Search - Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky, Charles Dutoit, Montréal Symphony Orchestra :: Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake, Op.20

Dutoit has done it again!

sjr9@gateway.net | Wichita, Kansas | 09/30/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It seems that no matter what work or composer Charles Dutoit conducts, the result always yields a solid performance by the Montreal Symphony Orchestra. This Swan Lake, in particular, is an audiophile's delight: superb orchestral hall acoustics, and wonderful playing by the orchestra that is both thoughtful and soulful. You just might find a tear coming to your eye as the final notes bring down the curtain of this extraordinary performance of what is, arguably, the world's most famous ballet."

A vivid realization of all of the beauties in Tchai's score.

JPH | Crawley | 09/03/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a performance best appreciated by people who are primarily fans of Tchaikovsky's symphonic output. Ballet aficionados and budding dancers are better served by one of the rival versions.It is not that Dutoit's intepretation lacks any genuine feeling for dance --- indeed he and the Montreal orchestra offer dazzling accounts of the big dance numbers. However, compared to Previn's LSO version, for example, which, from the first bar to the last positively sways with the spirit of dance, Dutoit seems to have invisibly divided his intepretation into a chain-series of slow "interludes" and fast dance numbers. Using broad tempi to play up the atmospheric beauty of the former and brisk ones for the latter, many interesting musical contrasts are achieved. (Just listen to the lead-ups to the Goblet Dance.) You could say that while eminently danceable versions like Previn's and Ozawa's operate in one smooth gear throughout, you can hear Dutoit constantly changing gears! Hence, Dutoit's Swan Lake really plays like one of Tchaikovsky's orchestral tone poems, more so than being a thoroughly balletic reading. Dramatically and musically it remains just as effective. However, I can imagine the frustrations felt by budding dancers trying to practice to this recording. It is possible to become schizo-ic, attempting to traverse Dutoit's wide range of tempi.A beautifully atmospheric performance of Tchaikovsky's masterpiece nonetheless, and certainly the recording with the best sound. A Swan Lake for arm-chair listeners!"

A superb set

jhorro | VA | 07/11/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Dutoit has a good feeling for ballet and the Montreal orchestra give sparkle and color to this fine music. The recording is up to the high standard Decca gave Montreal. The score remains virtually complete, unlike most other versions of Swan Lake. It is amazing how often this work has been recorded, both as a "suite" and as a whole, and yet it sounds so new and fresh in Dutoit's hands - a great compliment."