Search - Johann II [Junior] Strauss, Carl Maria von Weber, Josef Strauss :: Vienna

Beautiful CD

Sandy | Bay Village, OH | 09/07/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you like traditional, classical waltzes this is the CD for you. Also, very affordable."

Luscious sounds, marvelous execution, but Reiner is pretty c

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 01/05/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This is the most restrained Strauss collection I've ever run across, which should spell death for music meant to make the dancers giddy. Reiner refuses to go near giddy. His Blue Danube and Emperor waltzes in particularl beg to break out of the traces but never do. What saves them is, first, the utterly clear, luscious sound of the recording, one of the best from RCA Living Stereo, and second, the meticulous inner detail that Reiner finds in each work.



This generous CD (77 min.) combines two recording sessions from 1957 and 1960. Besides Josef and Johann Strauss, we get a waltz suite from Der Rosenkavalier and Weber's Invitation to the Dance, both from the earlier session. The Weber never reaches escape velocity, unfortunately, despite the amazingly dainty articulation of the Chicago Sym. winds. The Rosenkavalier assemblage--arranged by Reiner himself--is not equal to the composer's own, and again Reiner favors precision over energy.



Just in case he was holding back for some unknown reason (a rather tough worm in his little inside?), one can check the four Johann Strauss waltzes recorded in 1960. No, they are just as underpowered but also just as stylish, refined, and poised as the first set. All this gorgeous politeness gets tiring when the corset is wound so tight, but if you can find fulfillment in Strauss without fire, this is a five-star recording."