Yesterday I listened for the first time to another Hartmann composition: the Concerto Funèbre for violin and orchestra. First the version by Poppen and Isabelle Faust on ECM, and then a recording with Spivakov as a soloist accompanied by Conlon's Gürzenich Orchestra. It's early days but, wow!, I was immediately gripped by this very bleak and moody work. At least in the ECM recording. Faust and Poppen make a brilliant case for what must be one of the most impressive violin concertos from the last century. What a strange mix of tradition and novelty! What strange panoramas unfold before the listener's eye! The ECM cover image wonderfully captures this sense of mystery. As far as I can tell, the Capriccio recording is much less successful. Conlon and Spivakov don't seem to have a clue. They wander aimlessly around, squeezing every drop of mournful sentimentality from the score. As a result this wonderful concerto is reduced to salon music. Faust's rapturous and steely rendition of the solo part is of an altogether different world. I hanker for more. To be continued.
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