Search - Sergey Prokofiev, Benjamin Britten, Gennady Rozhdestvensky :: Prokofiev: Symphony No.5 / Britten: Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra

One of the great performaces of Prokofiev's fifth

L. Johan Modée | Earth | 04/11/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This recording features Gennady Rozhdestvensky and Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra on Cold War tour in the West: the performace of Prokofiev's fifth symphony was caught on tape during a concert in Royal Albert Hall, London, 1971. This BBC Legends CD, featuring that performance, is a most welcome release, because what we have here is nothing but one of the greatest performances of Prokofiev's fifth on record. Rozhdestvensky's masterly understanding of this work is second to none, and the Leningrad Philharmonic plays marvellously. Together with Szell (SONY) and Tennstedt (Hännsler), I take this recording to be one of the essential recordings of this work. Rozhdestvensky emphasizes, correctly, the towering, powerful structure of the symphony, while he also highlights its lyrical qualities. His attention to significant details in this complex score is just amazing.



The recording was made in stereo - vintage analogue and during live performances, but nonetheless with a great deal of detail and presence.



As fill-ups, we get earlier performances with Rozhdestvensky and the Leningraders - Britten's "Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra" and Prokofiev's "Death of Tybalt" from Romeo & Juliet. These pieces were recorded at Usher Hall, Edinburgh, in 1960, and in mono. Especially the Britten guide is of interest, even if it doesn't challenge the composer's own interpretation (Decca).



Strongly recommended, especially for the great Prokofiev fifth!

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A Perfect Prokofiev Fifth Symphony

Andre Gauthier | 10/07/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I recently reviewed a less than satisfying version of the Prokofiev Fifth with James Levine as it was sadly lacking in a balanced harmonic language and the sardonic moments required to give this symphony its backbone. I blamed a lot on the acoustic. Well, this recording with Genady Rozhdestvensky/Leningrad PO on BBC Legends is recorded in 1971 in, of all places, a live Proms Concert at Royal Albert Hall. It comes complete with its 4 second acoustic. The performance is superb and the conservative recording method of the BBC captures the stereo spread of the band along with all of the Albert Hall's marvelous reverberation. I know of no other recording done in quite this way.



Rozhdestvensky is able to peer deeply into the musical language of Prokofiev. Every movement is given a thorough scrubbing with a Russian cleaning brush. In other words, the thick mess that so many have made of this wonderfully varied work has been washed away so that the symphony sounds fresh as a daisy. What magic this conductor pulls out of the Leningrad P.O. Their particular Russian sound is ideal for the music and the conductor's sense of pace is so excellent that I was held captive from start to finish although I had meant only to sample a bit of it on the first hearing. While I still find the Mitropoulos/Vienna a unique experience, this approach to the Prokofiev Fifth is the genuine article and may well be the best available on CD. It is surely a must for a lover of the Fifth. Britten's "Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra" and the fastest "Death of Tybalt" from Prokofiev's ballet "Romeo and Juliet" I've ever heard both come from a live performance in Scotland in 1960, rounding out the CD. While not as majestic as the Symphony, the Britten is respectable; the ballet encore blisters the paint off the walls with the fast bowing of the orchestral strings. Wow!



I doubt this will be around for a long time on the BBC label and therefore I'd rather have it now than have to search for it later. The only caveat is some tape stretching - pitch problems at the very end of the symphony. I think that could easily have been fixed with some good attention. It is fun to hear a roar of applause go up at the end of both Prokofiev pieces. I'm sure that the people standing in the Proms were simply knocked over by the Symphony's performance.

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