Search - Mussorgsky, Shostakovich, Stokowski :: Pictures at an Exhibition / Symphony 5

High quality Stoki

Larry VanDeSande | Mason, Michigan United States | 02/07/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I had this arrangement when it was available on Decca/London. I did not enjoy his Shostakovich Symphony No. 5 as much here as the version Stoki produced on Everest but many others did. A lot of critics called this version more impassioned and with deeper attachment that the seemingly more laid back Everest production.



This is a concert reading of Stoki's rewrite of "Pictures At An Exhibition" which excludes a number of the pictures and takes a more Russian view of the score than Ravel's more international approach. By Russian I mean Stoki uses more low strings and woodwinds to make paint the portraits.



All told, this is the old wizard in concert doing a pair of cornerstones of Russian music. If you've never heard this one it will give you an idea why any Stokowski performance can be such a revelation."