Symphony No 3 / Chichester Psalms

Bernstein struggled for years with his third symphony, "Kaddish," for narrator, soprano soloist, chorus, children's chorus, and orchestra. Kaddish is a prayer used in services of mourning that at the same time praises God's greatness. The central element in Bernstein's seven-movement symphony is the narrator's text, which contains elements of the original prayer but was largely written by the composer. It addresses the complexity of a human's relationship to God, "My Father," but most certainly also refers to Bernstein's troubled relationship with his own father, and it frequently has the tone of a peevish rant. The narration is the most prominent aspect of most of the movements, and the orchestra often seems only to be providing background music. The movements in which the music takes center stage are more successful, but even in those Bernstein seems unable to find sure musical footing; the piece often sounds like a battleground on which his native lyrical impulse is struggling with his need to write respectably modernist music. An exception is the lovely fourth movement, which includes chorus and soprano soloist; here he achieves an authentic integration of styles. Because of the prominence of the narrator, a performance essentially rides on his or her effectiveness, and on this count, this performance falters because of the performance by Yehudi Menuhin. He speaks with admirable sincerity, but lacks the dramatic skills to keep the inane, sentimental text from sapping the work's energy. Karita Mattila sings the solo with gorgeous, soaring lyricism; she is easily the most compelling thing about this performance. Choeur de Radio France, the children's choir Maîtrise de Radio France, and Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, conducted by Yutaka Sado, perform with conviction, but their fine work can't rescue the symphony.

In contrast, the Chichester Psalms are entirely successful musically, some of the most ingratiating music Bernstein ever wrote. The balance here seems a little skewed, with the percussion very prominent, and the chorus a little distant. Sado leads a nicely dance-like performance, and except for an intonation issue in the crunchy chords that open the work, the singing and playing are beautiful. Joseph Mills does a fine job with the solo for boy soprano, singing with secure tone and a good amount of vibrato. (AllMusic)