Starter Packs

Complete your collection with these curated titles, grouped at a special discount.

Shop Now
Roussel: Symphony No. 3 / Eschenbach, Orchestre de Paris
Ondine

Roussel: Symphony No. 3 / Eschenbach, Orchestre de Paris

$18.99

Details

Composer
ROUSSEL, ALBERT
Artist
Eschenbach
Format
CD
Label
Ondine
Released
Jan 31, 2004
Catalog #
ODE 1107-2
UPC
761195110720

About

REVIEWS:

The Third Symphony was...favored by Karajan in the 1950s. It was the product of a composer in his sixties writing in his Normandy home at Vasterival. It was premiered by the Boston SO and Koussevitsky on 24 October 1930. The thud and thunder of the first movement contrasts with the pastoral melancholy meditation of the Adagio. This is followed by the fairground pleasantry of the Vivace and the massive fountains of exultation of the last movement. No wonder the audience - whose applause forms part of the track - greeted this performance with such warmth.

Le Festin is here given complete across 21 tracks. You are likely to enjoy this music - if you do already know it - if you already number Ravel's Ma Mère l'Oye and Debussy's Prélude a l'après midi d'un faune among your favorites. It has the magical elegance of the Ravel and the sultriness of the Debussy. Add to this the motorized thunder of Roussel's last two symphonies. It is superbly recorded - listen to the whispering distant gold of the violins in The Ants Dance in a Circle (tr. 16). The instrumental howls in the Funeral of the Gadfly (tr. 24) are memorable. Also in the same movement how similar some of the writing is to Ravel's dawn rustlings in Rapsodie espagnole. Those gentle rustles from the tam-tam suggest Ma Mère l'Oye. Eschenbach heartbreakingly captures the valedictory melancholy of Night falling on the deserted garden but brings out the solace too. This makes for an easy full price choice - poetically done in every aspect.

– Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International

The liner notes for this release make the argument that French modernist Albert Roussel was the greatest composer of his time. It is an argument Christoph Eschenbach and the Orchestre de Paris do much to advance in these live performances. Coupling Le Festin de l'araignée from 1912 and the Symphony No. 3 from 1930, Eschenbach and the Parisian orchestra give Roussel's music the kind of clear-eyed, strong-willed performances that make the most of the composer's best features. Though distinctly of its prewar time, Le Festin de l'araignée nevertheless sounds brightly colorful, lightly ironic, and surprisingly inventive in this smoothly polished and vigorously rhythmic performance. The postwar Third Symphony sounds both of and above its time here, its angular themes, gleaming colors, and muscular rhythms brilliantly brought out by the German conductor and the French orchestra. If Eschenbach and the Parisian musicians' racing finale for the symphony, with its relentless polyrhythms, doesn't get your heart pumping, consult a doctor immediately. Recorded in vibrant live sound complete with appreciative applause, these performances may well convince the listener that Roussel is indeed underrated.

– James Leonard, All Music Guide

Tracklist 26 tracks

  1. 1 I. Allegro vivace 06:04
    Track
    1
    Title
    I. Allegro vivace
    Duration
    06:04
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  2. 2 II. Adagio 10:19
    Track
    2
    Title
    II. Adagio
    Duration
    10:19
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  3. 3 III. Vivace 03:22
    Track
    3
    Title
    III. Vivace
    Duration
    03:22
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  4. 4 IV. Allegro con spirito 06:30
    Track
    4
    Title
    IV. Allegro con spirito
    Duration
    06:30
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  5. 5 Prelude 03:55
    Track
    5
    Title
    Prelude
    Duration
    03:55
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  6. 6 A garden. - Sitting in her web, a spider surveys the surroundings 00:50
    Track
    6
    Title
    A garden. - Sitting in her web, a spider surveys the surroundings
    Duration
    00:50
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  7. 7 Entry of the ants. - They find a rose petal. - With great effort they lift 01:28
    Track
    7
    Title
    Entry of the ants. - They find a rose petal. - With great effort they lift
    Duration
    01:28
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  8. 8 Left alone, the spider daydreams and watches the landscape. - She checks the strength of her thread. 01:41
    Track
    8
    Title
    Left alone, the spider daydreams and watches the landscape. - She checks the strength of her thread.
    Duration
    01:41
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  9. 9 Entry of the dung beetles. 00:50
    Track
    9
    Title
    Entry of the dung beetles.
    Duration
    00:50
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  10. 10 The ants return. - They prepare to carry another petal, when a butterfly appears. 00:15
    Track
    10
    Title
    The ants return. - They prepare to carry another petal, when a butterfly appears.
    Duration
    00:15
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  11. 11 Dance of the butterfly. - The spider invites the butterfly to dance closer to her web. - The butterfly is caught in the web and struggles. 03:16
    Track
    11
    Title
    Dance of the butterfly. - The spider invites the butterfly to dance closer to her web. - The butterfly is caught in the web and struggles.
    Duration
    03:16
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  12. 12 The spider rejoices. - She frees the butterfly from her web and takes it to her larder. 03:37
    Track
    12
    Title
    The spider rejoices. - She frees the butterfly from her web and takes it to her larder.
    Duration
    03:37
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  13. 13 The spider dances. - Suddenly fruits come crashing down from a tree. 01:49
    Track
    13
    Title
    The spider dances. - Suddenly fruits come crashing down from a tree.
    Duration
    01:49
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  14. 14 Fruit worms enter and prepare to revel in the fallen fruits. 00:58
    Track
    14
    Title
    Fruit worms enter and prepare to revel in the fallen fruits.
    Duration
    00:58
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  15. 15 Warlike entry of two praying mantises who lift their frightening blades and forbid anyone to approach. 00:45
    Track
    15
    Title
    Warlike entry of two praying mantises who lift their frightening blades and forbid anyone to approach.
    Duration
    00:45
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  16. 16 The ants dance in a circle. - The two mantises blame each other for the trick which was played upon them. 00:34
    Track
    16
    Title
    The ants dance in a circle. - The two mantises blame each other for the trick which was played upon them.
    Duration
    00:34
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  17. 17 The mantises challenge each other to a duel. - They fight. - The spider dances in order to make the mantises more excited. 01:41
    Track
    17
    Title
    The mantises challenge each other to a duel. - They fight. - The spider dances in order to make the mantises more excited.
    Duration
    01:41
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  18. 18 A mayfly hatches. 01:41
    Track
    18
    Title
    A mayfly hatches.
    Duration
    01:41
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  19. 19 He dances. 03:23
    Track
    19
    Title
    He dances.
    Duration
    03:23
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  20. 20 The mayfly stops, exhausted. - The ants, the spider and finally the dung beetles pay their respects. 02:08
    Track
    20
    Title
    The mayfly stops, exhausted. - The ants, the spider and finally the dung beetles pay their respects.
    Duration
    02:08
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  21. 21 The mayfly and the fruit worms dance. 01:39
    Track
    21
    Title
    The mayfly and the fruit worms dance.
    Duration
    01:39
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  22. 22 The mayfly dies. 00:32
    Track
    22
    Title
    The mayfly dies.
    Duration
    00:32
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  23. 23 The spider prepares to begin her feast, but one of the mantises, freed by the dung beetles from the web, slips behind the spider and kills her. 00:39
    Track
    23
    Title
    The spider prepares to begin her feast, but one of the mantises, freed by the dung beetles from the web, slips behind the spider and kills her.
    Duration
    00:39
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  24. 24 Death throes of the spider 01:19
    Track
    24
    Title
    Death throes of the spider
    Duration
    01:19
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  25. 25 Funeral of the mayfly. - The funeral cortege sets off and vanishes into the distance. 01:55
    Track
    25
    Title
    Funeral of the mayfly. - The funeral cortege sets off and vanishes into the distance.
    Duration
    01:55
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach
  26. 26 Night falls on the deserted garden. 01:19
    Track
    26
    Title
    Night falls on the deserted garden.
    Duration
    01:19
    Composer
    Albert Roussel
    Ensemble
    Orchestre de Paris
    Conductor
    Christoph Eschenbach