The obvious question here, given the close relationship between Bartok and Kodaly, is how the two composers’ Concertos for Orchestra stack up against each other. Both were written for American orchestras, Kodaly’s for the Chicago Symphony and Bartok’s for the Boston Symphony. Indeed, Bartok actually took the Kodaly score with him to America, having resolved to leave Hungary while his friend remained at home.
It’s surprising that no one has thought to couple the two works on a single disc, though if anyone did, I rather fear that the comparison would work to Kodaly’s disadvantage. Not that his Concerto for Orchestra is in any way a bad piece. On the contrary, time and again Kodaly shows himself to be a master of orchestration, contrasting large forces with small and conjuring full tutti passages that even at their busiest retain a certain level of clarity. It’s just that his thematic material is so much less distinctive than Bartok’s.
Both works are divided into five movements (though Kodaly’s play without a break) and Hindemith is a sure influence, which perhaps helps explain why that staunch Hindemithian Yan Pascal Tortelier gives such an excellent performance of the piece.
It’s interesting to compare Tortelier’s dapper performance with Kodaly’s own rather weightier 1960s alternative (DG, 5/89 – nla), not least because of the huge differences in timing: Tortelier clocks up a mere 15'59'' while Kodaly lengthens the story for a generous 22'26''. In the Dances of Marosszek, Tortelier’s spirited 13'11'' incorporates some game if self-conscious attempts at Hungarian-style rubato, whereas Ivan Fischer’s 11'34'' Philips recording (he made an earlier one for Hungaroton) combines a winning naturalness with that crucial extra shot of temperament.
In its original form, the Theatre Overture fronted the singspiel Hary Janos, though the revision makes an excellent concert piece which, like the Concerto, is beautifully orchestrated. Indeed, it’s almost like a third dance suite (a companion to the Marosszek and Galanta sets), except that its form and scale approximate more to a symphonic movement. As to the Symphony, while Tortelier makes convincing statements of the folk-inspired second and third movements (more compelling in fact than Yondani Butt’s recommended 1994 Philharmonia version on ASV), he can’t quite redeem the first movement’s over-stretched exposition. Then again, even Ferenc Fricsay – who gave a fine broadcast performance of the work soon after conducting the world premiere – didn’t quite manage that.
The superb Chandos recording is a valuable bonus, especially as Dorati’s worthy collection (included as part of a budget-price all-Kodaly double pack) is now beginning to show its age. Rarely have I encountered a full orchestral sound where the balance between quiet detail and rousing fortissimos is so expertly judged. Collectors who require a healthy sampling of Kodaly’s work ‘beyond Hary’, so to speak, are well provided for though it would surely have been preferable to programme Summer Evening rather than yet another recording of the Marosszek Dances. A fine disc, all the same.'