensibly in Enescu's post-Impressionist musical language, some passages betray obvious use of limited serial procedures. The chamber group that performs it is drawn from Bucharest Philharmonic George Enescu Orchestra, and it plays it admirably in some ways, but it seems that the winds aren't getting a good A from the oboe player -- the performance sounds sour and flat. The notes state that conductor Cristian Mandeal has made an "ascent to the upper ranks of conductors" -- if so, then Europe has lowered its standards. by Uncle Dave Lewis