WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln, Peter Gülke - Schreker: Symphony in A minor (2000)

This Capriccio disc brings together three works by one of Viennese music's best-kept secrets, composer Franz Schreker. Schreker's only Symphony in A minor dates from 1899 and is an instantly appealing post-Romantic piece rich with tasty harmonies and an intriguing sense of orchestral color. Sadly, the last movement of this symphony has disappeared for good, but conductor Peter Gülke and the Kölner Rundfunkorchester make the best of what is left of the score. It is paired with another early Schreker work, a choral/orchestral setting of Psalm 116 from 1900 that is typified by big gestures and hardy counterpoint. This is not as striking as the symphony, but is solidly grounded in German post-Romantic practice and a welcome addition to the recorded repertoire. The featured piece here is one of Schreker's last, the monodrama Das Weib des Intaphernes (1932-1933), which uses as its text a ballad by PanBabylonian fantasist Eduard Stucken (1865-1936). The story concerns a married woman in ancient times who prostitutes herself to a wicked king in order to secure the release of her imprisoned family only to learn that the king will free but one of her kindred and it is up to her to decide just who will be the lucky party. This work is oddly in advance of the cruel kinds of choices that millions of Europeans would soon find themselves making, and Schreker has set the tale with a heart-stopping score, bringing mildly atonal touches into his more typical style to punch up the sense of drama. Actor Gert Westphal recites Stucken's text with relish and bravado. For English speakers, the lack of a libretto is a real obstacle to enjoying this piece; all that is given of the narrative is a weak summary that doesn't even recap the story's conclusion.