Customer Reviews

Sergiu Celibidache Conducts Ravel and Debussy

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

 

 

You had better buy this before it disappears and becomes a collector's item (see his CD's of Bruckner symphonies with Munich, if you want an example).

The whole disc is mind-blowingly extraordinary, a wealth of great music, performed with depth, beauty and sensitivity. The only other thing I'll say is that, once you've heard Celibidache's Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun, you will never be able to listen to anyone else's performance ever again. This is a performance that will leave you in a puddle of tears, if only you will allow yourself to love the glacial tempo. When I play this recording for my students in my music appreciation classes, 90% of them fall asleep; but, for the other 10%, it changes their lives.

The music this conductor produced sends shivers down my spine it is so good. There aren't enough superlatives to describe the effect he produced in musical terms. I really wish I'd known about him while he was still alive. Better late than never!

This is a rare and wonderful chance to see this marvelous man conduct and present his extremely personal and unique vision of these French masterworks. The fact that the tempos are slower than anyone else is, to me, beside the point. The musicians in the orchestra are not up to the finest standards, but Celibidache gets more out of them by careful and long rehearsals and guidance. It would have been most enjoyable to have seen him conduct the Berlin or the Vienna Philharmonics. Here is a man who went his own way, regardless of the critics and backbiting. I watched this DVD FOUR times in a row and each time was an increased and wonderful musical experience. It is easy to see why this man was such a legend. Now I have to acquire all of the DVDs available before some ignoramus decides to remove them from circulation. TEN stars!!!

I bought this DVD because I wanted to have a visual performance of Ravel's Bolero in my collection. I will therefore confine my comments to the Bolero.

Opportunities to view a performance of the Bolero on DVD are rare and one does not have that many choices. On this recording the emphasis is on Celibidache as conductor, not on the works performed, the instruments or the musicians. The Bolero takes up 20 minutes, which is the slowest I have ever heard. Many instruments are seen but briefly. The faces of many audience members are impassive - you cannot imagine that they had looked forward to hearing a Bolero conducted by a celebrity. Sound quality is good for a live performance.