Last April, the Basel Symphony Orchestra (Sinfonieorchester Basel) celebrated its 150th anniversary. As a tribute to this excellent orchestra from Switzerland, here is a journey through its discography, a look back at the recordings it has left behind. This article focuses exclusively on recordings made on LP up to 1986 – that is, before its merger with the Basel Radio Symphony Orchestra – under the names “Orchester der Basler Orchestergesellschaft” or “Basel Symphony Orchestra.”
For a long time, the Basel Symphony Orchestra (BSO) was not an orchestra known for its recordings. While, for example, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande produced one LP after another in the 1950s and 1960s under Ernest Ansermet, and the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich recorded albums during that time for Decca and MMS under conductors or composers such as Franz Lehár, Robert Stolz, Otto Ackermann, or Joseph Krips, the Basel orchestra was on hiatus. As the symphony orchestra of the city of Basel, it had no mandate to record albums. Its mission was to present symphony concerts for the local audience, to accompany operas and ballets at the Basel City Theatre, and to support local choirs – particularly the Basel Choral Society – in performances of the great oratorios.
Another reason for the orchestra’s absence from the record market may have been that Hans Münch, its principal conductor from 1935 to 1966, was little known internationally and had no connections to record companies. But perhaps it was also the case that, out of typical Basel understatement, the orchestra did not make much of an effort to present itself on records – sort of in keeping with the Basel saying, “one doesn’t talk about what gems one has.”
The realization that recordings can have a variety of positive effects on an orchestra did not emerge until decades later: that they can motivate orchestras to perform at their best and thus improve their quality; that they can raise an orchestra’s international profile, thereby making it possible to engage more renowned conductors and soloists or attract better orchestral musicians to the city; and that, as a tool for location marketing, they can generally promote a city’s cultural offerings. Such considerations have led to orchestras today actively seeking recording opportunities and, in some cases, financing them themselves.
Back then, it took the CTS – the Communauté de travail pour la diffusion de la musique Suisse – to document the Basel Symphony Orchestra on LP for the first time. This association, based in Lausanne, had set itself the goal of promoting Swiss music and, to that end, released a series of records presenting works by Swiss composers from the Renaissance through the 20th century. In this context, the Basel Symphony Orchestra also had the opportunity to record a variety of works.
The CTS Recordings
The very first CTS production – the recording of Hermann Suter’s Laudi di San Francesco d’Assisi (CTS 36/37) – was of the highest artistic value, as it introduced one of the most significant oratorios of the 20th century to a wider audience for the first time. In this work, Suter set to music one of the most beautiful texts in Italian literature, the Canticle of the Sun by Saint Francis of Assisi. And he did the text full justice. As the long-time conductor of the BSO and the Basel Choral Society (1902–1926), he knew exactly how to compose for a large orchestra and a large choir. If composing means creating a world, then Suter has succeeded here in the most impressive way. Listen to how, in the second movement, Suter conjures up the shimmering night sky, through which the wonderful melodic lines of the vocal soloists weave their paths, creating a magical atmosphere of otherworldly beauty; or how, in the movement dedicated to the element of wind, he builds a fugue with up to four themes interwoven simultaneously – a fugue that never feels academic or overloaded, but rather dense, suspenseful, and full of power: this is simply magnificent music.
Under Hans Münch, the BSO and the Basel Choral Society are at their very best. The young Edith Mathis (soprano) is fabulous in the “Laudi” about the moon and the stars, and Norma Procter is equally impressive in the wonderful hymn to the element of earth. The Basel Choral Society performs with confidence and captivates with a nuanced and radiant choral sound. It’s actually a pity that this colorful and – for Switzerland – unusually sensual work is hardly known in Italy. Not only because of the Italian lyrics, but also due to its overall creativity, the work has a distinctly Italian flavor. It would be interesting to hear what Italian conductors, such as Antonio Pappano or Ricardo Chailly, would bring out of it.
Hans Münch and the BSO presented another compelling case for Hermann Suter’s music with their recording of Suter’s Symphony in D minor (CT-64-8), the only symphony he ever composed. Written shortly before World War I, it is arguably the most significant symphony by a Swiss composer prior to Arthur Honegger, thanks to its musical substance and wealth of ideas. In this work, Suter proves himself a master of thematic development, counterpoint, and colorful orchestration. One encounters music that has grown out of the late Romantic period but already breathes the spirit of the 20th century – music that comes across as very energetic, yet also radiate cheerfulness or transport listeners to wonderful oases of peace.
In the third movement, a “Capriccio militaresco,” Suter humorously satirizes the Swiss military. Something like this would no longer have been possible after World War I; yet even here, the lighthearted musical action in the middle of the movement takes on a violent intensity that makes one’s smile catch in one’s throat. In the concluding fourth movement, Suter pays homage to his homeland by lovingly – even romantically – weaving Swiss folk songs into an artful potpourri that also features plenty of dance-like verve. Münch and the BSO perform this symphony in a way that makes it a pleasure to listen to. The music’s colors and moods unfold beautifully. The orchestra’s dedication and sonic refinement, along with the recording technique, leave nothing to be desired. An impeccable, idiomatically coherent recording by the orchestra, which had also premiered this work under the composer’s own baton.
Also well worth listening to is the recording of Armand Hiebner’s lovely Overture to a Commedia dell’arte, premiered in 1960 (CT-64-23). It’s three minutes of lively, neoclassical-style music – perhaps a bit dated, but concise and to the point. Hiebner was a student of Hermann Suter. Under Hans Vogt-Basel, the BSO performs with verve and good cheer. The recording also sounds excellent. A pity that not the entire “Scènes vénétiennes” – of which this overture is the opening piece – was recorded.
The Overture to an Old Comedy by Reinhold Laquai (CTS 43) strikes a more contemplative, multi-layered, and complex note. Laquai, a native Italian who grew up in Neuchâtel and Zurich, studied with Volkmar Andreae and Ferruccio Busoni. With its charming shifts in mood, this work, too, is once again in excellent hands with the BSO under Hans Vogt-Basel.
Avant-garde music at the height of its era can be heard on the LP featuring Rudolf Moser’s Wal for large orchestra with five saxophones, composed between 1980 and 1983 (CTS-P 12). With this work, the Bern-born Rudolf Moser – who taught composition, analysis, and music theory at the Basel Conservatory beginning in 1984 – has achieved quite a success. Moser never employs the large orchestra in a massed manner here, but instead creates subtly balanced soundscapes that slowly pulsate and oscillate. The saxophone quintet, featuring the legendary saxophonist Iwan Roth and his students, whom he trained at the Basel Conservatory, is employed in the first part of the work as a homophonic collective of sounds, whose chord progressions are contrasted and layered by the sounds of the orchestra. Over time, the quintet then develops speech-like forms of articulation, and the character of the work changes. There is something strange and enigmatic about it, and it is thrilling to listen to from beginning to end. Mario Venzago conducts the BSO with a keen sense of the unique timbre of this music. It’s a masterful performance that was also perfectly captured in the recording. Well worth a listen.
With its recording of Hymnes pour Orchestre (1964), the Basel Symphony Orchestra championed a central orchestral work by the Geneva composer André-François Marescotti (CTS-P 13). After completing his training at the Geneva Conservatory, Marescotti also studied in Paris, and this is evident in his music, which has unmistakable French influences, particularly from Roussel. According to the liner notes, Marescotti is also said to have integrated 12-tone techniques and serial compositional methods into his music. However, one doesn’t hear much of that in this work. What dominates is the impression of an impressionistically inspired, moderately free-tonal musical language that also exudes humor and melodic beauty. And it sounds excellent, especially when performed as well and recorded as perfectly as it is here by the BSO under Mario Venzago. The three hymns depict the inner lives and dreams of children. These visions inspire Marescotti to compose very delicate, predominantly elegiac music that captivates with its mysterious moods and enchanting wind solos. It is a delight to listen to the orchestra’s outstanding soloists here.
The Ex Libris Recordings
While the recordings produced for CTS were exclusively world premieres of works by Swiss composers – often known only to a few – the BSO had the opportunity with Ex Libris to record works by well-known composers as well. At that time, Migros was not yet advised by McKinsey and took its cultural mission seriously by using its Ex Libris bookstore chain not only to publish commendable book series but also to provide Swiss performers with a platform to showcase themselves on the record market. The recordings of Bach’s organ works by Hans Vollenweider, for example, are legendary.
Initially, the BSO was primarily used to record works that would fill gaps in the repertoire and where competition from more famous orchestras was manageable. This was the case, for example, with the complete recording of Beethoven’s ballet music The Creatures of Prometheus and the Music for a Knight’s Ballet from 1970 (Ex Libris EL 16 587). The ballet The Creatures of Prometheus tells the story of the first two humans created by Prometheus. However, after Prometheus had brought the girl and the young man to life, the two proved to be of no use and showed no trace of reason or emotion. So Prometheus drags them before the gods, who ultimately teach them reason and the ability to recognize beauty and express feelings, a development celebrated with colorful dances.
Beethoven composed music for this libretto that is lighter and more lyrical than what we are accustomed to hearing in his symphonies. A highlight of this work is a piece in the second act—the only one in which Beethoven ever used a harp. Performed by the BSO musicians, it exudes such magic that one regrets Beethoven did not use this instrument more often. Indeed, this recording cannot be praised highly enough. German conductor Helmut Müller-Brühl inspires the orchestra to deliver an inspired, nuanced performance entirely in the classical spirit. The music is fresh and beautiful in tone, and at no moment does one get the feeling that Beethoven composed music here that is any less valuable than in his symphonies. Perhaps this is also because performances of ballet music, thanks to his tenure at the Basel City Theater, are part of this orchestra’s DNA.
The second LP recorded for Ex Libris was dedicated to two works by the Aargau-born Peter Mieg, both premiered in 1962 (Ex Libris EL 16 589). He was a composer who distanced himself from the avant-garde, forged his own path, and wrote music that was largely tonal. In his Second Piano Concerto, he favors bright sounds. The work is characterized by a classical clarity. The piano part is deliberately not very virtuosic and at times has a somewhat dry, brittle quality. The slow second movement is very appealing, with its delicately dabbed lyrical colors. The concluding phrases of the outer movements, which arrive surprisingly unprepared, are somewhat jarring. Armin Jordan and pianist Annette Weisbrod deliver a precise, well-articulated performance of the work. More dramatic tones and a more expressive musical language are found in Mieg’s song cycle Mit Nacht und Nacht, set to texts by the Iranian poet Cyrus Atabay, who grew up in Germany. The work is a true discovery. Ernst Häfliger (tenor) performs his part with great presence, though his voice lacks warmth and sounds somewhat strained in the upper register when sung forte.
A commendable discographic achievement is the complete recording of all of Mozart’s opera overtures from 1974, conducted by Moshe Atzmon (3 LPs, Ex Libris EL 16 651-53). Here, in addition to the ballet music for Idomeneo, one also can hear all the overtures from Mozart’s lesser-known early operas. This edition took into account the latest research available at the time and also included several world premiere recordings. Unlike Mozart’s later opera overtures, which are closely tied to the subsequent plot of the opera, the overtures to his earlier operas are small symphonies that can be performed independently of the corresponding opera.
There is a wealth of wonderful music to discover here that hardly anyone knows. For example, the overture to Betulia liberata, Mozart’s first symphony written in a minor key, is a charming work whose dark tone clearly sets it apart from the lighter mood of his other early overtures. Moshe Atzmon and the BSO deliver nuanced, lively, and melodious interpretations of all these works. Of the later overtures, however, there are recordings with more drive and stage presence. This is also due to the fact that these 4-channel stereo recordings were made not in a theater but in a church (St. Martin’s Church in Basel), whose acoustics naturally tend toward a mellow sound, soften the contours, and do not allow for tempos at the upper limit.
The last two works recorded by the BSO for Ex Libris, Bruckner’s Seventh Symphony and Wagner’s Siegfried Idyll (2 LPs, Ex Libris EL 16017), were also recorded at St. Martin’s Church. During his tenure as chief conductor of the BSO, Moshe Atzmon had often conducted symphonies by Bruckner and Mahler. He loved this music and had a unique approach to it.
His interpretation of Bruckner’s Seventh is one of the least bombastic in the entire catalog. Here, the emphasis is on lyricism rather than monumentality. Bruckner’s cantilenas are played with soul and savored in all their beauty. The sound of the strings is slender, yet also warm and wonderfully luminous in the forte passages. The trumpets shine, and the horns and Wagnerian tubas underpin the musical action with perfect intonation. The woodwinds are also magnificent, repeatedly transporting the listener to realms of ethereal beauty. While in other recordings the last two movements often fall somewhat short, that is not the case here at all. Bruckner’s music remains gripping right up to the very last bar.
While the BSO has already produced a more than respectable recording of Bruckner’s Seventh – one that also sounds excellent – their recording of Wagner’s Siegfried Idyll represents an absolute highlight in the discography. Atzmon lets Wagner’s music blossom beautifully. He knows how to give this music space while still keeping it flowing at all times. Every nuance is spot-on, and one marvels at the delicate moods that Atzmon and the orchestra conjure from this score. Rarely does one hear this music played with such depth and ease. It’s undoubtedly one of the most beautiful recordings of this work in existence, a recording that would be ideally suited to persuade even the most stubborn Wagner skeptics to reconsider their views.
New Music From Basel
Published by Bärenreiter, this record series presented works by contemporary composers from Basel in the 1980s. All the recordings were impeccably edited, feature interpretations of the highest caliber, and sound excellent.
Ernst Levy (1895 –1981) was a phenomenal pianist and was compared in his youth to Backhaus, Schnabel, and Solomon. When Switzerland became too small for him, he first emigrated to Paris and then, during World War II, to the United States, where he taught at universities in Boston, Chicago, and New York and also composed extensively. In his 15th Symphony, he proves himself to be a composer of moderate modernism. We encounter highly melodious, tonal music that comes across as completely undramatic, often has a rhapsodic touch, and at times sounds somewhat Nordic, with chorales reminiscent of Hindemith and contrapuntal densifications reminiscent of Hovhaness. Olivier Cuendet and the BSO (Musicaphon BM 30 SL 1729) deliver a finely nuanced, atmospherically rich, and sonically excellent performance of this work.
Albert Moeschinger (1897–1985) was one of Switzerland’s most interesting and imaginative composers. He was thoroughly familiar with all the trends in contemporary music and drew upon their techniques, yet he forged his own path in a completely undogmatic manner. In "Erratique" pour grand orchestre (1969), he presents himself as a composer of lively, structurally rich music that is constantly changing and evolving. Particular significance is given to the timbres, which are used as architectural elements. This is intelligent, timeless music that is thrilling to listen to from start to finish. The LP documents the world premiere conducted by Moshe Atzmon in 1973 at the Stadtcasino in Basel (Musicaphon BM 30 SL 1730). Jürg Jecklin served as recording engineer: no wonder everything sounds excellent.
Rudolf Kelterborn (1931–2021) was, until recently, one of the most frequently performed contemporary Swiss composers in the German-speaking world. He was also very successful in other areas. He was a visiting lecturer in Japan and the U.S., served as editor-in-chief of the Schweizerische Musikerzeitung (Swiss Musicians Journal), and held leadership positions at Radio DRS as well as at the conservatories in Zurich, Detmold, and Basel. As a composer, he was a master of sound. His pieces always sounded very good – sometimes perhaps almost too good, too polished. Espansioni, his third symphony for large orchestra, baritone, and tape, was composed 50 years ago to mark the 100th anniversary of the BSO.
The title of the work refers, on the one hand, to the expanding scope of the piece – from a large symphony orchestra to spoken and sung text as well as electronic sounds – and, on the other hand, to the expanding developments within the individual sections themselves. Under Moshe Atzmon, the BSO unleashes the primal musical forces, this music needs (Musicaphon BM 30 SL 1716). Kurt Widmer is in top form with his distinctive, melodious baritone. And although everything in Kelterborn is meticulously constructed down to the last detail, the impression is one of an expressive, freely associative music.
Music By and With Heinz Holliger
In 1970 and 1971, the Basel Symphony Orchestra released two recordings on Deutsche Grammophon. The recordings featured Heinz Holliger’s one-act opera Der magische Tänzer (DG 2561 106) and Holliger’s Siebengesang for oboe, orchestra, voices, and loudspeakers (DG 2561 109). Listening to these recordings with the benefit of hindsight, one is amazed at what expressive, richly varied music Holliger wrote back then. Compared to it, much of what is composed today cannot quite measure up.
In Der magische Tänzer, Holliger further develops Berg’s musical language. Within the orchestra, specifically configured ensembles embody different expressive characters. By skillfully interweaving these, Holliger succeeds in creating a varied, atmospheric, and highly theatrical adaptation of Nelly Sachs’ hallucinatory texts into music that straddles the line between reality, delusion, and madness.
Under the baton of Hans Zender, the BSO performs with extraordinary virtuosity, as if it had always played nothing but contemporary music. The Schola Cantorum Stuttgart is also admirable; at the time, it was one of the world’s leading choirs for the performance of contemporary music. The vocal soloists from the Basel City Theater ensemble are equally masterful, demonstrating international caliber. The legendary Jürg Jecklin was also in charge of sound engineering here, making this recording an absolute treat for lovers of contemporary music in terms of sound quality.
The recording of the Siebengesang is also very successful. Heinz Holliger (oboe) plays the solo part here under the baton of Francis Travis. Here, too, he works as a composer with various orchestral sections. The music feels very fluid and dense, yet it also leads into quiet passages where vast spaces open up. Under Francis Travis, the BSO once again distinguishes itself as a competent advocate for new music.
Also featuring Heinz Holliger as soloist is Antal Dorati’s Trittico for oboe, oboe d’amore, English horn, and string orchestra (Philips 416 987-1). In this live recording from the Stadtcasino, we hear moderately modern music that seems to draw inspiration from Bartók in its treatment of the string orchestra. Holliger enriches this with his agile and tonally nuanced playing on the various instruments of the oboe family. Under the composer’s baton, the BSO delivers a dense and nuanced string texture.
The BSO also proves to be a competent, highly alert partner – this time with Heinz Holliger as conductor – in Alfred Schnittke’s Violin Concerto No. 2, featuring Gidon Kremer as soloist (Philips 411 107-1).
The Erato Recordings With Armin Jordan
The collaboration with Armin Jordan was a stroke of luck for the Basel Symphony Orchestra. As principal conductor at the Basel City Theater, he not only conducted the orchestra in opera performances but also regularly presented symphony concerts with it; and one always had the feeling that the orchestra enjoyed playing under Jordan and got along well with him. Jordan was a conductor who gave his orchestras space and placed his trust in them – and received that trust in return.
He had an unerring instinct for everything he conducted. And he conducted a wide range of works, from the music of Mozart and Haydn to that of Berg and Shostakovich. As a bilingual, he was, of course, also an excellent conductor of the French repertoire. Jordan was someone who knew the secret that less is often more, that sometimes you don’t have to do much at all for music to emerge as if by itself. This completely unpretentious way of inspiring an orchestra to peak performance can also be felt in his recordings with the BSO.
First, the orchestra recorded a program of Viennese waltzes and polkas for Erato in 1981, music from the sunny side of life (Erato STU 71459). After just a few bars, it becomes clear what a fine touch Jordan has for this cheerful music. The music is performed with relish, suppleness, and subtle humor, yet also with the necessary orchestral brilliance. Jordan and the BSO know how to revel in the music without pushing the pace too hard: a recording that inevitably spreads good cheer.
Also recorded in 1981 at St. Martin’s Church was the LP featuring Debussy’s La boîte à joujoux, the Six Epigraphes Antiques, and the Sarabande (Erato STU 71 458) – all lesser-known works originally composed for piano and later orchestrated with great sensitivity by André Caplet, Ernest Ansermet, and Maurice Ravel. In the children’s ballet La boîte à joujoux, Debussy depicts with subtle humor the idyll of a happy family life in pocket-sized form, in which dolls behave like adults. The little work, however, has a double meaning and can also be interpreted as a lighthearted portrayal of adults behaving like dolls.
The Six Epigraphes Antiques consist of six short pieces based on ancient epitaphs. Debussy composed subtle, quiet music for them, making extensive use of whole-tone scales and church modes. Under Jordan and the BSO, both works unfold a unique magic, and it is a delight to listen to the orchestra’s excellent soloists.
In 1982, Armin Jordan and the BSO turned their attention to Schubert’s Fourth Symphony and the Unfinished Symphony (Erato NUM 75063). It is a flawless recording that radiates a great joy in music-making in the Fourth. In the Unfinished, the BSO captivates with a noble, refined, and subtly nuanced orchestral sound. The first movement sounds wistful and darkly profound, yet not heavy. The music unfolds with a visionary power. The second movement is filled with a profound sense of calm. Jordan knows how to draw out long musical phrases and dramatically intensify the music where necessary. It is wonderful how the woodwinds shine.
Also in 1982, the Wagner LP featuring the Rienzi Overture and Die Meistersinger, the “Good Friday Magic” from Parsifal, and Siegfried’s “Journey Down the Rhine” from Götterdämmerung was recorded (NUM 75066). Thanks to its work at the Stadttheater, the orchestra was inherently very familiar with Wagner’s music. His Wagner, however, sounds lighter than one is accustomed to hearing from German orchestras. Jordan knows how to let the melodic flow of, say, the Meistersinger overture unfold freely. Under his baton, the music is filled with human warmth; the crescendos are built organically, and the contrapuntal sections come across not as serious and austere, but as playfully buoyant.
The “Good Friday Magic” from Parsifal is performed with great emotional depth. The calm and purity of feeling with which Jordan gives voice to the mystery of peace here is simply breathtakingly beautiful. Jordan develops Siegfried’s Rheinfahrt entirely from a place of stillness, and the orchestra captivates with its finely nuanced natural soundscapes. Highly recommended, not least because the sound quality of the recording is also outstanding.
In his last two recordings with the BSO in 1986, Jordan tackled the symphonic poems by César Franck (NUM 75251) and the (only) symphony by Ernest Chausson (NUM 75 253). Franck’s symphonic poems are unjustly overshadowed by his Symphony in D minor. They are less austere and richer in color and atmosphere than his serious and powerful symphony. In them, Franck reveals himself to be a masterful painter of moods and a storyteller of the highest order. And Jordan and the BSO do full justice to these symphonic poems with their own creative interpretation.
Geographically situated on the border between the French and German cultural spheres, the Basel Symphony Orchestra sounds (or rather, sounded) brighter than German orchestras and darker than French ones. This made it an ideal ensemble for the music of César Franck, which also features darker intermediate hues. This is evident in these recordings as well. The dramatic, ghostly hunting scene in Le Chasseur maudit is just as well rendered by them as the enchanting moods and fleeting dream figures in Eolides, the symphonic poem about the daughters of Aeolus, the god of the winds. It’s a performance imbued with effortless orchestral perfection and a high degree of musicality.
The recording of Chausson’s Symphony in B-flat major and his symphonic poem Viviane possesses the same qualities. It is fascinating how the colors blend here, how pathos combines with lyricism, how dramatic intensifications are brought about with power yet without exaggeration, and how every phrase is played with such depth and fulfillment. Under Jordan’s baton, Chausson’s music repeatedly evokes extra-musical associations with events in a mythical past. This is actually paradoxical, since Chausson detested descriptive music. But music is, after all, ambiguous and often contains more than the composers intended.
Looking back at all the recordings discussed, one must say that the Basel Symphony Orchestra has truly left music lovers a remarkable and very rich discographic legacy. And it cannot be praised highly enough that the orchestra has also consistently and undauntedly championed particularly Swiss composers at the highest level. For who else should preserve the Swiss musical heritage if not Swiss orchestras and concert organizers? Unfortunately, many key players in Switzerland have been neglecting this responsibility for quite a long time. However, it seems that a new generation of conductors and musicians in Switzerland have realized that a lot of the music by Swiss composers is well worth being performed, and are increasingly promoting it.
Header image of the Basel Symphony Orchestra (Sinfonieorchester Basel) courtesy of Wikimedia Commons/Benno Hunziker.
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