Alpine Symphony [CD, Import]

Written between 1911 and 1915, the Alpine Symphony was Strauss's last tone poem. Originally inspired by his participation in a real mountaineering expedition in his youth, during which the party lost its way on the ascent and was overtaken by a thunderstorm on the descent, it is perhaps the ultimate example of musical tone-painting. Its 22 connected sections depict not only the elements, the sights and sounds of nature, the rising and setting of the sun, but also the climbers' experiences and responses: the struggle through thickets, the fear at being lost, the exultation of reaching the summit. Using his unparalleled skill in exploiting and combining instrumental colors and timbres, Strauss employs an enormous orchestra, including an organ and a wind-and-storm machine, to paint a graphic, kaleidoscopic picture of nature. Beyond such obvious effects as pizzicati for raindrops, harps for a waterfall, woodwinds for bird calls, and timpani crashes for thunder, he magically evokes mist and rain, the peaceful flowering meadows, the icy glacier, even a "vision" of the Spirit of the Mountain. An even greater miracle is that, without a real symphonic structure, he succeeds in connecting these 22 contrasting, disparate sections and melding them into a coherent whole. He achieves the former tonally with incomparable organic modulations and the latter thematically with his characteristic soaring, ecstatic melodies so reminiscent of his great operatic soprano parts. The playing is most excellent; the soloists are wonderful, individual instruments and sections stand out yet blend into a seamless, multi-colored tapestry. --Edith Eisler

Staatskappelle de Weimar, dir. Antoni Wit