Rimsky-Korsakov: Sheherazade / Russian Easter Overture / Capriccio espagnol

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (Composer), Eugene Ormandy (Conductor), Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra), Anshel Brusilow (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Anshel Brusilow
• Orchestra: Philadelphia Orchestra
• Conductor: Eugene Ormandy
• Composer: Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
• Audio CD (August 6, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B000069JJ0
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,195 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #84 in Music > Classical > Forms & Genres > Symphonies > General
  • #88 in Music > Classical > Symphonies

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

56 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rewarding Rimsky-Korsakov, February 3, 2003

By 

Michael B. Richman (Portland, Maine USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Rimsky-Korsakov: Sheherazade / Russian Easter Overture / Capriccio espagnol (Audio CD)

In the 1950s and 60s, CBS/Columbia (now Sony Classical) had the great fortune to have three of America's best orchestras and their conductors on its recording roster -- Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic, Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra, and George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra. Nearly a half-century later, only Leonard Bernstein remains a name that even the non-classical music world knows well. But in the world of the compact disc, this is a wonderful thing, because while Leonard Bernstein analog stereo recordings sell at mid-price, classic performances by Ormandy and Szell are regulated to the budget line. Well, my friends there is justice in the world because the vast majority of these "budget line" recordings are simply amazing. I have close to a dozen recordings of Scheherezade and Ormandy's ranks right up there with the best. (I would probably rank it behind Ansermet and Reiner though.) And I probably have even more versions of Capriccio Espagnol, and Ormandy's performance is among my favorties, along with Argenta's and Dorati's. The fact that they are all together on one CD, with the Russian Easter Overture tossed in, is where the real bargain lies. Never did something of such high quality come at such a small price. Enjoy!

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Wow!, July 11, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Rimsky-Korsakov: Sheherazade / Russian Easter Overture / Capriccio espagnol (Audio CD)

I have played the previous incarnation of this CD on public radio in Australia, and found the audience responded to the grace and balance of each performance. The mastering on the other hand was, to be kind, average, even for recordings dating back to 1959, as in the case of Sheherazade. This remastered recording on the Sony Essential Classics label fixes this caveat. I thought I was listening to a modern digital recording. The dynamics and depth make you feel you are listening to a live performance. And the performance is pure Ormandy and the Philadelphia, spacious, dynamic and very romantic. Trust Sony to go the extra mile. Well done! Cool music too. According to the Oxford Companion to Music, Tchaikovsky thought Capriccio espangol was a masterpiece. Who am I to argue?

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My favorite version, August 6, 2004

By 

M. A Newman (Alexandria, VA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Rimsky-Korsakov: Sheherazade / Russian Easter Overture / Capriccio espagnol (Audio CD)

Though recorded on numerous occasions, Sheherazade by Rimsky Korsakov remains a wonderful and glorious as the day it was written. It remains one of the world's favorite pieces of music and justly so. While it may be old fashioned to admit it, I like the Eugene Ormandy version of it best of all Ormandy was the perfect conductor for this particular piece of music and the Philadelphia Orchestra the perfect means to play it. While there have been other subsequent versions, none has ever surpassed this recording for tonal richness.