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Naxos

Suk: Fairy Tale / Ludwig, Falletta, Buffalo Philharmonic

$19.99

Details

Composer
SUK, JOSEF
Artist
Falletta
Format
CD
Label
Naxos
Released
Mar 29, 2011
Catalog #
8572323
UPC
747313232376

About

The greatest Czech artists have recorded this music, but they yield surprisingly little to JoAnn Falletta and her Buffalo players. If perhaps the winds aren't quite as characterful as their Bohemian colleagues, Falletta ensures that the performances have just as much energy and rhythmic snap. In Fairy Tale, a gorgeously romantic work as substantial as a symphony, The Game of Swans and Peacocks has all the bounce of a Slavonic Dance, while the large outer movements are beautifully shaped and exquisitely played.

Just as Fairy Tale might pass for a four-movement symphony, so the Fantasy is every bit as serious and cogent as a major violin concerto (though it has only one long movement). It's as big as, say, the Bruch G minor, perfectly proportioned, and like all of the music on this disc its neglect is simply incomprehensible. Michael Ludwig remains an impressive soloist; he has a big enough tone to do the lyrical moments justice, and plenty of dexterity in the flashy bits. He and Falletta make the ending memorably exciting.

The Fantastic Scherzo is a masterpiece of atmosphere and melody--like so much of Suk's music, the bitter-sweetness of its main ideas will stay with you for days. It's quite wonderfully played here: crisp and lively. Really, Falletta's performance is as good as any, and extremely well recorded too. It's so important that this wonderful music gets played by non-native musicians; it's the only way that it stands a chance of entering the standard repertoire, where it so obviously ought to be. Projects like this deserve your support, and will reward your time and attention many times over. Strongly recommended.

--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Tracklist 6 tracks

  1. 1 Fantasy in G Minor, Op. 24 23:28
    Track
    1
    Title
    Fantasy in G Minor, Op. 24
    Duration
    23:28
    Composer
    Josef Suk II
    Performer
    Michael Ludwig
    Ensemble
    Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra
    Conductor
    JoAnn Falletta
  2. 2 I. O vernem milovani Raduze a Mahuleny a jejich strastech 11:07
    Track
    2
    Title
    I. O vernem milovani Raduze a Mahuleny a jejich strastech
    Duration
    11:07
    Composer
    Josef Suk II
    Ensemble
    Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra
    Conductor
    JoAnn Falletta
  3. 3 II. Intermezzo: Hra na labute a pavy 03:25
    Track
    3
    Title
    II. Intermezzo: Hra na labute a pavy
    Duration
    03:25
    Composer
    Josef Suk II
    Ensemble
    Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra
    Conductor
    JoAnn Falletta
  4. 4 III. Intermezzo: Smutecni hudba 07:27
    Track
    4
    Title
    III. Intermezzo: Smutecni hudba
    Duration
    07:27
    Composer
    Josef Suk II
    Ensemble
    Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra
    Conductor
    JoAnn Falletta
  5. 5 IV. Runy kletba a jak byla laskou zrusena 08:40
    Track
    5
    Title
    IV. Runy kletba a jak byla laskou zrusena
    Duration
    08:40
    Composer
    Josef Suk II
    Ensemble
    Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra
    Conductor
    JoAnn Falletta
  6. 6 Fantasticke scherzo, Op. 25 15:06
    Track
    6
    Title
    Fantasticke scherzo, Op. 25
    Duration
    15:06
    Composer
    Josef Suk II
    Ensemble
    Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra
    Conductor
    JoAnn Falletta