What was it with the fin de siècle and sinister pierrots? Schoenberg had his moonstruck clown, Stravinsky his Petrushka; and I was also reminded, reading the synopsis of Dohnányi’s 1909 pantomime Der Schleier der Pierrette (‘The Veil of Pierrette’) of Ethel Smyth’s recently recorded Fête galante (Retrospect Opera, 2/20). Dohnányi’s scenario was written by Arthur Schnitzler, no less, and it’s suitably moody and macabre. Pierrette loves Pierrot but is promised, unwillingly, to Arlecchino. The two lovers devise a suicide pact, supernatural elements come into play and … well, let’s just say that Freud would have had a field day.

Dohnányi – always the most Austrian of Hungarian nationalist composers – sets it as an expansive three-act ballet for large orchestra in rich late-Romantic style, complete with Viennese waltzes. Act 2’s sumptuous Wedding Waltz was once a popular lollipop and has been recorded on numerous occasions (George Weldon comes to mind; there’s also a fine version with Bamert and the BBC Philharmonic). But this is the first recording of the whole score, and the overwhelming mood is of lush, twilit angst lightened by occasional flashes of comedy. Act 1’s miniature funeral march is like Mahler plus paprika; there’s a wonderfully doom-laden atmosphere overall, with a suitably tragic peroration.

Ariane Matiakh conducts a broad, no-nonsense account; she’s particularly impressive in the score’s more sepulchral passages (Capriccio’s recorded sound is weighted towards the bass and tends to blur edges). She builds the dramatic climaxes with considerable power. A lighter touch might have brought out more of the score’s humour; the string sound could be creamier, though the Viennese wind players are woody and characterful in Dohnányi’s flamboyant solos. But I’m not complaining: this is an important and enjoyable addition to the discography of a still-underrated composer.