Christian Thielemann: The Orchestral Recordings on Deutsche Grammophone

Aug 30, 2019 at 22:26 1587

In 2003, I first heard Christian Thielemann live conducting Wagner during his term as Generalmusikdirektor at Deutsche Oper Berlin (1997/98-2004). In 2017, I heard him again with the same program (Götterdämmerung) with the Staatskapelle Dresden (review in German). In Berlin, the singers had been outstanding, the orchestra good but nothing more. In Dresden, the singers were excellent, and so was the orchestra. Between the two performances lies a a world class career.

If you would like a Thielemann career overview on CD, I recommend The Orchestral Recordings on Deutsche Grammophone (21 CDs available at Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.de, Amazon.fr). The box set is spanning from a 1995 recording of a concert at the Jesus-Christus-Kirche in Berlin with the Orchester der Deutschen Oper Berlin playing Palestrina by Hans Pfitzner as well as selected works by Richard Strauss to several 2013 recordings with my favorite Staatskapelle Dresden at the Semperoper with Christian Thielemann conducting works by Johannes Brahms, including the Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 2 in B flat major op. 83 (with Maurizio Pollini on piano).

The booklet contains a short Foreword by Christian Thielemann as well as a long Conversation between the conductor and Clemens Trautmann (President of Deutsche Grammophone) About Conducting.

In the Foreword, Christian Thielemann writes that he did not become a conductor because he wanted to be a conductor but because he liked the tone colours. He stresses that he is always concerned with the richness of colour. This is why he would have preferred to become an organist. He writes that everything he does is based on the great organ works by Bach, although this has nothing to do with his profession at present, he is sorry to say.

He writes that, for a conductor, the hands are at the centre of attention. He is impressed by what Herbert von Karajan could achieve with his arms and hands. although he does not copy him. Furthermore, Thielemann cannot and does not want to conduct like Karajan with closed eyes, who nevertheless managed to get his intentions across. For Thielemann, eye contact is extremely important: the expression of the eyes, the searching, the finding and the joy when it has worked. For him, it is similar to being an actor.

In the Conversation between him and Clemens Trautmann, Thielmann says that for him, the rehearsal differs from the concert where he lets the musicians play more, where music is played more spontaneously. Unlike in sports, in music there is not one best result.

Among the many Conversation take-aways let’s just mention that, for Thielemann, the secret of the baton is to find out when one has to beat and when one should let if flow. The pieces where the music is really difficult are normally not particularly challening in terms of baton technique. But Thielemann thinks that he has to direct the intensity of the sound. He finds very rhythmic pieces usually particularly difficult in terms of baton technique.

Thiemann stresses that, with singers, it all depends a lot more on how they feel on the day and at the very moment. Regardless of what you discussed beforehand, it might be quite different on stage. Thielemann feels totally in tune with Renée Fleming. Like we were cut from the same log, the conductor adds.

This and much more you can read in the booklet accompanying this fine, very recommendable 21 CD box set where you can hear Christian Thielemann conducting the Staatskapelle Dresden, Orchester der Deutschen Oper Berlin, Philharmonia Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra, Wiener Philharmoniker and Münchner Philharmoniker.

Christian Thielemann: The Orchestral Recordings on Deutsche Grammophone. Box set with 21 CDs, DG, 2019. Order the box set from Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.de, Amazon.fr.

CD box review added on August 30, 2019 at 22:26 Polish time.