Customer Reviews

Bizet. Symphony in C Major. Carmen suites Nos. 1 & 2

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Here is a nice little collection of Georges Bizet's "greatest hits", if you will, performed by the LSO (Ljubljana Symphony Orchestra)*** PLEASE SEE THE FULL TRACK LIST BELOW*** Happily, the Symphony in C-major (No. 1) is here in its entirety, conducted by Anton Nanut. Bizet composed this astounding work at the age of 17, (some music historians believe that it was written as a student project). The performance is lively, what I would call an "intelligent" interpretation: a brilliant fanfare in the first movement; a sedate and stately second with magnificent oboe playing and rushing strings; a romping, well-paced third that starts like a full-gallop ride through the forest, then into a pastoral mood giving perhaps a view of a verdant farming valley; finally, the 4th movement - a celebration, performed acrobatically and flawlessly by the LSO. I must mention here that the many recordings we have from the LSO have been keepers; we have never been disappointed with their performances. Lastly:

The eleven Carmen excerpts conducted by Marko Munih are wonderful! The Aragonaise performance is bewitching, with sly, smooth oboe work contrasted correctly with the bursts of strings, flutes and tambourines (have heard some recordings where this magical piece has been hashed into something akin to background music for a circus act, unfortunately). The Sequidilla is done with light-hearted glee, horns well balanced (not blaring!) against the oboes. Our favorite here is the seductive delivery of the Habanera, tapped out like the footsteps of a gitana dancer.

About the recording quality: this is the 1989 Canadian release from Pair Records (licensee of Special Music Company). The sound is quite good, no extraneous noise (no hissing, no wavering in volume). The format is not specified, but is most likely an analog-to-digital (ADD) remastering. Plays well even on older stereos without diddling with the equalizer, and it sounds just fine on the new systems that have built-in clean+enhance chip technology, like the Bose units.

*** HERE ARE THE TRACK LISTS ***

SYMPHONY IN C MAJOR ("NO. 1"), conductor - Anton Nanut

1. Allegro Vivo

2. Adagio

3. Scherzo (Allegro Vivace) And Trio

4. Allegro Vivace

CARMEN SUITE FOR ORCHESTRA NO. 1, conductor - Marko Munih

5. Les Toreadors

6. Prelude: Andante Moderato

7. Les Dragon D'Alcala

8. Intermezzo

9. Aragonaise

10. Seguidilla

CARMEN SUITE FOR ORCHESTRA NO. 2, conductor - Marko Munih

11. Sextet And Choir

12. Habanera

13. Couplet

14. Children's Chorus

15. Gypsy Song

......................ENJOY!