Customer Reviews

Rossini: Complete Overtures

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I only have glowing things to say about this set of Rossini overtures. First of all, Rossini's overtures are brilliant gems. They are light, fun and full of life!! Secondly, Marriner's conducting is marvellous. The performance sparkle like precious diamonds. Everything is very enjoyable, there's not a single boring number, unlike many other discs you purchase. And to top it off, it comes at a terrific bargain price. 3 very full CDs - 75 mins, 30 mins and 65 mins - of top notch music at seven dollars a piece is incredible.

One French wit in the early part of the nineteenth century observed that he had more fun at a Rossini opera than in the bedroom, and Rossini's irresistable melodies, infectious gaiety, and wild zany sense of humor, all coupled with the dizzy acceleration of the famous Rossini crescendo makes this music as captivating and exciting today as it was two centuries ago when ladies intoxicated by the emotional power of the music fainted in the aisles. Rossini also wrote more serious music, his Otello was a great favorite of a man who knew his operas, Verdi, and the set also includes examples of this less known side of the composer of the Barber of Seville.

Neville Marriner recorded a great number of Rossini overtures back in the second half of the seventies, between 1974 and 1980, and this 3 CD set rounds up the lot and presents them in one box set. No attempt has been made to issue them in the order of composition - indeed the first CD begins with the last - the famous William Tell Overture. The rarer and earlier works, generally of far less interest, are closeted away on the third CD, while the first CD garners many of the best, and the second CD at least has several genuine masterpieces among the lesser pieces.

Rossini was a master of the orchestra, and certainly there is far more than enough to justify two CDs, if not three. However, Philips is not charging an arm and a leg for the box set, so perhaps it's best to view the lesser ones as an addendum.

The performances are brisk, with excellent rythmic impetus, and played with the pure clean tones favored by the Academy. Marriner doesn't surpass the greatest versions in the major works, such as the legendary Toscanini, or in stereo, Szell, but Marriner and his orchestra are alert and highly finished. Overall these grade out at between A to B+ performances; surely a box set anyone could enjoy over time. The set might also make a nice addition to a single CD set of the Rossini overtures. Again you have a chance with this set to hear a truly great master working up a form to ever more and more astonishing displays of pure pandemonium.

The sound has been improved from the LPs, which, while pretty enough, lacked a little oomph. These improvements make for a greater swagger and power, not always quite reached on the LPs. The sound stage and sonic effects fall a little short of the best recent recordings - the snare drum in La gazza ladra simply doesn't richocet off the walls as it can in live performances or contemporary SACD CDs. However, the musicianship remains very high, and if you originally owned and liked the first LP issues, these on CD will not be a disappointment.

A nine page essay in English by Philip Gosset discusses the overtures in fair historical detail - also in French and German translation.

A very good set, then, with the understanding that most people might be happy with a single CD of Rossini's overtures, such as Rossini: Overtures or in an expensive but stunning SACD reissue of the Cleveland Orchestra under Szell Rossini, Auber, Berlioz: Overtures [SACD]. For the adventuresome, this set should provide a wealth of interest and much pleasure.

Playing one of the CDs again I am even more impressed by the level of achievement. This is a terrific CD set!

If you like Rossini, this is an a must-have recording. Sure, he tended to write the same pieces over and over again, but they are utterly delightful. These performances by Neville Marriner and his personal orchestra are precise, and the fun inherent in many of these works does not get lost in the shuffle. The orchestra is blessed with excellent woodwind players; just listen to the oboe on some of the really fast passages.

Nice recorded sound. I really don't have anything bad to say about this entire package. It's almost a desert island recording for times where Mahler or Beethoven might be a little (or a lot) heavy.

Whether you are a lover of classical music or a devotee of Looney Tunes, you'll find magnificence, energy, and a bounce in your step by listening to this wonderful collection!

The quality of this sound-recording is excellent. Not only that, but the music is a joy to listen to. I know nothing about Sir Neville Marriner and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, other than that they performed all the music audiences heard in the excellent film "Amadeus." Prior to purchasing this 3CD, I hadn't heard much Rossini, other than a few of his overtures such as "La gazza ladra." True, some of his music becomes repetitive, but this is commonplace no matter what genre of music you listen to (different forms of metal being especialy guilty of this). I should warn listeners that they may find themselves saying "I just heard that exact melody on another song on this disc." And yes, you did just hear it.

I don't listen to much classical music. I'm a metalhead, but I draw inspiration from all genres of music. After a few listens to absorb the contents, I will say that it seems Rossini, probably like many other composers of his era, wasn't trying to be too experimental with his work. Many composers evidently wanted - and Rossini especially seemed to want - to work within the parameters of a well-traveled "derivative of the most popular composers" style of melody, one that didn't ruffle too many of their audience's feathers.

What sets Rossini on a pedestal above many of the works which came from his era is that Rossini was able to seamlessly blend the popular music of his day with some truly inspired and genuinely original melodies, melodies that managed to be light and playful while at the same time being layered, up-tempo, expertly constructed compositions. The William Tell Overture alone contains several melodies that have been featured as soundtrack-snippets in countless films, usually in humourous context, not to mention any number of old Warner Bros cartoons. I'd swear one of these overtures was used in Kubrick's "Barry Lyndon," in the scene where Lord Bullingdon leads his kid brother Brian into the music room to disrupt a formal gathering.

A typical overture might contain a recurring theme that sounds like a pomp-filled march, interspersed with some achingly beautiful movements and elegant chamber-music. Some of it sounds truly elegant, not stereotypically "Rossini-like." I did not want to create the impression that all the music on these discs is "playful", or all of it sounds the same, because there is a lot of musical variety here, but some common themes do occasionally recur.

All of the overtures are done very well indeed as we have come to expect with Marriner. The 'William Tell' is absolutely electrifying.

Rossini was one of the laziest composers ever. He would write operas in bed but what operas they were/are! This set of the overtures to all of his operas is the best I've heard! Marriner and the ASMF are in top form throughout. Most of Rossini's overtures contain a fast and furious section of music (good for making even the most tedious of your tasks fun) and the orchestra tears into these sections and comes out unschathed - even with the "look out! I'm writing this after having 12, high-sugar cups of Espresso" tempos. The engineering is superb and each of the music's moving parts can be heard. The dynamics are also superbly captured. Of course there are the standards here: "Barber of Seville", "Thieving Magpie", etc. but there are some rarely, if never, heard gems here too. Rossini was known for recycling his melodies - using music from one opera that was unsuccessful to another one - and it is fun to hear these recycles and say, "Isn't that also in...?" This set has gotten rave reviews from outside sources and, with its low price for three discs is a must for your collection.

The sound is excellent. However, the compositions are played a little too fast. Otherwise, this would be 5 stars.

I received this item carefully packaged and promptly, with a courteous email preceding it. Thanks for such a good job!