Saint-Saëns: Complete Symphonies

CD1 

1. Symphony in A major: Poco adagio. Allegro vivace
2. Symphony in A major: Larghetto
3. Symphony in A major: Scherzo: Allegro vivace
4. Symphony in A major: Finale (Allegro molto. Presto)
5. Symphony n°1 in E-flat major, op. 2: Adagio. Allegro
6. Symphony n°1 in E-flat major, op. 2: Marche. Scherzo
7. Symphony n°1 in E-flat major, op. 2: Adagio
8. Symphony n°1 in E-flat major, op. 2: Finale (Allegro maestoso)

CD2

1. Symphony in F major “Urbs Roma”: Largo- Allegro
2. Symphony in F major “Urbs Roma”: Molto vivace
3. Symphony in F major “Urbs Roma”: Moderato assai serioso
4. Symphony in F major “Urbs Roma”: Poco Allegretto. Andante con moto

CD3

1. Symphony N°2 in A minor, op.55: Allegro marcato. Allegro appassionato
2. Symphony N°2 in A minor, op.55: Adagio
3. Symphony N°2 in A minor, op.55: Scherzo (Presto)
4. Symphony N°2 in A minor, op.55: Prestissimo
5. Symphony n°3 in C minor “Organ symphony” op.78: Ia. Adagio- Allegro Moderato
6. Symphony n°3 in C minor “Organ symphony” op.78: Ib. Paco adagio
7. Symphony n°3 in C minor “Organ symphony” op.78: IIa. Allegro moderato- Presto
8. Symphony n°3 in C minor “Organ symphony” op.78: IIb. Maestoso. Allegro

In a release that marks the centenary of Camille Saint-Saëns’ death in December 1921, Cristian Măcelaru conducts the Orchestre National de France in the composer’s five symphonies – Nos 1, 2 and 3 and two unnumbered works, the early Symphony in A major and the Symphony in F major, ‘Urbs Roma’, composed for a competition. The works span some 35 years of the composer’s dazzling career: the A major symphony dates from around 1850, when he was 15, and the Symphony No. 3 was premiered in 1886. The latter is by far the best known of the five, and one of Saint-Saëns’ grandest and most emblematic works. It famously complements the orchestra with an organ, played on this new recording by Olivier Latry.

Cristian Măcelaru became Music Director of the Orchestre National de France in September 2020. Having originally trained as a violinist in his native Romania and the USA, he went on to study conducting and gained international attention in 2012, when he stood in for Pierre Boulez with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.  In addition to his post with the Orchestre National de France, he is Music Director of the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne and the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in California. Over the past decade he has become established with the leading American orchestras and enjoys an especially close relationship with the Philadelphia Orchestra.

These recordings were made between September 2020 and July 2021 at the Auditorium de Radio France, the home base of the Orchestre National de de France. In Măcelaru’s words, the orchestra “has a culture of sound – a sound produced by the full sonority of the strings and the colour of the wind sections … The French quality of the Orchestre National lies in its flexibility and elegance. I think the mot juste is suppleness. Its colour comes from the richness of its sound – can I point out here that the orchestra uses French bassoons – but also from the way this richness is combined with a sweetness and brilliance, and also a transparency, which means that there is never any sense of thickness in its sound – rather like a dancer who takes to the air with ease and lands lightly on his feet.

“When we talk about French music of the 19th century we tend to think first and foremost of opera, and then of composers like Berlioz, or, right at the end of the century, Debussy. There is considerable substance to the French orchestral repertoire and it must be conducted with the same commitment one would bring to Beethoven. Saint-Saëns is an incredible composer. Take the opening of the finale of his Symphony No 1 – the ceremonious rhythms are like something by Lully! This symphony is the work of a young musician of 17 years old, and it recalls Mendelssohn and Schumann, but the harmony couldn’t be anyone else’s.“