Customer Reviews

Ravel: Boléro / Ma Mère L'Oye (complete ballet) / Rapsodie espagnole / Une Barque sur l'océan / Alborada del Gracioso - Berliner Philharmoniker / Pierre Boulez

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I won't waste time writing about Bolero other than to say it is a great performance. It speaks for it self. The other works on the disc hold far more interest and here Boulez and the BPO are glorious. The Mother Goose ballet sounds creamy and rich without losing its chamber music like textures. Boulez and the BPO color this ballet and play it to the hilt. It comes of not as a show piece for the great BPO but as music...music the orchestra does not encounter often. They make the most of their chance and then some with this performance.

The other 2 works on this disc get the same kind of care. Both are great performances. The playing is unequaled and Boulez show's that he is not the cold condcutor that many make him out to be.

This is a classic disc.

The French composer, Maurice Ravel, is often described as an impressionist. I find his music more vivid than the haze of impressionism usually elicits, and the music on this CD is some of his most vivid and descriptive, not to mention in terms of popularity. Bolero, Rhapsodie Espagnole, Alborada del Gracioso, Une Barque sur l'ocean, and the complete Mother Goose Ballet are all among those vivid compositions.

The Mother Goose ballet has five scenes from various fairy tales: Dance of the Spinning Wheel, Pavane of the Sleeping Beauty, Conversations of the Beauty and the Beast, Tom Thumb, Empress of the Pagodes, as well as a prelude, interlude, and a finale entitled Fairy Garden; all totaling 28 minutes. Each tableaux provides a vivid musical portrait of the fairy tale: the Dance of the Spinning Wheel has a constantly moving string undercurrent, while the Pavane for Sleeping Beauty has beautifully woven melodies in the winds, a lovely calm awaiting Prince Charming. Conversations of the Beauty and the Beast is a charming waltz where, perhaps, the girl is falling in love, while Tom Thumb has direct portrayals of bird trills and calls. The festive Empress of the Pagodes has an Asian pentatonic melody in a spirited dance, but it all culminates in the Fairy Garden, with a lush hymn set in 20th century fullness, bringing the work to close. Wonderfully colorful with lyric melodies for the woodwinds, charming dances, and special effects on the strings (glissandos, slides, harmonics, col legno, etc.) give the work a fantastical feel. Also on the disk is Une Barque sur l'ocean, an ultra Romantic depiction of the sea. Great swellings of waves occur in the music, first peacefully, with gently oscillating winds and strings, but eventually more aggressive. Very descriptive in nature, Ravel's colorful orchestral writing is an optimistic view of the sea, with occasional woodwind melodies insinuating melancholy, or loneliness at sea.

The other three works on the disk are all based in Spanish folk-rhythms and sequences. The seven minute Alborada del Gracioso is a dancing orchestral showpiece with a two-against-three feel, which erupts into a glorious exclamation before immediately calming down. Whirlwinds of harp, flutes, and clarinets, along with quickly repeated trumpet notes, castanets, and a lonely bassoon solo, make the work a tour de force. The 16-minute Rhapsodie Espagnole is in four movements (Prelude to the Night, Malaguena, Habanera, and Festival), and on the whole, a rather understated work of impressionism. The opening prelude has an unceasing, unresolved feeling, as well as a rhythmic displacement that lasts throughout. The Malaguena is a quiet, but snappy dance in 3, while the Habanera is a sluggish dance with a jerky feeling. The Festival finale is the most outgoing, and besides the Bolero, has the most extensive writing for brass on the CD. The famous Bolero, with its sassy melody and natural crescendo (by adding instruments to increase volume), is an orchestral standard. Made famous by its unrelentless rhythmic ostinato and catchy melody, the work includes unique orchestrations, including solos in extreme ranges and use of saxophones (tenor and soprano). The work brings the disk to a rousing close.

Pierre Boulez is a pre-eminent Claude Debussy interpreter, and his experience there is utilized successfully in this Ravel CD. Boulez follows the score intently, sometimes to a fault; he follows the extreme dynamic ranges and Ravel's articulation markings (sometimes making the listener have to adjust the volume in order to hear). Although the Berlin Philharmonic is an unusual choice for a French composer, with often needed delicate handling, they fare quite well, often setting a transparent quality, but thoroughly enjoying the raucous dance settings. Featuring some of Ravel's most vivid and descriptive music, and certainly famous works, this CD should satiate the average listener as a great introduction to Ravel, but the winning performance and 4-dimension DG digital sound should win over the rest. Good choice for these popular works. TT: 75.33

As usual, I agree with Mr. Hurwitz's comments about Bolero. This is my favorite recording of this work. It is the most rythmically precise version I've heard to date. Most other performances can't seem to hold it perfectly together for the entire 15 minutes, and when they get a little sloppy it ruins the piece. Please don't misunderstand; we don't want to hear Bolero played by computers, but rythmic precision adds immeasurably to the character of this work. If you think playing the same triplet figure over and over with a gradual crescendo is easy for the percussionist, think again. Then listen to Boulez and the Berliners make it sound effortless!

Pierre Boulez leads the Berlin Philharmonic in vibrant, exhilirating performances of Ravel's most notable orchestral works. I doubt I have heard the Berlin Philharmonic play with as much passion as it does for Alborada del Gracioso, Rapsodie espagnole, and Bolero. Their performance of the Ma Mere l'Oye is also quite passionate. Boulez proves he is one of Ravel's foremost interpreters on this amazing CD. These splendid performances are greatly enhanced by some of Deutsche Grammophon's finest digital sound recording. If one is searching for the finest recording of these popular Ravel works, then this exceptional CD is it. I thought Haitink's and the Boston Symphony Orchestra's Ravel recording for Philips was the current cream of the crop, but Boulez and the Berlin Philharmonic have surpassed it.

As a great admirer of Ravel's music, I don't know what made me hesitate so long in getting this recording. Yes, there are other excellent versions of most of these pieces, but Pierre Boulez makes the Berlin Philharmonic sound as French as they come. This CD is now one of the best modern Ravel recordings I can recall.

The program is generous, starting with an exciting "Ma Mere l'Oye" and ending with one of the most disciplined versions of "Bolero" I've ever heard, climaxing with an exhilaratingly raucous final few bars that come crashing down at the end. In between, Boulez conjures up a smoky, sensuous "Rapsodie Espagnole," and it, too, has excitement to spare, especially in the final "Feria" movement.

But the whole CD is wonderful, and even if you have other versions of the pieces, Boulez has done it again with this one. Sound quality is just terrific.

This collection of Ravel's orchestral works is one of the finest collections of Ravel's work available.

From the complete ballet "Ma Mere l'Oye" (over 28 minutes!) this CD gives us a listening treat. It's almost as though the spirit of Ravel was watching over the musicians as they played - esspecially in the finale, "Bolero". And I'm sure he must have been smiling.

The eight movements of Ravel's ballet are only the beginning of this splendid musical recitation. The "Une Barque sur l'Ocean" is amost eight minutes that will have you thinking of sea voyages. The "Alborada del Gracioso" is a great lead in to the "Rapsodie Espagnole", both of which will leave you thinking of Spain and the graciousness of the citizens.

Then there's "Bolero". I can think of no "Bolero" that is closer to what Ravel gave us. The repeated theme is particularly difficult for orchestras to catch without at least one mistake, but the Berlin Philharmonic, under the baton of Pierre Boulez succeed where other recordings of "Bolero" sometimes fall short. No one who has seen Dudley Moore and Bo Derek in "10" can forget the absolute sensuality of "Bolero", and it has never been presented this well.

An absolutely fantastic addition to the Classical music library.

Maurice Ravel remains one of the greatest composers of the 20th century, alongside his fellow Frenchman Claude Debussy. This 1993 recording of five of Ravel's works shows why, helmed as these works are by one of the great conductors of all times, Pierre Boulez, in a stunningly fine recording with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.

The recording gives us Ravel's complete ballet "Ma Mere L'Oye" (Mother Goose), with its exquisite and lush orchestration; the brilliant "Une Barque Sur L'Ocean" (A Boat On The Ocean); and the familiar rhythms of "Alborada Del Gracioso" and "Rapsodie Espagnole", reflecting the Spanish influence that permeated much of Ravel's music (as well as his having grown up along the border between France and Spain). The recording climaxes with that great experiment of 20th century music making, the celebrated "Bolero", a work that, thanks to its rhythmic simplicity and its basis in Spanish/Arabian music, has never fallen out of style (and which had its popularity boosted further on the big screen in 1979 by its use in director Blake Edwards' comedy-drama "10").

Boulez, no slouch as a composer either, is often thought of as a rather cold and emotionless conductor who, like Leopold Stokowski before him, directs without a baton (Boulez once joked that holding a baton "made his hands freeze"). Such a perception is not entirely accurate, however, just to judge from the way he is able to handle these Ravel works, particularly the mega-popular "Bolero", with the Berliners. The orchestra had recorded that work on two separate occasions, in 1964 and 1977 respectively, under Karajan, but both times the piece felt slower than it was supposed to be. Under Boulez's direction, however, "Bolero" moves very freely, and with an undercurrent of occasional menace. The performances of "Mother Goose", "Alborada Del Gracioso", "A Boat On The Ocean", and "Rapsodie Espagnole" are also handled with considerable panache by Boulez and the Berliners.

This is a hugely recommended recording, for the sheer pleasure of Boulez interpreting a fellow Frenchman's great works with one of the world's premiere orchestras.

I've heard quite a lot of recorded Bolero performances. Some are exciting without techincal perfection. Some have great orchestral ensemble without first-rate solo performances. This Bolero by Berliners and Boulez has everything.

Solo performances (flute, clarinet, saxophones, trombone, and all) are all simply marvelous, with _both_ perfect technique and taste. The orchestral ensemble is perfect. After all, it's the Berlin Philharmonic. Nevertheless (I say "nevertheless") the perfomance is passonate and exciting. Other passonate recordings out there go beyond the orchestra's capacity and go wild with disastrous ensamble. The capacity of the Berlin Philharmonic is so high that they can be (and are) passionate without sacrificing techincal perfection.

Who said Boulez was cold? He seems to set priority on perfection over emotion. But, when he _does_ already have perfection, he no longer has any reason to restrain his emotion. Only then was this great achievement of modern orchestra possible.

Boulez isn't as dry a conductor or human being as some would like us to believe and is a conductor of choice for a lot of very different music, Wagner? Debussy, Ravel, Berg? Janacek?When will he do Brahms? Just kidding. Predictable results. Not a hard sell.

Actually, the work highlighted on the cover of this CD is--you guessed it!--Bolero. Besides Bolero, this CD also includes Ma Mère l'Oye, Une Barque sur l'ocèan, Alborado del Gracioso, and Rapsodie Espagnol. Boulez's conducting is a masterly blend of expression and clarity, the playing of the Berlin Philharmonic is a masterly blend of precision and color, and the recording is a masterly blend of transparency and body. Add to all this the alluring fact that Ma Mère l'Oye is one of the most beautiful pieces in all the symphonic literature, and you wind up with one of the greatest orchestral CDs ever released, a work of art that makes life seem life worth living, despite kids killing kids and all.