Fingal's Cave Overture

Felix Mendelssohn (Composer), Antal Dorati (Conductor), Stanislav Skrowaczewski (Conductor), London Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra), Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: London Symphony Orchestra, Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: Antal Dorati, Stanislav Skrowaczewski
• Composer: Felix Mendelssohn
• Audio CD (November 14, 1995)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Philips
• ASIN: B0000057MZ
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #329,277 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Fingal's Cave, Overture For Orchestra, Op.26 ('Hebrides')

2. Symphony No.3 In A Minor, Op.56 ('Scottish'): 1. Andante con moto- Allegro un poco agitato

3. Symphony No.3 In A Minor, Op.56 ('Scottish'): 2. Vivace non troppo

4. Symphony No.3 In A Minor, Op.56 ('Scottish'): 3. Adagio

5. Symphony No.3 In A Minor, Op.56 ('Scottish'): 4. Allegro vivacissimo- Allegro maestoso assai

6. Symphony No.4 In A Major, Op.90 ('Italian'): 1. Allegro vivace

7. Symphony No.4 In A Mojor, Op.90 ('Italian'): 2. Andante con moto

8. Symphony No.4 In A Major, Op.90 ('Italian'): 3. Con moto moderato

9. Symphony No.4 In A Major, Op.90 ('Italian'): 4. Saltarello: Presto

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Get Mercury Living Presence Before Its Dead, July 8, 2003

By 

Michael B. Richman (Portland, Maine USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Fingal's Cave Overture (Audio CD)

When I first started collecting classical CDs, I only had a few Mercury Living Presence (MLP) titles. In my quest to get the absolute best, or at least a definitive recording, of the major works of the standard repertoire, MLP discs rarely topped the critics' lists. In fact, only three MLP recordings have been earmarked as "Essential Recordings" by amazon -- Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture, Byron Janis performing Rachmaninov's 2nd & 3rd Piano Concertos, and Yehudi Menuhin performing Bartok's 2nd Violin Concerto, all three with Antal Dorati as conductor. It is also safe to say that three other titles are equally essential for their historical value alone. They are Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake by Dorati (the first recording of the complete ballet), Janis performing Liszt's Piano Concertos (the first recordings made in the Soviet Union by American technicians, musical staff and equipment), and Kubelik's Chicago Symphony performance of Pictures at an Exhibition (one of, if not the single best mono recording ever, and the one that led the New York Times critic to coin the phrase "Living Presence," from which the label named its series). But how does a CD line go from having a half-dozen must have recordings, to being this reviewer's all-time favorite classical label?

The answer: consistently magical performances, captured in brilliant golden-age stereo sound, that offer a slightly different take on your typical interpretation of the great works. While MLP titles may not offer the best standard account of a work, they always surprise you and open you up to all the possibilities that the music has to offer. For example, this performance of Mendelssohn's 3rd and 4th Symphonies by Dorati and Skrowaczewski respectively may not be the consensus first choice recording -- Karajan, Maag, or von Dohnanyi are probably the surest bets, while performances by Bernstein, Szell and Klemperer are increasingly harder to find yet equally good. But I constantly come back to this disc for a different perspective, and its vibrancy and splendor never disappoint me. Maybe that is why collectors prize these recordings, because they are a breath of fresh air in a homogenized world of listening. Of course, collectors love a challenge too, and MLP CDs are becoming increasingly hard to find. It has taken years for me to finally find all of the MLP CDs released to date, and unfortunately I don't think there will be any new releases forthcoming. So collectors, and even those who aspire to be, should pick up as many Mercury Living Presence discs as possible now, before they all die.