Ballet
97 products
American Classics - Gould: Fall River Legend, Etc
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com
Les Ballets Russes, Vol. 2
Copland: Rodeo, Dance Panels... / Slatkin, Detroit Symphony
In Rodeo Leonard Slatkin doesn’t match the snappy, hard driven virtuosity of Bernstein on CBS - nobody does - but many find that disc lacking in relaxation and quite wearing. The general approach in Detroit is somewhat more laid-back - refined, even - but that doesn’t imply that the execution isn’t rhythmically tight. This is playing of the highest calibre and time and again Slatkin reveals details that can be hidden or glossed over in other recordings. The timings for the opening Buckaroo Holiday are 7:00 (Bernstein) and 7:55 (Slatkin). In listening to both, putting the hair-raising Bernstein virtuosity to one side for a moment, I find the Slatkin to be more engaging and involving. It doesn’t just pass you by; it draws you in. From the opening bars you hear a deep sonorous bottom end, full-toned brass, clean string sound and biting transients. Later on the throatily realistic double bass section introduces some trombone playing that just about stays this side of becoming tasteless. The glissandi are pretty outrageous but it’s a piece that’s full of fun at the end of the day. The extended version of Saturday Night Waltz includes an entertaining honky-tonk piano solo. Corral Nocturne is suitably sensuous and the concluding Hoe-Down clocks in at 4:47 compared to 3:06 (Bernstein), 3:16 (Gunzenhauser) and 3:18 (Johanos/Dallas, a fine disc on Vox). These timings are somewhat misleading. Admittedly, Slatkin does take the music at a slightly slower tempo than usual but he also includes a substantial section of music that isn’t to be heard in the other recordings. It brings Rodeo to a very satisfying conclusion.
I have never heard Dance Panels before and quite frankly I’m amazed that such a great piece has been so overlooked. The music is closer to the sound-worlds of Quiet City and Appalachian Spring and makes a welcome contrast to the preceding Rodeo. The music is gentle, ruminative and sophisticated in nature. Even in the more invigorating passages such as the Scherzando of the third movement and the mercurial Con brio of the fifth section (a percussion showcase) the orchestration remains controlled and the very opposite of brash. The woodwind excel throughout and there are some gorgeous sonorities and beautiful tunes. This is Copland at his finest and it’s quite a find. I challenge anyone not to fall for this music.
The two fillers are despatched with aplomb. El Salón México is superb, opening as it does with its sleazy trumpet solo and cheeky bassoons. Slatkin yet again demonstrates that music such as this doesn’t have to be fast and furious to make its mark. The slow sections conjure up scenes of lazy days in the sun and that’s what Mexico, as pictured by the composer, should be all about isn’t it? The playing is never over the top. It’s done with great taste and refinement but there’s not one boring bar to be heard. All the orchestral soloists have a field day. The closing bars are as thrilling as you could wish for. The concluding Danzón Cubano, one of Copland’s real pot-boilers, brings the disc to a rousing end.
In summary, this is a great CD featuring top recommendations for Rodeo and El Salón México and a wonderful rarity in the shape of Dance Panels that I urge everyone to hear. The Detroit Orchestra, in superb form for their inspirational conductor, are captured in spectacular and beautiful sound.
– John Whitmore, MusicWeb International
Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring & Dumbarton Oaks
OF MICE AND MEN (MUSIC FROM THE ORIGINAL BALLET)
Art & Music: Rembrandt - Music of His Time
Adam: Orfa / Salvi, Sofia Philharmonic
Orfa was Adolphe Adam’s penultimate ballet, with an intriguing scenario based on Nordic mythology. It shares analogies with Hesiod’s Theogony and Wagner’s Ring cycle in depicting the struggle between the older gods (Loki) and younger gods (Odin). Full of archetypal Romantic elements, Orfa was mounted with the lavish stage spectacle for which the Paris Opéra was famous, and featured Fanny Cerrito in the title role. Adam’s writing shows increasingly vivid orchestral imagination, drama and tonal colour, with roles for several instrumental soloists. This world premiere recording uses a new edition copied from Adam’s original manuscript score held at the Bibliothèque nationale de France.
PROKOFIEV: CINDERELLA / VARIOUS
Stravinsky: Apollon Musagete, Jeu De Cartes / Stravinsky
Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker - Glazunov: Les Sylphides
THEODORAKIS, M.: Zorba the Greek
Shostakovich: The Golden Age / Gennady Rozhdestvensky
Recorded in: Stockholm Concert Hall 4-5, 7-11 June 1993 Producer(s) Ralph Couzens Sound Engineer(s) Ben Connellan Richard Smoker (Assistant)
Beethoven: Overtures Vol 2 / Drahos, Esterházy Sinfonia
Famous Waltzes
RUSSIAN BALLET MASTERPIECES
Tchaikovsky: Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty Excerpts
Shostakovich: The Bolt / Rozhdestvensky, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic
Recorded in: Stockholm Concert Hall 6-11 June 1994 Producer(s) Ralph Couzens Sound Engineer(s) Ben Connellan Richard Smoker (Assistant)
Lully: Ballet Music For The Sun King / Kevin Mallon, Et Al
Glazunov: Orchestral Works Vol 8 - The Seasons / Anissimov
Feeney: Dracula
The Best Of Tchaikovsky
Glazunov: Raymonda / Anissimov, Moscow Symphony Orchestra
-- Gramophone [8/1996]
