Search - Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky, Stefan Sanderling, National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland :: Tchaikovsky: Suites for Orchestra Nos. 3 & 4

Great Tchaikovsky music

Laurentiu Cristofor | 06/12/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I first listened to Tchaikovsky's orchestral suites on a set of Melodiya LPs a couple of decades ago. A decade later, those recordings were rereleased on a CD set, but it was pricey, I hesitated, and then I never saw it again in stores - that's how these things usually happen. But a few years after that I found this Naxos release. And today I also noticed a Philips set: Tchaikovsky: Complete Suites for Orchestra. Nice to see several recordings available for this beautiful music.



The thematic variety and richness of these compositions is something that needs to be heard and it's great that Amazon includes samples for all the tracks. The music is usually instantly recognizable as Tchaikovsky's (3rd suite - scherzo), but sometimes the beginning of some tracks can give you trouble to identify the composer (4th suite - gigue). There are also beautiful solo parts here, like the solo violin in the middle of the 3rd suite - Tema con variazioni. Unless Tchaikovsky's music generally leaves you cold, these pieces are necessary additions to your library.



On the technical side, the sound engineering of this Naxos recording is great and the playing of the NSOI is very warm and well suited to the material. This is a good place to start exploring these unique compositions."