Customer Reviews

Flood / Variations

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At last - late Stravinsky played musically by someone who has lived with this style and assimilated it to its very bones! The Requiem Canticles recieve a stunning performance, finely etched and honed, every detail of its magical sound world precisely observed. The bell effects in the Epilogue are breathtaking - you'd rarely get such unanimity of attack and dynamic perfection in a live performance. Strong solo performances too. The recording on the Stravinsky edition (conducted Craft) was always one of the most disappointing with rough choral intonation and a cactus-y recording, so this is doubly welcome.

The revelation on this CD is the recording of 'The Flood', so often regarded as the Cinderella of Stravinsky's dramatic works. Here this strange hybrid casts a spell, the pictorial moments are beautifully etched. The narration is unobtrusive, if a little 'BBC' and redolent of the schoolroom in quality - the Stravinsky recording (which this undoubtedly supercedes)has a starry line up including Laurence Harvey and Elsa Lanchester which is (understandably) superior. Superlative performances of the Variations - and of 'Abraham and Isaac' - a piece I find totally resistable in every way, you may differ. The Wuorinen piece is interesting and well worth hearing, though any composer must suffer in comparison to the trenchancy and individuality of the best of these late works. Buy, and if you are new to these pieces, start with the 'Requiem Canticles'.

My title ought really to have trumpeted what a great job Knussen has done in preparing and recording this music. As a composer himself, Knussen has an unusually acute affinity for this literature, which he takes great pains to bring off accurately.

The Flood is more than merely accurate, though; it is here realized as a flowing dramatic narrative. James Wood deserves great credit for expertly preparing the New London Chamber Choir both in this, and in the Requiem Canticles.

The notion of having the voice of God represented by more than one voice singing (and not in unison), inspired related treatment in Wuorinen's Genesis.

The crowning lament in DGG's having dropped this disc, is the Wuorinen Reliquary, built from sketches which Stravinsky left at his death (and what a testimony to an active musical mind, that he was sketching fresh works at such an advanced age). Wuorinen's piece is a fine achievement, a setting for these sketches, the setting itself skilfully woven, largely out of gestures from other serial Stravinsky works.

Write to DGG; tell them they made an artistic mistake in deleting this item from their catalogue.

Despite Stravinsky's reputation as a musical giant of the last century, his later serial compositions often don't get the attention they deserve. So this CD is much appreciated. Without going into the virtues of the CD, which I see other reviewers have amply done, I want to make a different point: It's time we had a new recording of Stravinsky's Threni. Many people say that S's Requiem Canticles is his most successful 12-tone composition. I can't agree. Requiem Can. is too much like a series of independent pieces and not enough like a unified composition. Threni, I want to suggest, is his most successful 12-tone piece. Highly unified, the first chord ultimately ushers in the last. It is a sustained meditation highly focused on a single mood space. Requiem Can. is too much like a compilation of pieces which happen to have some serial links to one another.

My point -- my plea -- is this: If there are any conductors out there listening, please consider recording a new performance of Threni. It's long overdue and would be much appreciated.

CDs don't get much better than this. Knussen's performances are superb. Now we finally have great recordings of the 'late-Stravinsky' -- not to mention the first recording of a Wuorinen masterpiece. Not to be missed.

the insensativity polygram has displayed in the 'oh so causual' dropping of this; possibly the most needed and best modern collection we have of late starvinsky, borders on crinimal recklesness.
sadly, it used to be EMI that we thought of when it came to tactics like this but polygram is quick on the way to catching up in the reputation of wielding the deletion axe.
too, late straivnsky needs all the friends he can get.
every collection in the world of course had the firebird and one can understand igor's late hatred of it.
when stravinsky went 'serial' protestes of 'sell out' were heard everywhere.
but stravinsky was too much the artist to merely be a follower. his exploration into serial music was much like his exploration into post romanticism; he filtered it through his own artisitc sensabilities.
the huxley memeorial may well be the best late stravinsky and here it is beautiflly played.
knussen obviousely relishes the music and all here give their best.
in a field of very crowded beethoven cycles and mozart concertos we desperately need a great recording like this of stravinsky's most ignored period.
thank you polygram accontants for your depth and understanding regarding art.
god, i hate accountants.

I hadn't heard the requiem canticles since the 1970's on an old recording, so this is quite a treat. Similar things could be said for the other performances. While another equally outstanding performance of the Variations is currently available by Michael Tilson Thomas, this performance is incredible. Even the Wuorinen piece is a delight-it really does sound like late Stravinsky and works well in its own right. All in all, I'm glad I gave in to a whim and purchased this CD.