Edward Gardner & Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra - Janacek: Orchestral Works, Vol. 2 (2015) [SACD & Hi-Res]

This second volume of Leos Janácek's orchestral works by the fine and sympathetic Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra under Edward Gardner is necessarily something of a mixed bag, with a couple of unfinished works, several pieces that more or less qualify as obscurities, and just one repertory work, the symphonic poem Taras Bulba, JW VI/15. That work from the World War I years is vintage Janácek, a programmatic evocation of scenes from Nikolai Gogol's epic novel that has the composer's trademark mixture of vividness and compression. But for the Janácek fan there isn't a dull moment here. The short Jealousy was a discarded prelude to the opera Jenufa and is closely linked to it in mood if not in motive. Several completions have been offered for Janácek's late single-movement, transparently textured Violin Concerto ("The Wandering of a Little Soul"), and each one militates in favor of more frequent performances for the work; violinist James Ehnes is superior here, with a sharp, tense sound that fits Janácek beautifully. The Ballad of Blanik and The Fiddler's Child are little tone poems, the latter with a striking soprano vocalise, that might spice up any number of orchestral programs. Only the abandoned tone poem The Danube suggests why the composer might have given up on it in favor of the Sinfonietta, but in general this is a fine acquisition for anyone wanting to get deeper into Janácek. -- James Manheim