Search - Richard [1] Strauss, Andre Previn, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra :: The Essential Richard Strauss

Mostly Essential R. Strauss

Trevor Gillespie | San Jose, California United States | 02/18/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"With the exception of a few other "must have" orchestral pieces, this box set does represent the essential Richard Strauss---as far as orchestral music goes. I wish that Metamorphosis was on this set. Regardless, this box set is a fine set of recordings. Previn is considered by many critics to be one of the best living R. Strauss interpreters. Teamed up with the Vienna Philharmonic, great performances are produced. Listening to Don Juan, it is detectable that he takes the piece a little faster than Herbert von Karajan, but the results are incredible. In this set, Arlene Auger sings the four last songs. I have to wonder if this is her best performance. Her voice is perfect for these songs. Subtle, sublime, full of passion and feeling, and great control. These are the true highlights of the package but by no means the only thing great. It is a highly recommendable compilation. The performances are great, and the sounds is spectacular. All recorded in digital Telarc sound, this set is a welcome addition to anyone's R. Strauss collection."

To Previn or not to Previn?

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 10/17/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The attraction here is twofold: the magnificent Vienna Philharmonic and the equally magnificent Telarc sound. If both appeal to you so much that you don't need to worry about Previn's conducting, this set is self-recommending. But there are many great recordings of all these Strauss tone poems, along with the Four Last Songs, and therefore the question of whether to buy them in a box set under Andre Previn will be important to many listeners.



Let me give a thumbnail for each work:



Also Sprach Zarathustra (1987): Nobody ever labelled Previn a volatile conductor, and here he is at his most comfortable and middle-of-the-road (his overall timing is almost 35 min. compared to Reiner's 32 min. with the Chicago Sym. on RCA). There are no startling thwacks on the timpani, searing trumpets or ear-floodig organ in the famous opening. Previn quickly finds fairly slow tempos and a relaxed sense of phrasing that diminishes the impact of this work quite a bit. On the other hand, the orchestra is to the manner born in Strauss, and the sonics are big and natural. To find a competitive version of Zarathustra with Vienna, one would have to go back to the Karajan performance on Decca/London from 1959--probably his greatest Strauss CD.



Coupled with he Zarathustra is a fairly lusty Death and Transfiguration (1987)that has a few patches of slack phrasing but is on the whole quite good.



Alpine Symphony (1989): Probably the very best thing in the whole set, this performance is caught in even better sound, more detailed than the Zarathustra. Previn isn't as stirring as Karajan with Berlin (DG) or Blomstedt with San Francisco (Decca), and he doesn't have a great feeling for mountain atmopshere, but in this case the playing by the Vienna Phil. is so glorious that simply staying out of their way, as Previn does, makes for a thrilling musical experience. Karajan excels in this work as an interpreter but is plagued with shrill early digital sound that is improved on the latest reissue by DG without becoming beautiful, as the sound for Previn certainly is.



Ein Heldenleben (1988): The story is getting familiar by now. This is a large-scaled, gorgeously played reading, with Previn supplying a generalized approach. Still, he avoids bombast, and this potentially embarrassing bit of self-glorfication on Struass's part sounds like real music. Previn takes 46 min., in line with Karajan, but of course Karajan finds much more to say.



The coupling is a lovely Four Last Songs with Arleen Auger in radiant voice. Her light lyric soptano probably wouldn't carry over the orchestra in a live setting, unlike Jessye Norman or Kirsten Flagstad, who premiered the work. On a CD that's no problem, and Auger is considerably more human than Janowitz for Karajan and less self-conscious than Renee Fleming. There are lots of great versions of this sublime song cycle; hers is one of the most natural and appealing. Previn takes his time compared to Ackermann or Szell in the two classic Schwarzkopf recordings for EMI, and the engineers sometimes swamp the singer, making it hard to udnerstand her words. But Auger isn't paying that much attention to the poetry anyway, just to producing gorgeous, sensitive sounds. Overall, this CD is almost as satisfying as the one with the Alpine Symphony.



Don Quixote (1990): It's refreshing when conductors pull their cello and viola soloists from the orchestra for this work rather than importing a celebrity cellist who inevitably uses the part of Don Quixote as a personal showpiece. The Vienna Phil., needless to say, is gifted with first-desk musicians who embody every ounce of Viennese style. That's certainly true here. The unanimity between soloists and orchestra is remarkable, and even though Previn makes a warm bath of the accompaniment and misses a lot of Strauss's scene painting, this Don Quixote emerges with genuine feeling, from wistful to satiric, ending in sweet melancholy. If you don't need excitment in this work, Previn's aproach is satisfying.



The coupling here is Don Juan, which starts off terrifically but lapses into Previn's familiar easy-going phrasing and lack of dramatic tension. I would rate this CD behind the Alpine Symphony and Heldenleben. There are much more dynamic readings of both pieces to be had, especially from Karajan, Szell, and Reiner.



I hope this overview wasn't an exercise in futility--Previn doesn't reveal any major triumphs or failures here, and the orchestra and sonics don't change much from year to year. As a Strauss conductor in the mid-price range, Previn is nowhere as bland as Ormandy or Sawallisch, and I prefer him to the brusque Karl Bohm. On the other hand, Haitink is excellent in Strauss, far more imaginative than Previn, and he's given excellent sound by Philips--he's a very good direct competitor if you don't demand the Vienna Phil. In terms of having the best readings all around, Karajan is sitll my favorite by quite a bit, but Telarc's set has its own virtues.







"

Nice, but ...

Music Is Everything | Colorado Springs, CO USA | 04/29/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Telarc label is a consistent winner in recording major works, with crystal clear yet natural and flowing sound. This is probably the basis for the success of these recordings, which, by any other standard, are not the best-of-the-best. Previn's interpretations here are solid without being particularly inspired, but the overall performances hold up consistently well. What bothered me throughout all four discs, however, was the sloppy playing of the Vienna Phiharmonic. Under certain conductors, they can play very cleanly, but Vienna still believes it's an orchestra of soloists, and there are far too many moments in this Strauss set that sound like a free-for-all. Should Previn have cracked the whip? Perhaps. If you don't mind Vienna's approach and want well-recorded Strauss, these discs are for you, but if you're looking for definitive interpretations and performances, you'll have to look elsewhere."