Search - Igor Stravinsky, Riccardo Chailly, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra :: Stravinsky: Petrushka, Petrouchka; Le Sacre du printemps, The Rite of Spring; L'Oiseau de feu, The Firebird - suite (1945); Jeu de cartes; Apollon musagete

Ooooo-eeee!

bonerfly | NY | 06/21/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The first thing that you can't help but notice is the SPECTACULAR sound. You better have some Big Strong Woofers.



Whether on an audiophile or a small bookshelf system, this will be the Finest sounding CD in your collection.



I agree this is not the most savage Rite Of Spring ever recorded (Dorati in the 50s and Ancerl), But it is by far the most "musical".

Chailly and The Cleveland Orchestra were at the height of their power when this was recorded in 1985.



Chailly is known for his attention to detail and coaxing beautiful instrumental tone from his players.

Here he exceeds all before him in The Rite Of Spring which has never been known for

it's "beauty".



He takes it at an only SLIGHTLY slower tempi than most and brings out, with great clarity, all the "beautiful" inner detail missing from most performances.

You can hear everything within the score that has been "muddied" in most other recordings.



Don't get me wrong, This is still a VERY volatile, exciting and thrilling performance and the only thing softening the "savagery" is the gorgeous instrumental tone and the extreme clarity of the recorded sound.



This critique also applies to the great Concertgebouw which is in top form in the other ballets on this CD. And Jeu des Carte may be the finest ever committed to Disc.



To me, the most important combination of Performance, conducting and sound quality has to make this one of the best Stravinsky CD available.



HIGHLY RECOMMENDED."

I Didn't See God

MacGuffin | New York City | 09/16/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Chailly's Rite of Spring is very well played and the sound is great. However, it lacks the savagery I like to hear in this piece and which I feel is essential to its appreciation. If you must own a 1947 "revised" with Cleveland, try Boulez' earlier reading (Sony) which, I feel, ranks among the finest, otherwise I wholeheartedly recommend Ancerl/Czech Philharmonic (Supraphon) over any other (the sound is a tad thin, otherwise this one has it ALL). I'd have preferred the inclusion of an RCO performance of this piece...ah, well.

The other performances are sublime, although I don't own another recording of Jeu de cartes and so am unable to offer an educated comparison. For that matter, this was my first hearing of the 1945 revision of The Firebird orchestral suite, although I own several wonderful recordings of the entire ballet (which I prefer). I doubt that this matters much, though--RCO/Chailly, for my money, can do no wrong, particularly in 20th-century repertoire. All in all, this set is highly recommended, although the Rite isn't quite to my liking--I'd rate it "very fine" rather than "great," and hasten to add that this is a personal call.

A nice alternative to this Apollon musagete is a budget release on LaserLight (believe it or not!), performed by Salzburg's Camerata Academica under Sandor Vegh's baton, and although the sound isn't nearly as good, it's well worth purchasing.

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