Virgin’s new Water Music recording breaks down the now customary division into three ‘suites’, in F, D and G, that editors and performers have favoured since Handel’s late years. Instead, it follows some early sources in a two-suite arrangement, one in F, one combining the pieces in D and G. Anthony Hicks, that most knowledgeable of Handelians, reckons in his note here that this is a more satisfactory playing order; others may feel that the common features in key and instrumentation argue for the traditional view, but certainly there is no single right answer and the order here makes very good listening.
So do the actual performances from Sir Roger Norrington’s alert and skilful players. As always, Norrington has some original or unusual ideas: expansive appoggiaturas before some of the trills in the opening movements, some interesting ‘semi-detached’ articulation (I don’t always find this very convincing, or natural-sounding), some novel and very varied interpretations of Handel’s enigmatic directions as regards the repeats and their instrumentation (this goes for the Music for the Royal Fireworks, too). One of the particular successes is the famous Air, done with a gentle jauntiness, and enhanced by some really superb horn playing, clear, forthright and ultimately poetic. The F major Minuet is done in rousing fashion; in its minore middle section the counter-subject is perhaps emphasized at the expense of the main theme – although it of course depends which theme you think of as the main one. I liked the vigour of the Rigaudon but not some of its articulation (the semi-detached phrase, after the double bar), nor the soft legato in the minor section, where Handel’s marks surely indicate accentuation or possibly a more staccato manner. The D major section opens splendidly, with a fine account of its overture (the movement generally labelled, in the eighteenth century, “Mr Handel’s Water Peice”) and a stirring Alla Hornpipe; the Lentement and the final Minuet are perhaps repeated more times than are desirable. I thought the elaboration given to the flute in the G major Minuet rather stilted.
Much of the foregoing applies equally to the Fireworks Music. Here Handel’s ‘2 fois’ is three in the Bourree, “La paix” is done ABABAB, which seems surprising, and the Minuets are played II-I-II-I-II (different orchestration in II each time). Norrington takes the main part of the Overture quite steadily and imparts a lilting rhythm to it which the various sections of the orchestra seem to interpret rather differently, but nevertheless it is a very broad and noble reading. So this is a typical Norrington recording, full of ideas and original touches, some of them successful, and always first-rate playing from his group.
While Norrington uses Handel’s preferred scoring for the Fireworks Music, Trevor Pinnock, in his new recording, goes for George II’s preference – that is, exclusively ‘warlike instruments’, just wind and percussion. Such evidence as we have about the first performances of the work seems to indicate that Handel had his way and strings were used, along with a massed wind; probably the wind version was never heard in Handel’s day (its premiere may well have been the historic recording made by Charles Mackerras for Pye; 6/59 – nla). Well, here it is, with 24 oboes, 12 bassoons, double bassoon, nine each of trumpets and horns and six percussion. It’s certainly rousing stuff, and a noble noise. I imagine that practically the whole of London’s period-instrument community of double-reed and brass players must have been assembled for this recording. With his direct and unaffected rhythm, Pinnock sets up a sturdy momentum for the Overture and the effect is grand and imposing. The dances too receive straightforward performances, with plenty of spirit and energy. Pinnock’s chosen orchestration in “La rejouissance”, with trumpets only first time, isn’t quite satisfactory as some necessary notes are not available, and something is slightly awry near the end of the first strain. The percussion seems to me excessively noisy even if authentic.
This CD offers some welcome rarities. The F major Concerto is made up of versions – whether early or later is doubtful – of two movements from the D major part of the Water Music, here in F major; one is that “Water Peice” again, with some interesting and very characteristic differences from the familiar version and the other is the Alla Hornpipe. In between Pinnock plays, as slow movement, an Adagio from Op. 3 No. 5. The D major Concerto consists of what are probably early versions – less purposefully shaped, but again with some highly characteristic touches – of two movements from the Fireworks Music with a version of a movement from a violin sonata, on the organ, in between. The Passecaille, Gigue and Minuet come from a trio sonata and the Occasional Suite draws on the Occasional Oratorio overture (note the expressive oboe playing of Paul Goodwin in the Adagio), the Ariodante ballet and music composed for Joshua and Alessandro Severo. It all works pretty well, although some of the music in this last is not the most distinguished of Handel. But the concertos especially are well worth having, and certainly George II’s vision of the Fireworks Music is to be relished in its way. Although marred by a poor insert-note, unworthy of Archiv, this CD is highly enjoyable and warmly recommended.SS