Another Beethoven's Fifth? So what else is new?
Well, actually, this Beethoven's Fifth is new. And, what's more, it's clear and strong and vital and persuasive. The
Manchester Camerata is only a chamber orchestra, but the individual members play with the strength of ten because their tone is pure, their attacks are forceful, and their technique is robust.
Douglas Boyd is an extremely busy conductor, but the intensity and concentration of his music-making is not in the least diminished by his commitments in several cities on two continents. Together they turn in a Beethoven's Fifth that, more than anything else, reminds one of
George Szell and the
Cleveland's classic account from the '60s. In this performance, one can hear every line, but every line has the tensile power of spun steel; one can appreciate every color, but every color is part of a supple but immense sonority; one can apprehend every form, but every form is subordinate to the unrelenting drama of the music. Coupled with an equally fine performance of Beethoven's Second and recorded in crisp, clean digital sound,
Boyd and the
Manchester Camerata's Fifth may not be the Fifth to end all Fifths, but it is surely a great Fifth in a long line of great Fifths.