Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Vladimir Ashkenazy – Elgar: Enigma Variations & In The South (2009) [Japan] [SACD ISO + DSF DSD64 + Hi-Res FLAC]

Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Vladimir Ashkenazy – Elgar: Enigma Variations & In The South (2009) [Japan] [SACD ISO + DSF DSD64 + Hi-Res FLAC]
SACD Rip | SACD ISO | DSD64 2.0 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 51:33 minutes | Basic Scans included | 1,46 GB
or DSD64 2.0 Stereo (from SACD-ISO to Tracks.dsf) > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | Basic Scans included | 1,34 GB
or FLAC 2.0 (carefully converted & encoded to tracks) 24bit/96 kHz | Basic Scans included | 1,08 GB

Vladimir Ashkenazy, who was appointed principal conductor of the Sydney Symphony in 2009, puts his orchestra through its paces in this vibrant Exton album. This third volume of Edward Elgar’s series features Enigma Variations & In The South overture. The people at Exton, a Japanese audiophile label, have once again produced an impressive recording with plenty of headroom. The imaging is so natural that you can almost visualize the space between the instruments, but yet the orchestral sound is rich and full of impact. The strings shimmer in the high notes, and the bass drums, rather than being heard, are felt like distant thunder. Highly recommended.Sir Edward Elgar (1857-1934) is one of the few British composers whose music suffers from too much Wagnerian and Brahmsian influence. A classicist with solid foundations, his music just doesn’t seem to fit his period in time. Although he is considered a national treasure in his own country, most of his music fails to grab the attention of the non-British public. If it wasn’t for his Cello Concerto, made famous by the wonderful recording by Jacqueline du Pré, or the Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma”, Op. 36, his name might have been doomed to fade within the pages of musical history books.

The Enigma Variations is without a doubt, a staple at the English dinner table. It’s one of those magic recipes loaded with all the best ingredients, some of them secret, culled from its own backyard. But add impressive craftmanship and originality to the mix, and it has become a favorite dish served regularly around the world. In fact the “Nimrod” variation at the centre of the work, with its stoic melancholy and broad harmonic intervals, has come to represent English music at its best. Some of the lighter segments of the work disclose an unbuttoned Elgar, while the final few minutes prove that he could joust with the best of them. The concert overture In the South (Alassio) presents a different but equally impressive side of this composer. It is suddenly much more German in nature, with in fact, an impressive opening few minutes full of Richard Strauss orchestral and harmonic gestures.
Often regarded as Edward Elgar’s most inventive work, the Variations on an Original Theme, “Enigma,” Op. 36, has charmed listeners for more than a century, not only because of its tantalizing riddle, but more importantly, because of its colorful music and sumptuous orchestration. Elgar never revealed the actual enigma, which has nothing to do with the initials he used to identify friends he honored in the variations, for they have long been known. He stated that, “Over the whole set another and larger theme ‘goes,’ but is not played,” though this secret subject, whether musical, literary, or philosophical, has never been uncovered. But because the piece is one of the most brilliant and memorable in the repertoire, audiences have been more than compensated for the lack of a solution to the puzzle. Vladimir Ashkenazy and the Sydney Symphony present the Enigma Variations in a spectacular package that offers high-quality super audio, and the orchestra has remarkably vivid timbres and credible presence. Ashkenazy draws out all the marvelous sonorities with an ear for nuances, and the clever details of the score stand in high relief, so nothing is missed. Filling the remainder of the program is the Overture, “In the South” (Alassio), Op. 50, a rousing depiction of the Italian Riviera that is another showpiece for audiophiles to enjoy. The dynamic range of this recording is extraordinarily wide, so it will sound best on SACD players, though it is still breathtaking on a standard CD player.

Tracklist:

01. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Andante
02. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 1
03. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 2
04. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 3
05. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 4
06. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 5
07. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 6
08. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 7
09. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 8
10. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 9
11. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 10
12. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 11
13. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 12
14. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 13
15. Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” Op.36 – Variation 14
16. Elgar: Overture “In the South” (Alassio) Op.50

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