Customer Reviews

Bernstein: Chichester Psalms / On the Waterfront Suite / On the Town

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Armchair critics (just like armchair generals) are dime a dozen. The previous reviewers may be knowledgeable, but they miss the point.
This recording has already earned quite a bit of international recognition, not to mention
"Recording of the Month" of Gramophone Magazine, the most prestigious publication in classical music.
Marin Alsop, the New York born American conductor, just recently catapulted into word fame from "modest" beginnings(Colorado
Symphony) into succeeding Sir Simon Rattle to command the Bournemouth Symphony,
one of England's finest orchestras.Big step, isn't it? She is known for her imaginative programming, great personality, communicative skills and musicianship. A great proponent of modern, specially American works, she is great demand all over the world now. And she is still a relatively young woman.
I myself have luckily seen her in 2002 at a concert where she brought down the house with a terrific performance of the Barber Violin Concerto with Salerno-Sonnenberg as soloist.
The music on this disc has been adequately described by other reviewers.
The centerpiece : "Chichester Psalms" has both chorus, orchestra and soloists in top form. The third psalm with its tender evocation of peace (somewhat like the end of
the Faure Requiem) is especially inspired and evocative.
The flanking pieces "On the Waterfront" and "On the Town" are both excellent.
In the latter Ms. Alsop really manages the orchestra to swing like a jazzband and in the last movement she pulls out all the stops.
This is not what you might call "great" music,(definitely derivative of Gershwin and others) but our conductor definitely does justice to her teacher and mentor the unforgettable Lenny. And what a nice way to repay him for all the gifts she received and built a great career upon.
Not to sneer upon this disc. Specially for the price , it is a giveaway. Highly enjoyable, entertaining and recommendable. Great sound!

"Chicester Psalms" has long been one of my favorite contemporary choral works, possessing a passion and pathos typical of Bernstein works but without the customary weight or cynicism; more approachable, somehow. This recording of "Chicester" is warm, intimate, and-- unlike almost every recording of it I've encountered-- in tune! While I find the tempi a touch speedy to my liking, particularly the middle section of the second movement, the primary theme of the second movement moved me to an astonishing degree--absolutely gorgeous. My only real "criticism" of the recording is, perhaps, an insufficient sense of "blending" in the final mix (microphone placement emphasizing one or two voices, etc). Beyond that, and especially for the price!, this little gem is worth having in the library.

I agree with Scott Morrison's review except for the sentence where he says that Marin Alsop is wildly and justly acclaimed -- does he remember that the vast majority of the Baltimore Sym. musicians voted against her appointment? Alsop is a hit-and-miss conductor whose instincts pull her toward the middle of the road. Her style is indistinguishable from the likes of Paavo Jarvi, Yoel Levi, Robert Spano, and other good conductors of her generation. Naxos has given her the lion's share of its Bernstein and Barber series, with mixed results.

The suite from "On the Waterfront" begins poorly, sounding limp and lacking tension. But Alsop wakes up for the rambunctious middle section. If only she felt the pathos of this music and could communicate it. There should be heartbreak in the flute's poignant solo melody, but not here. 'On the Town' has three delightful dance interludes that later were extracted from the musical. They need to be fizzy and exuberant. Alsop knows that and tries her best, delivering a reading that at least isn't soggy, albeit far from the composer's infinite brio.

The serious work here is Bernstein's tribute to Stravinsky's 'Symphony of Psalms.' He called his version 'Chichester Psalms,' and it's in fervent Hebrew as opposed to Stravinsky's chilly Latin. The first movement is brash and unsettling as devotional music -- I suppose Bernstein wanted to give us David's joy in the Lord above all. The boy soprano in the second movement (here only adequate) seems out of scale with the full orchestra and chorus surroudning him, but Bernstein's wispy melody for him is touching and dignified. The third movement carries the fullest expressive weight -- as in Stravinsky's masterpiece -- and here Bernstein falls back on his talent for a long string line built on anguish and mystery (as first evidenced in his 'Jeremiah' Symphony No. 1), which later morphs into a soothing choral benediction. Nothing in this score remotely approaches the Symphony of Psalms, but Alsop makes a good case for Bernstein's homage and enjoys exceptinal choral singing.

In all, a mixed bag but not a miss. I enjoyed the central work very much and parts of th rest.

This CD containing music of Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990)--Symphonic Suite from 'On the Waterfront,' Chichester Psalms, and Three Dance Episodes from 'On the Town'--has several strikes against it. First, Bernstein himself recorded all these pieces, some of them more than once, and they are all still in print. Those are definitive performances with élan and sparkle that these performances don't have. Second, this disc only contains about 49 minutes of music, a shameful waste of CD space. Naxos knew the disc was short; generally they put the timing of a CD on the back cover in big print but this time the timing is nowhere to be seen, outside or even inside the booklet. Fie! And, finally, even Naxos's budget price can almost be met by the re-issues of Bernstein's own performances.

The question arises then, why buy this? Well, I suppose if you want this particular combination of pieces you might buy it. They do not appear in this specific combination anywhere else as far as I know. If you want an English chorus (and boy treble) this one would do. Young Thomas Kelly sings sensitively in the Twenty-third Psalm (the second of the three psalms set by Bernstein).

Even though the Bournemouth Symphony's wildly (and justly) acclaimed new conductor, Marin Alsop, was a protégé of Bernstein's, the rhythmic snap and idiomatic playing expected in these quintessentially American pieces just isn't there. The trumpet solo in 'Lonely Town,' the second of the 'On the Town' pieces, is played beautifully by the orchestra's unnamed principal trumpet. And the gritty world of 'On the Waterfront' is conveyed well, if a bit monochromatically.

It's not that these performances are bad, it's just that Bernstein is much better.

TT=48:34

I bought this CD to hear the chorus and the soloists. All you can hear is the orchestra. I had it up REALLY LOUD and I could barely hear the singers at all. I threw it away.