Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra/Antoni Wit Naxos 8.572487 ***

The sole symphony that Mieczyslaw Karlowicz (1876- 1909) wrote in 1903 was nothing if not ambitious. Its elaborate Rebirth programme progresses from “everything is shattered” through struggle, hopes, dreams and confusion to a soul standing “triumphant and serene, looking into the world ahead, and showing to all men the way leading to rebirth”.

Karlowicz’s control of gesture and orchestral colour was sure, with Tchaikovsky providing the young Polish composer’s most obvious models. Yet the symphony remains one of those pieces that is altogether more impressive for its moment-by- moment impact than for its cumulative effect, even in a performance as full and rich as Antoni Wit’s.

Karlowicz’s earlier (1900) incidental music for Jozafat Nowinski’s play The White Dove carries more power.

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