Customer Reviews

Stravinsky: L' Histoire du Soldat suite / Dumbarton Oaks Concerto / Concerto in D / Suite Nos. 1 & 2 for Small Orchestra, etc.

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This CD, led by Paavo Järvi and played by the Bremen Chamber Orchestra, is in simply stunning sound, no matter which format you play it in. It is, of course, in hybrid multichannel SACD, which is among the best sounding I've ever heard, but its plain vanilla CD layer is also quite wonderful. The performances themselves are really quite good. 'L'Histoire du soldat' may be a little smooth for some tastes, considering the rustic nature of the story (and that the Soldier is a peasant fiddler, not a conservatory-trained violinist) but if you don't mind the beautiful playing of Florian Donderer (and, really, why should you?) this is an excellent 'L'Histoire.' (Järvi includes the 'Petit choral' which is generally left out of the 'L'Histoire' suite.) As for the other pieces, they are all played as well as I've ever heard them - and I own Stravinsky's own recordings of some of them. I particularly liked the 'Dumbarton Oaks Concerto' - one of my favorite Stravinsky pieces - for its crisp motoric rhythms and suave string playing. The 'Concerto in D' for strings is given a similar performance.

The two 'Suites for Small Orchestra' are brief, satirical and are handled lightly and with rhythmic point. 'Ragtime' is given a suitably dry reading. I have always assumed Stravinsky was sending up the genre but you might feel otherwise. In any event, it is played with bracing secco approach and that's entirely appropriate.

These are worthwhile performances in spectacular sound, and in the instance of the 'Dumbarton Oaks' and the 'Concerto in D,' at least, I don't know of any better recordings.

Scott Morrison

I don't mean to step in as hanging judge after the defendant has been so kindly let off by the lead reviewer, but this is the most lackluster L'histoire du soldat I've ever heard. It lacks any sense of snap or rhythmic vitality -- every phrase is a limp noodle -- and of Stravinsky's dry wit there's not a trace. The SACD sound, as heard through two channels, is clear, natural, and detailed, but who cares? The musical values supplied by Paavo Jarvi are too slight.

Things pick up with the 'Dumbarton Oaks' Concerto for chamber orchestra, mostly because once again the sonics are so engaging. Here Jarvi manages to find a little more rhythmic life. There's not the composer's sharply etched line, but it's no crime to round off the corners in this work as long as the pacing doesn't flag. Jarvi's Bremen musicians don't strike me as superlative, but they play with clean articulation and nice balance. I like the suaveness of touch that Jarvi exhibits in the Concerto in D for strings, and his lilting rhythms, though perhaps too sooting for Stravinsky, are appealing. The two miniature Suites for chamber orchestra fill out this survey of Stravinsky in neoclassical mode with low-key readings that are still precise and beautifully recorded.