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Site review by Castor January 2, 2006
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Performance: Sonics (MC): |
It is a real coup for PentaTone to have added Vladimir Jurowski to their growing roster of first-rate artists. At 33, he is already a truly charismatic conductor as these superb performances testify.
For some unaccountable reason, none of the four Tchaikovsky Suites is a staple of the concert repertoire today. This is a pity, as they are mature works written in between the Fourth and Fifth Symphonies and all four contain music of the highest quality, full of melodic invention, brilliant orchestration and variety of mood.
The Third Suite written in 1884 and recorded here, is, predictably, often coupled with one of the other three, but instead PentaTone have decided to add the Divertimento from Stravinsky’s ballet Le Baiser de la Fee. This is an imaginative choice as Stravinsky used lesser known Tchaikovsky piano music and songs on which to base the music for his ballet.
The Suite opens with an Elégie, ravishingly played by the Russian National Orchestra with subtle changes of pace and dynamics all captured to perfection within the clean and spacious recorded sound. Within a few minutes of listening, the position of each section of the orchestra can be clearly identified, violins split left and right, horns back left etc.
The restless yearning quality of the Valse mélancolique that follows is perfectly captured by Jurowski, who avoids any heaviness with his judicious choice of tempo.
The Scherzo (Presto) is brilliantly played with terrific exchanges between the woodwind and strings. My only minor grumble is that the percussion in the march like trio section sounds too reticent and hardly registers.
The Finale, a theme and twelve variations lasting about twenty minutes, is a tour de force. The variations are well contrasted and each is a gem in its own right, giving every section of the orchestra the opportunity to shine. I must mention the lovely cor anglais playing in Variation 8 and the Concert master Sergey Galaktionov’s violin solo in Variation 10. The culmination of the work is a brilliant Polacca that could have easily come from one of Tchaikovsky’s three great ballets.
The twenty-four minute concert suite Stravinsky extracted from his ballet is also a delight; the basic Tchaikovsky material transformed by Stravinsky’s genius. Once again the clarity of the recording allows one to appreciate Stravinsky’s pungent orchestration and witty transformation of his source material.
Although some may hanker after the complete score, particularly when it is as well performed as here, the Divertimento does contain the most memorable music from the ballet.
The whole of this SACD is recorded with a clarity and richness that is outstanding, even by PentaTone’s high standards, and, as usual with this label, the rear surround channels never draw attention to themselves, but provide an extra sense of realism by subtly capturing the acoustic signature of the recording venue.
This is a disc not to be missed.
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Copyright © 2006 Graham Williams and SA-CD.net
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Site review by Edvin December 11, 2005
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Performance: Sonics (MC): |
Even by the high standards set by PentaTone this is special. A wonderful disc in all respects.
The performance of Tchaikovsky´s third suite outshines all competition, Maazel, Tilson Thomas, Boult, all are put in the shade by this new recording. The Orchestra plays with warmth and affection, really caressing the phrases. The music itself is, of course, so lovely that it makes one wonder why it is played so seldom. It is in no way inferior to the symphonies, only less overtly dramatic. This music is more akin to the Serenade for strings or Eugene Onegin. Jurowski obviously adores the piece and the same goes for Stravinsky´s The Fairy´s Kiss (Divertimento).
And this is my only quibble, this music should always be performed complete. You miss out on some really wonderful music by performing the suite only, and I honestly thought that recording suites from ballets was a thing of the past. Of course the complete score doesn´t fit on one sacd with the Tchaikovsky suite and I understand the thinking behind the connection of the pieces - Stravinsky´s work is based on themes by Tchaikovsky. But again the playing is of such a high order that I can´t but lament the absence of so much music, for this is exactly how Stravinsky is to be performed. Jurowski finds a perfect balance between the rhythmic, the melodic and the elegiac in this score. As well as the moments of sheer joy.
The violins are placed left and right as is to be desired. It makes for some exciting and delicate interplay in the Scherzo of the Tchaikovsky. The sound itself is absolutely stunning, as I said, even by the high PentaTone standards. A good front to back perspective, a fair amount of air around the instruments and the room is tangible indeed. A demonstration record if there ever was one, and a lesson for many record companies to follow.
This is my sacd of the year and a desert island disc. Please Pentaman, can we have Manfred from these forces, pleeease.
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Copyright © 2005 Thomas Roth and SA-CD.net
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Review by threerandot February 27, 2006 (7 of 7 found this review helpful)
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Performance: Sonics (S/MC): / |
I cannot help but be impressed with the audio and performances on this disc. There is a depth, warmth, realism and clarity that I can't say I have ever experienced before in a home system. These performances radiate charm and the musicians caress every phrase. I do need to really turn up the volume on this disc as the sound is so clean and natural and never seems to become harsh. My only drawback is probably my SACD player which I paid only $50 for: a Sony SCD-XE670.
Truly a remarkable disc and my first actual classicl DSD recording. I only have three other titles right now and after experiencing this Pentatone recording, I will certainly want more from this label. I am now eyeing that recording of Julia Fischer playing the Mozart Violin Concertos. All I need to do now is come up with the cash.
threerandot
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