Kabalevsky: Colas Breugnon; The Comedians; Romeo and Juliet

Dmitry Kabalevsky (Composer), Vasil Jelvakov (Conductor), Moscow State Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: Moscow State Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: Vasil Jelvakov
• Composer: Dmitry Kabalevsky
• Audio CD (September 17, 1996)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Naxos
• ASIN: B00000148E
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #212,950 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Kabalevsky 101, May 15, 2003

By 

Joshua Grasso (Oxford, OH USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Kabalevsky: Colas Breugnon; The Comedians; Romeo and Juliet (Audio CD)

I stumbled on this CD by accident recently, and was more than surprised--I was astonished. Whenever I discover a piece by Kabalevsky (violin concerto, cello concertos), I always wonder why he's thought of as so second-rate. Certainly not because of the works on this disc! Each piece is extremely colorful, melodic, and inventive, particularly the evergreen Comedians Suite, which contains one of the "wittiest" pieces ever written, the Galop. The suite as a whole sounds like film music for the zaniest romp ever filmed, though no picture could adequately convey Kabalevsky's incredible score.

The suite for Romeo and Juliet is a different matter. Naturally, it's hard to approach a suite to "Romeo and Juliet" without thinking of Prokofiev's famous ballet. However, even with that comparison looming in the background, Kabalevsky's work stands on its own. Though you don't find a "balcony scene" or a "death of Tybalt," the music is memorable, exciting, and always dramatic. In fact, it's nice to see the drama through another composer's eyes for a change.

Not to shortchange the suite from the opera Colas Bruegnon (sp?), either; this is also superb music, again, more dramatic than the Comedians suite, but a nice counterpart to Romeo and Juliet. I'm not sure why these suites have been consigned to the dustbin of Soviet music, but I'm glad to find them, especially in such an excellent performance. Really, what would classical music lovers do without Naxos? Their series of Prokofiev, Shostakovich, Khachaturian, and Kabalevksy has given me a complete education in Soviet music. This disc is one class--er, disc--that you don't want to skip.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent CD!, August 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Kabalevsky: Colas Breugnon; The Comedians; Romeo and Juliet (Audio CD)

This CD has some great music on it. Kabalevsky's music needs "a light touch" and this CD contains that. The Comedians is great, and Colas Breugnon, which I had never heard before, was interesting. This CD is definatly recomended!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun music; good recording, December 3, 2004

By 

cwbflute (Carmel, IN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kabalevsky: Colas Breugnon; The Comedians; Romeo and Juliet (Audio CD)

I was introduced to Kabalevsky in my youth orchestra when we performed the Overture to Colas Breugnon. The overture is incredibly fast-paced, exciting, and fun to play, so I went on a search for more Kabalevsky music. I was disappointed to find that he is, in my opinion, an under-rated composer. It isn't easy to find very many recordings of his works.

I stumbled across this CD featuring the Moscow Symphony, which features some great pieces. "The Comedians" has the energetic quality and the occasional bizarre chord progression that makes the Colas Breugnon suite (also on this recording) so much fun. And it is always interesting to hear yet another musical interpretation of "Romeo and Juliet."

I had never heard a recording by the Moscow Symphony, and I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of that group. The orchestra does a good job with some incredibly difficult music. I highly recommend this recording to both long-time Kabalevsky fans and new admirers.