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The
Symphonie Fantastique is one of those pieces that become a staple in every orchestra's repertoire. Musicians love to play it and audiences love to hear it. The way in which the piece shifts between quiet yearning and wild abandon never fails to be exciting--in short, it's really hard to ruin the audience's enjoyment of this piece. That said, this is a relatively enjoyable performance. The conductor certainly knows where to make things happen and the playing is mostly good. This group, the Montpellier Philharmonic Orchestra (which looks pretty young), doesn't always play together, but they do play with spirit. The only things one may find unfortunate are some balance problems. First, this performance seems to follow a trend some conductors have established of boosting the violins way up in the mix while practically silencing the woodwinds. Second, it's a shame that now even French orchestras have trumpet sections that are intent on obliterating the rest of the group. The accompanying song cycle,
Les Nuits d'été, is performed quite well. Ms. Pollet sings with a lot of soul, and the orchestra accompanies her very sensitively. The overall sound is a little rough and tinny, but just a little. The visual presentation is somewhat bizarre; from a frightening extreme close-up at the beginning to a number of questionable choices about where to point the camera. Somehow, however, it makes the whole thing kind of interesting to watch.
--Seth Krimsky
Product Description
Hector Berlioz's revolutionary symphonic poem is performed by the outstanding Montpellier Philharmonic Orchestra. Director Georges Bessonnet presents Berlioz's masterwork "Symphonie Fantastique," conducted by Cyril Diederich. Also included is "Nuits d'Ete" ("Summer Nights") with soloist Francoise Pollet.
