Schoenberg: Pelleas & Melisande / Wagner: Siegfried-Idyll
Schoenberg'sPelleas & Melisandeis just Opus 5 in Schoenberg's catalog, but it comes right on the cusp of the young composer's transition to serialism. Based on Maurice Maeterlinck's stage play, it's an exuberant, youthful work that won the 29-year-old composer the recognition he had yet to receive. The work shows some influences of Richard Strauss, who had befriended Schoenberg in 1901 in Berlin. Mahler is also present. Still, for all that, this work is sui generis, a stand-alone masterpiece. It's followed by Wagner'sSiegfried-Idyll, a tone poem based on the birth of his son, Siegfried. Both works are moody tone poems and maestro Christian Thielemann lovingly captures their spirit. Boulez mightgive Schoenberg more drama, but Thielemann sculpts both works with rounder edges and softer textures. Highly recommended.--Paul Cook