Customer Reviews

A Little Night Music (1973 Original Broadway Cast)

5 star:		(38)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Night Music has been my favorite musical since I first heard it on LP, then stood in the back of the theatre for 10 consecutive performances of this cast. This show exemplifies the best of the Broadway idiom for me and, like the previous reviewer, it made me a devotee of Sondheim for ever and ever, amen. Dated? Excuuuuse me! Len Cariou is so perfect as Frederik -- his was the only version of the character that makes him seem real -- fallible, virile, rueful and ultimately a perfect match for Desiree. And speaking of Desiree, Glynnis Johns played her with elegance and panache. If her performance of the music was more sprechstimme than song, so be it -- Sondheim wrote the music for her style and it works beautifully. The score and lyrics -- well what can one say? Fiendishly clever words and music that soars, dances and subtly shifts its mood to suite the events of the endless summer night. The great songs follow one after the other -- from the marvellous interplay of "Soon/Later/Now" to "Ordinary Lives" to "Liasons," "The Miller's Son," and, yes, "Send in the Clowns." This tune has been so bastardized by crooners and lounge lizards, it's become a cliche. But, just listen once to Ms. Johns' rendition and it becomes fresh and new once again. I realize and remember that this is not a song of sorrow; but of frustration and anger at a universe that would let two people who love each other get so far apart. I could go on and on -- but don't listen to me. Get this CD and listen to it. THen listen to it again. You'll be hooked, I guarantee.

This is Sondheim at his best. Beautiful music pared with complex, witty word play:

Now, as the sweet imbecilities
Tumble so lavishly
Onto her lap,
Now, there are two possibilities:
A, I could ravish her,
B, I could nap.
.
.
.
Perhaps I could read.
In view of her penchant
For something romantic,
De Sade is to trenchant
And Dickens too frantic,
And Stendhal would ruin
The plan of attack,
As there isn't much blue in "The Red and the Black."
De Maupassant's candour
Would cause her dismay,
The Brontes are grander
But not very gay,
Her taste is much blander,
I'm sorry to say,
But is Hans Christian Ander-
Sen ever risque?

Once again Sondheim shows us why, though not as commercially a success as Lloyd Webber, his legacy will endure long after Webber's name is forgotten. To Kay: get beyond the music. You call Sondheim overrated and Webber a musical genius - you're obviously not listening to the whole. Webber's written some pretty music but musical theater is so much more than just pretty music.

Tracks to savor:

Now/Soon/Later
You Must Meet My Wife
Liasons (Hermoinie Gingold is fabulous!)
A Weekend In The Country
In Praise of Women

If you love musical theater, this is a must for your collection.

Stephen Sondheim managed a theatrical hat-trick in the early 1970s, writing the scores to three landmark musicals-- "Company", "Follies" and "A Little Night Music". ALNM was a financial success and an artistic smash-- one of the most perfect marriages of gorgeous score, intelligent and witty book, and superb cast. The original cast album brought legendary producer Goddard Lieberson out of retirement, and the whole piece is like an aural slice of theatre on your CD player. The remastering not only cleans up the (already amazingly clean) sound, but slows down two songs to their original keys ("The Glamorous Life" and "Remember?") and restores one deleted cut ("Night Waltz II").

The actors' performance on this recording is nothing short of ideal. Len Cariou and Glynis Johns lead a remarkable cast through the demanding score. The title refers ironically to Mozart's "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik"-- but musically the score is closer to Ravel's "Valses nobles et sentimentales", with sumptuous melodies and piquant twentieth-century harmonies (Sondheim studied with Milton Babbitt, one of the most avant-garde modern composers of his time). "The Miller's Son" is a masterpiece-- an awe-inspiring song in praise of "Bring on Mr. Right, but in the meantime, bring on Mr. Right-Now!", performed in breathtaking fashion by a fantastic singer (D. Jamin Bartlett).

A fantastic CD. Get it!!

Has there ever been a greater nonpareil in the American musical theater--or the theater, period--than Stephen Sondheim? Sondheim--protege of Oscar Hammerstein and student of ultra-modern composers such as Milton Babbitt--has spent the last 40 years crafting perfectly integrated, highly personal music comedy-dramas that are called "musicals" only for want of a better classification. The best of his songs are self-contained music dramas, combining bittersweet harmonies and devilishly clever lyrics that suggest a modern-day collaboration between Maurice Ravel and W.S. Gilbert. "A Little Night Music," Sondheim's musical based on Ingmar Bergman's "Smiles of a Summer Night," is by any standard one of his finest, and in many ways his most moving. A jaded, cynical yet ultimately optimistic view of love and lust among a group of upper-class, fin-de-siecle Swedes, "A Little Night Music" never fails to ravish us with its breathtakingly crafted, funny-sad songs. There are so many masterpieces in this score that it's hard to single out any--"You Must Meet My Wife," "Liaisons," "Every Day a Little Death," "The Miller's Son," and of course the song from the score that everyone knows, "Send in the Clowns." While "A Little Night Music" really should be seen on the stage to get its full impact--the masterful revival at the Kennedy Center in the summer of 2002 is a case in point--the original cast album from 1973 still serves up the bulk of the pleasures from this wonderful show. Len Cariou, Glynis Johns, Hermione Gingold and a superb cast of singing actors bring the show to glorious life on disc.

Though John Owen Edwards' chamber music version for Jay Records is more complete, and the Original London Cast recording is slightly more jaded, this luminous remastering has stood the test of time and then some. Veteran producer Goddard Lieberson is undoubtedly a factor; the other is the incomparable original cast and the score itself, one of its composer/lyricist's most ravishing achievements. Glynis Johns, despite considerable competition, still stands supreme as Desiree Armfeldt, with a rendition of The Great Big Hit Song that can only be described as definitive. Len Cariou's Fredrik is so well-sung one can only regret that Sweeney Todd took such a bite out of his instrument, and the late, great Hermione Gingold is, as ever, in a class by herself. But really, all the performances are of conservatory level, and merely the wonderful sweep of "A Weekend in the Country," or the newly re-instated "Night Waltz II" give ample example of the melodious, utterly sophisticated charm of this experiment in three-quarter time. A miniature masterpiece of the form and the format.

This is probably Sondheim's most accessible score (Into the Woods and A Funny Thing.... are also very accessible). However, that doesn't negate his achievement with this musical at all.

The score is a wonderfully witty piece, following the foibles of the rich upper class in love. It is based on the Ingrid Bergman romantic comedy 'Smiles of a Summer Night' and gets it's title from a Mozart piece. The story line: Frederick (a smashing Len Cariou) is married to Anne (Victoria Mallory), an eighteen year old. Meanwhile his son, Henrick (a somber Mark Lamber) is trying to flirt with the maid (D. Jarmin Bartlett). Desiree Armfeldt (a glowing Glynis Johns) is the raison d'etre for these characters. Love and mistakes follow, but in the end, all is right.

As for the best songs, many stand out. 'Every Day A Little Death' is a wonderful song, which serves as a transition from the exposition to the story. 'You Must Meet My Wife' is hilarious and delightful, with Cariou and Johns a wonderful pair. And then, there is 'Send in the Clowns'. This is the icing on the cake, folks. Melodic and moving, Johns' Armfeldt sings this song as a tribute to Frederick, and the 'clowns'. The reprise, with Frederick and Desiree, is very touching.

If you're new to Sondheim, this is the first CD you should get (not his best, Sweeney Todd is). If you're remembering, just think of John's lilting vocals during 'Clowns'.

This is not quite my favorite Stephen Sondheim score ("Sweeney Todd" is), but it is, I think, Stephen Sondheim's most nearly perfect score and his most approachable score for reasonably urbane listeners. (I must confess I've not heard the remastered version and, for that matter, I'm a bit puzzled that it exists at all, because the original digital disc represented for me one of the very best analog-to-digital transfers I'd ever encountered. Well, maybe this improves upon it, but I'm hanging on to my copy of the original just in case.) I recommend "A Little Night Music" to anyone who thinks he can appreciate witty, sophisticated, masterful song writing, whether he loves, hates, or is indifferent to theatre music.

(I also recommend to the musicians among us "Pentatonic Scales for the Jazz Rock Keyboardist" by Jeff Burns, a method book.)

I had the extreme good fortune to see this cast in New York early in the original run of the show. I rushed out the next day and purchased this recording (on vinyl back then). It's been my absolute favorite Broadway album ever since. The CD is remastered and improves on what was already a very fine recording.

There are other Sondheim shows that are more intellectual (Sunday in the Park, Assasins), challenging (Pacific Overtures), moving (Passion), or funny (Funny Thing..), but none with as much overall charm.

There are three smiles in a summer's night, but thousands in this disk.

This is the best recording of one of the best musicals of all time. Romantic, lyrical, midsummer-magical, and beautifully-sung, a long, complex waltz of sun and shadow, sweetness and sorrow, youth, life, and death...Part of the attraction for me is the paradoxical juxtaposition of such lovely music with the deep and sometimes terrible actions and emotions of the characters: envy, lust, despair, infidelity, greed...The midnight sun of midsummer in Sweden becomes a metaphor for those brief times-outside-time when people can discover the truth about themselves. And after dancing in three-quarter time through Sondheim's labyrinth of despair and sorrow, we're lead back to a wonderful coherence of truth, and love. Wonderful songs: "Send in the Clowns," of course, as sung by Glynis Johns---not the sappy torch song others have made it, but the gut-reaction of a disappointed and furious woman trying not to break down in front on the man she loves. The sweet cynicism of "Liaisons," the cyncial sweetness of "The Miller's Son"...This album is really a perfect introduction to Sondheim's work, probably one of the more accessible pieces he's ever written. One of those CDs that I keep on my stereo and play over and over...

I will always have a special affection for this show because I had the awesome opportunity to play Anne Egerman in a community theater production of A Little Night Music. This is my favorite recording of it, although the London cast is also really awesome. Victoria Mallory is a better Anne, in my opinion, than the London cast Anne...and I loved listening to this cd after I got cast-- learning about the characters and falling in love with the music! And who could overlook the brilliant plot in of itself? The show is Oscar Wildian-witty and truly poetic. The characters are sympathetic and have psychological depth which can easily be appreciated in all of their solos. Whether you like Sondhiem or not, this cd is a must. The lyrics are brilliant and the music is inseperable from the lyrics. Both are astonishing and almost Mozartian. The Night Waltz always gives me goosebumps-- it is so haunting. And having sung Anne's part in Now/Later/Soon, I can sincerely appreciate the complexity of that trio! And-- how could I not mention "Send in the Clowns"?? Listen to that song once and you'll be enchanted-- I promise.