Stravinsky: Firebird (The) / Petrushka / Suites Nos. 1 and 2

The riot that took place at the first performance, in Paris, of Stravinsky' ballet, Le Sacre du Printemps, brought a notoriety to the young composer that placed him in the vanguard of contemporary music.

Drawing on pagan Russia as it's source of inspiration, The Rite of Spring opens with the Adoration of the Earth, the introduction to which is marked by the evocative bassoon solo with which it starts and finishes, leading without a break to the forceful rhythm of the Augurs of Spring, Dances of the Young Girls (us augures printaniers: Danses des adolescentes). The Ritual of Abduction (Jeu du rapt) follows, with two groups of girls, dressed in red, pursued in a simulated ritual of abduction, by the young men. The SpringRounds (Rondes printani?�res) are introduced by trills on flutes, with a simple Russian clarinet melody, the dancers moving in circles. Now the Ritual of the Two Rival Tribes begins (Jeux des cites rivale's), interrupted by the Procession of the Sage (Cortege du sage), as the tribal elders lead in their wise old high priest. He lies prone on the ground, in adoration of the earth (Adoration de la terre), after which the people celebrate with the Dance of the Earth (Danse de la terre). The second part of The Rite of Spring is The Sacrifice (Lesacrifice). The mysterious introduction evokes a twilight scene, desolate, and yet inhabited by strange and primitive creatures. A dark hill-top is marked by sacred stones and totems. From the Mystic Circles of Young Girls (Cerclesmysterieux des adolescentes) one will be chosen as sacrificial victim, as they circle in rhythmic motion, watched by the tribal elders. Once the victim is chosen, lost in an ecstatic trance, her role is glorified in The Glorification of the Chosen One (Glorification de l'elue), a dance of fierce asymmetrical rhythms. Fanfares herald the Evocation of the Ancestors (Evocation des anctres), and the elders, wearing animal-skins, celebrate the Ritual Action of the Ancestors (Action rituelle des anc?-tres), moving forward to the stark and exotic rhythms of the final Sacrificial Dance (Dansesacrale), as the victim joins in a ritual that must end in her own death.

Recent reviews Artistic Quality 10/10 Sound Quality In a previous review (well, several) I mentioned the fact that a lot of basic repertoire is being recorded merely to take advantage of SACD multi-channel technology, often with no justification either interpretively or sonically. Of course, a great performance is its own justification, and here, happily, we have just that, as well as state-of-the-art sonics that will thrill high-end audiophiles (at least so I assume, as I am not one of them but was mightily impressed). As with most BIS recordings, the dynamic range is very wide, and the volume needs to be set higher than usual, but once that's done everything snaps into focus and the result is stunning whatever your preferences: regular stereo, SACD stereo, or surround. Andrew Litton has the Bergen Philharmonic playing at a world-class standard. Sure, they don't have the crushing power of the biggest American or European orchestras, but Litton compensates (to the extent necessary, and it's really not) by turning in high-voltage readings of both works, full of excitement and textural nuance. In The Rite he reminds us that despite the extremes of volume and dissonance this is still a folk-music-based work. The tunes (or bits of them) really sing, with such vibrancy and freshness that you might think you are hearing them for the first time. Such is the case with the polyrhythmic Procession of the Sage, while the conclusion of Part One will lift you out of your seat. In Part Two, the battle between the Stegosaurus and the T-Rex (oops, that's Fantasia, isn't it?) packs a huge wallop but also sounds somehow musical, while the final sacrificial dance, lean and mean, doesn't wimp out in the post-mayhem coda. If anything, Petrushka is even better, certainly the best recording of the 1911 original scoring since Boulez/New York many decades ago. Litton shapes the music of the two outer tableaux with unflagging imagination, and the Bergen players are with him every step of the way. It's amazing to hear passages normally treated mechanically, such as those repeated-note string refrains in the opening scene, actually phrased and given purpose. In the two central tableaux, all that gestural stuff between Petrushka, the Moor, and the ballerina, really sounds like something meaningful is happening between them. You can visualize the action in your mind; there are no dead spots at all. In short, this is as colorful and intelligent a reading as you will ever hear, and it deserves the highest possible recommendation. [2/28/2011] --David Hurwitz During the 1910's, at a time when late-romanticism had been taken about as far as possible, the collaboration between Igor Stravinsky and the ballet impressario Sergei Diaghilev had a huge influence on the development of music. Performed by Diaghilev's company Les Ballets Russes, their first joint effort, The Firebird, was a great success in Paris in 1910, and within the space of just a couple of years two further landmarks of twentieth-century music followed: Pétrouchka and Le Sacre du printemps. Stravinsky's clear-cut textures, strong primary colours and almost percussive treatment of the orchestra staked out a route later explored by many of his colleagues. Particularly striking in the case of Pétrouchka was the extensive use of scraps of folk song and street music, treated with extreme refinement and often biting irony - the character of Petrushka, a puppet come to life, was described by Stravinsky as 'the immortal and unhappy hero of every fair-ground in all countries'. On the present recording the original 1911 version is used, giving an even more immediate and exciting effect. As for The Rite of Spring, the scandal at its 1913 premiere has become legendary - a scandal probably caused as much by Nijinsky's choreography as by Stravinsky's score. But even today, the music offers an extremely powerful experience, above all through its rhythmic qualities. Static rhythms, repeated for long stretches, generate enormous latent energy and are contrasted with irregular rhythms that change at bewildering speed. Both scores belong to the pinnacles of 20th-century orchestral music, and are here performed by the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by its music director Andrew Litton. Most recently this team have released a highly praised cycle of Mendelssohn's symphonies, but their Russian credentials are also impeccable, with their recording of Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet Suites being described as 'glittering, colourful, spirited ... and with a striking attention to detail' on the website Klassik-Heute.

Paris was one of the great centres of European art and Sergey Dyagilev and his Ballet russes brought to the city a succession of epoch-shattering productions that revolutionised ballet. Whilst composing the Rite of Spring for Diaghilev Stravinsky broke off it's composition to write Petrushka the story of a puppet suddenly brought to life. Choreography was by Fokin and Nijinsky danced the title role. It remains one of the twentieth century's greatest ballets. Using music from Acts I and II of his opera Le rossignol Stravinsky's Song of the Nightingale is a brilliantly orchestrated symphonic poem richly evoking Chinese music and the allure of the Orient.

The penultimate release in the Naxos Seattle Collection, featuring internationally renowned soprano Susan Graham.

The scintillating orchestral effects of Fireworks so impressed Sergey Dyagilev that the impresario was prompted to commission a new work from Stravinsky for his Ballet Russes. Telling of Prince Ivan's fantastic adventures in the demonic Kastchei's magic realm the Firebird is a virtuoso composition in every regard; it's colorful sonorities and dramatic impact brought Stravinsky instant celebrity and led to his successful ballets Petrushka (Naxos 8571222) and the Rite of Spring (Naxos 8571223). This recording has been acclaimed as "polished and brilliant" (Gramophone).

Stravinsky's music for violin and piano was written for his duo with violinist Samuel Dushkin. Both the Suite Italienne and Divertimento are arrangements of ballet scores, each work in turn an alchemic transformation of Baroque and Romantic styles into Stravinsky's distinctive idiom. The enigmatic but unwaveringly expressive Duo Concertant was Stravinsky's only original work in this form. Huebl and Wait were acclaimed for their recording of Schnittke's complete Sonatas (8.570978). Mark Wait received two GRAMMY nominations for his disc of Elliott Carter's Piano Concerto (8.559151). Violinist Carolyn Huebl is in demand as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral leader, and has performed throughout the United States, as well as in Argentina and Canada, winning critical acclaim. Pianist Mark Wait is Dean and Professor at the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University. His recording of Elliott Carter's Piano Concerto (Naxos 8.559151) was nominated for a 2004 GRAMMY-� award for Best Classical Album and Best Instrumental Solo Performance with Orchestra.

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A leading authority on Bach, conductor Masaaki Suzuki now tackles his first album by a twentieth century composer. Collaborating with the acclaimed ensemble Tapiola Sinfonietta, Suzuki has chosen the works of Stravinsky for this release. Tracks include Pulcinella Suite, Apollon Musagete, and Concerto in D for Strings.

This new release features Stravinsky's rarely-performed Violin Concerto, coupled with the main works of his repertoire for violin and piano. The composer was initially convinced that he lacked the experience necessary for writing a violin concerto and taking full advantage of the instrument's possibilities in concertante style. But in 1931 he went on to compose a Neoclassical masterwork in close collaboration with violinist Samuel Dushkin, a work that bears his unmistakable fingerprint. It is considered one of the 20th century's greatest violin concertos. He also made numerous arrangements for violin and piano, joining again with Dushkin to enrich the violin repertoire with his imaginative genius. Along with the multi-movement works, the Suite italienne and Divertimento, Liana Gordjia and Katia Skanavi present a selection of miniatures: the "Berceuse" from The Firebird, the "Danse russe" from Petrushka, the "Chanson russe" from the opera Mavra, and Tango, a piano piece arranged by Dushkin for violin and piano.

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These performances were released previously by Koch, and it's good to see them reappearing here at budget price. Like most of Robert Craft's Stravinsky discs, this is very, very good, and questioning the conductor's authority in this music is tantamount to casting doubt on the composer himself (though not on his own hit-and-miss conducting!). The coupling is apt: both works are based on earlier music--Gallo and Pergolesi (for the most part) on the one hand, Tchaikovsky on the other. As Craft points out in his notes, however, Pulcinella remains comparatively faithful to the originals, with changes principally in terms of rhythm and scoring. The Fairy's Kiss, though, takes Tchaikovsky's tunes as a starting point, modifying them considerably, with most of the music being effectively original. Compared to the reference recordings above, Craft can appear to value precision over sheer excitement (as in the finale of Pulcinella), but this is quibbling: overall he gets fine results from both orchestras as well as from his three singers (in Pulcinella). If you're looking for both ballets complete, the combination of value and artistic quality on offer here speaks for itself.--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

The Orchestra of the Royal Opera House / John Carewe

A double bill which contrasts the vibrant colours of Stravinsky’s best-loved ballet, The Firebird, with the stark ritual of Les Noces, choreographed by the legendary Nijinska. With Leanne Benjamin as the Firebird in the modern Royal Ballet production. Extra features include rehearsal footage of Nijinska and her world from dancer David Drew.

Extra features include
• David Drew on Nijinska’s world
• Behind-the-scenes rehearsal of The Firebird and Les Noces

R E V I E W S:

‘This is history happening before the television cameras - just one among a score of good reasons for adding this release to your collection.’ -- International Record Review

‘The Firebird and Les Noces in revelatory and near-definitive versions…’ -- The Independent, Best DVDs of the Year 2002

‘…priceless historic material.’ Dance Expression

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