Search - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Royal Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra :: Mozart: Wind Concertos [Hybrid SACD]

Concertgebouw Principals in Mozart Wind Concerti in SACD

J Scott Morrison | Middlebury VT, USA | 02/11/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In this 250th anniversary of Mozart's birth, the release of recordings of his music continues in full spate. I, for one, am delighted, having recently reviewed sets of his complete piano sonatas (two of them, actually) as well as DVDs of his most popular piano concerti and the da Ponte operas. This one, featuring principals of the Royal Concertgebouw of Amsterdam accompanied by the Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra conducted by Henk Rubingh, its concertmaster, is an easy winner. Each of the performances is top-notch. As Amazon has not, as of the date of this review, listed the contents, I shall do so:



Horn Concerto No. 1 in D, K.386b (Soloist: Jacob Slagter)

Flute Concerto No. 1 in G, K.313/285c (Soloist: Emily Beynon)

Bassoon Concerto in B flat, K.191/186c (Soloist: Gustavo N??ez)

Oboe Concerto in C, K.271k/314 (Soloist: Alexei Ogrintchouk)



Some highlights: The tricky horn articulation in the rondo of the Horn Concerto and Slagter's burnished tone throughout. The hushed and dreamy performance of the Adagio of the Flute Concerto; Emily Beynon has an incredibly lovely tone throughout but it is particularly nuanced and ravishing in that slow movement. (And the muted violins and violas of the orchestra provide a satiny foundation of sound for her gorgeous solos.) The ease and musicality with which bassoonist Gustavo N??ez negotiates the work's high tessitura as well as its extremely tricky rapid notes, all in the service of an extremely musical, albeit virtuosic, performance. One's breath is taken away by oboist Alexei Ogrintchouk's entry in the first movement (Allegro aperto) of his concerto; that rapid scale up to a high C which is then held seemingly forever (and played with a living, breathing double messa di voce) is stunning. And then there is the marvelous cadenza ending the first movement.



All this is recorded in SACD with utterly lifelike and rich sound -- very clean, too for all its being recorded in a church acoustic (Waalse Kerk, Amsterdam). These are completely satisfying performances and when heard in the SACD surround sound all the more so. But for those who have not yet converted to SACD equipment, the sound is also impressive when played on a regular CD machine.



Unequivocal recommendation.



Scott Morrison"

Looking for a "reference" SACD?

Lane Hauck | San Diego, CA USA | 12/20/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"While the SACD market appears to be dwindling in the US, it is alive and well in Europe, thanks to labels like PentaTone. They not only understand how to record Classical multi-channel music (using the rear speakers only for ambience), but they also have signed incredible artists and ensembles as on this disc. This Mozart Wind Concertos disc is beyond demonstration class. Having wind concerti for different wind instruments is a great programming idea, but it's the sound and quality of the playing on this disc that is simply mind-boggling. It is my "play it for the skeptics" SACD demo disc. If you have any doubts about the SACD format, you owe it to yourself to hear this disc on a good (or even "medium", like mine) SACD system."

Good performance, mediocre recording

E. Smith | USA | 09/17/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I bought this because it is an SACD DSD recording. Unfortunately I didn't notice that it is a remastering. This performance is very good however the recording quality is mediocre at best. Would you like to hear what great SACD recording quality sounds like? Listen to Renee Fleming's Handel SACD. I know people complain about her diction on this recording, but the recording quality itself is absolutely glorious. Unfortunately I don't see the Handel SACD for sale on Amazon any longer."