petrenko & Berlin Philharmonic Release Landmark Schönberg Recordings – Live From the Concert Hall
Berlin, Germany – The Berlin Philharmonic, under the baton of Kirill Petrenko, has released a new series of live recordings featuring works by Arnold Schönberg, available now through Online Merker. The collection includes a compelling performance of Schönberg’s oratorio The Jakobeiter with the Broadcasting Choir Berlin and a stellar line-up of soloists: Wolfgang Koch (Gabriel), Daniel dropped (A profession), Wolfgang Ablinger-Sperrhacke (A rebellious), Johannes Martin Kränzle (A ringing), Gyula Orendt (The selected), Stephan Rügamer (The monk), Nicola Beller Carbon (The dying), and Liv Redpath & Jasmin Delfs (The soul).
The release also features Schönberg’s Concerto for Violin and Orchestra Op. 36 with soloist Patricia Kopatchinskaya, and Variations for orchestra Op. 31,all presented as examples of serial music.
According to a review by Dr. Ingobert Waltenberger for Online Merker, Petrenko is “urgently justified both the form of form and the expressive content of the Innovator Schönberg,” and is “once again characterized as a gifted animator not only the orchestra, but also for the audience.” The review highlights Schönberg’s evolution from free tonality, initially practiced around 1920, to his twelve-tone composition method.
As Harvey Sachs described, Schönberg’s twelve-tone system utilized “the twelve tones of the chromatic scale, which form a thematic motif. This motif could be used in its original sequence, in reversal, in cancer or in mirror cancer.” Sachs further noted that “in this new system,the traditional structuring methods within a gradual non-thonal harmonious environment continued to exist.”
Waltenberger’s review acknowledges the ancient challenges Schönberg faced, including financial hardship and the need to supplement his income with teaching and arranging, culminating in his move to the USA in 1933. Despite the complexity of his work, the recordings demonstrate a “romance in their emotional expression density.”
All recordings are available in both pure audio and Blu-ray film versions, capturing the energy of a live performance.
