Respighi: Pines of Rome; Fountains of Rome; Metamorphoseon Modi XII

Ottorino Respighi (Composer), Jesús López-Cobos (Conductor), Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: Jesús López-Cobos
• Composer: Ottorino Respighi
• Audio CD (April 25, 2000)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Telarc
• ASIN: B00004S8A7
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #148,323 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #63 in Music > Classical > Historical Periods > Modern, 20th, & 21st Century > Forms & Genres > Variations

Track Listings

1. Pines Of The Villa Borghese

2. Pines Near A Catacomb

3. Pines Of The Janiculum

4. Pines Of The Appian Way

5. Fountain Of Valle Giulia At Dawn

6. Triton Fountain At Morn

7. Fountain Of Trevi At Mid-day

8. Villa Medici Fontain At Sunset

9. Theme

10. Modus I

11. Modus II

12. Modus III

13. Modus IV

14. Modus V

15. Modus VI

16. Modus VII

17. Modus VIII

18. Modus IX

19. Modus X

20. Modus XI

See all 21 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Goes straight to the top of the list, May 11, 2000

By 

J Scott Morrison (Middlebury VT, USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Respighi: Pines of Rome; Fountains of Rome; Metamorphoseon Modi XII (Audio CD)

I've been buying recordings of Pines/Fountains since about 1950 and must have twelve of them. This one goes straight to the top of the list, although I wouldn't want to give up those of Munch, Bernstein, Toscanini. This Cincinnati orchestra is an unknown treasure. The very soloistic music is amazingly served by the Cincinnati principals (I'd like to single out the solo clarinet, English horn, and trumpet), the string section (shades of the old Philadelphia Orchestra!) is especially rich, and Lopez-Cobos's tempi are very well-judged. The Metamorphoseon is like a 25-minute Concerto for Orchestra where the orchestra and its soloists continually shine. Telarc's recording puts this at the top of the class acoustically as well.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Masterpiece, May 7, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Respighi: Pines of Rome; Fountains of Rome; Metamorphoseon Modi XII (Audio CD)

Both sonically and artistically a masterpiece from one of the world's great orchestral ensembles. Destined to be regarded as one of the finest stereophonic recordings ever made.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Restrained Power, August 3, 2009

By 

Karl W. Nehring (Ostrander, OH USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Respighi: Pines of Rome; Fountains of Rome; Metamorphoseon Modi XII (Audio CD)

As has come to be expected from Maestro López-Cobos and his Cincinnati forces as recorded on Telarc, this is an excellent recording in terms of both performance and sound. López-Cobos seems to have a knack for conducting performances that exhibit a kind of restrained power, never seeming to pull out all the stops, but impressing instead by the controlled energy that is barely contained by the recording. When some of the energy does come out, its effect is all the more dramatic because it has not been expended for mere showmanship. At the end of Pines, for example, there is no huge percussion outburst as in some recordings, but the energy level, undergirded by some awesome bass notes, is every bit the equal of other, flashier performances. With these forces, you come to appreciate the music, not just the sound, of these sonic spectaculars.

As an enticement to those collectors who may already own several recordings of the Pines and Fountains, Telarc has included a recording of a Respighi piece that is not often heard, Metamorphoseon Modi XII, comprising a theme and a dozen variations. It is certainly a piece worth hearing, and its inclusion on this CD should make this disk all the more appealing to Respighi fans.