Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5 / Cello Concerto No. 1

Shostakovich (Composer), Ben Zander (Conductor), Boston Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra), Alexander Bailie (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Alexander Bailie
• Orchestra: Boston Philharmonic Orchestra
• Conductor: Ben Zander
• Composer: Shostakovich
• Audio CD (March 23, 1999)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Carlton Classics
• ASIN: B00000IGQ4
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #657,168 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47: 1st movement, Moderato

2. Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47: 2nd movement, Allegretto (Scherzo)

3. Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47: 3rd movement, Largo

4. Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47: 4th movement, Allegro non troppo

5. Cello Concerto No. 1 in E flat major, Op. 107: 1st movement, Allegretto

6. Cello Concerto No. 1 in E flat major, Op. 107: 2nd movement, Moderato

7. Cello Concerto No. 1 in E flat major, Op. 107: 3rd movement, Cadenza

8. Cello Concerto No. 1 in E flat major, Op. 107: 4th movement, Allegro con moto

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Highly musical performances in a crowded field, February 21, 2006

By 

Santa Fe Listener (Santa Fe, NM USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5 / Cello Concerto No. 1 (Audio CD)

Ben Zander pushes his semi-pro Boston Phil. to make them competitive with fully professional ensembles. That unflinching attitude pays off here in a powerful Shostakovich Fifth that pursues extremes of loud and soft, delicate and bold. He asks for sinuous, nuanced playing from the violins in the first movement's soulful opening section, and they deliver. The woodwinds make a biting entrance in the Scherzo, fully the equal of any I've heard in this work. There are times when one is aware that the Boston Phil. lacks the sonority and depth to carry out Zander's conception, but that hardly matters when the spirit of music-making is so right. Carlotn's sonics, which have great impact, are a big asset.

The First Cello Concerto doesn't strike me as totally successful, however. The soloist, Alexander Bailie, is a sensitive musician up against the likes of Rostropovich, Harrell, and Yo-Yo Ma, and the technical demands of the more virtuosic parts stretch him. He is forced to keep his tone small in order to cope. I don't detect a lot of personality, either; his best work comes when he blends into the orchestra during softer, lyrical passages.

The solo horn playing in the first movement is courageous and note perfect, but again not up to the virtuosos who sit first-chair in great orchestras. Zander's conception isn't middle-of-the-raod, and there were many details along the way that remain with me (particularly the haunting blend of muted violins, celestra, and the solo cello keening in high harmonics). In all, I will return to this CD for the Fifth Sym. and the more introspective sections of the concerto.