Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture; Marche Slav; Romeo & Juliet Overture [Original recording remastered]

Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky (Composer), Leonard Bernstein (Conductor), New York Philharmonic (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: New York Philharmonic
• Conductor: Leonard Bernstein
• Composer: Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky
• Audio CD (February 24, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B0001ENYKI
• Also Available in: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #45,325 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Emotional and expressive Tchaikovsky without being lurid, June 16, 2006

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Santa Fe Listener (Santa Fe, NM USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture; Marche Slav; Romeo & Juliet Overture (Audio CD)

What makes this generous (80 min.) CD welcome is that Bernstein, far from going over the top, proves himself a genuinely expressive Tchaikovsky conductor. There are no choirs or cannons in the 1812 Over.(church bells are overlaid in the finale, though), no saccharine underlining of melodies, and no faking the emotion to reach the grandstands. Bernstein was to the manner born in romantic music, so his Romeo and Juliet is exciting and heartfelt. The 1812 will feel a bit low-key to anyone who expects a circus act, but it's musically sound, in case that matters.

I'm not arguing that this CD contains any revelations, but these chestnuts are all very winning in Bernstein's hands. His Capriccio italien deserves better sound--it's a bit thin and tinny--but it dances and sings. My attraction was to the problematic tone poem, Hamlet, which Bernstein believed in eough to record a second time for DG with the Israel Phil. The classic Stokowski recording on Everest tops every critic's list, but Bernstein's sounds more natural in the lyrical sections and brings quite a few thrills in the bombastic rum-tum of this uneven work.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars There are cannons in the 1812..., May 29, 2009

By 

T. O'Brien "T. O'Brien" (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture; Marche Slav; Romeo & Juliet Overture (Audio CD)

...and the church bells are nicely done and moving. The highlight is the brass in the last round of God Save the Tsar (I think). Quality of digital download is fine.

I have a limited budget, and this was a good purchase for me because it contains five great Tchaikovsky pieces for a good price and without overlapping with other purchases I might want. I also picked up the Ballet Suites (Rostropovich, $9/49 download).

5.0 out of 5 stars This is more than I bargained for..., January 1, 2012

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R. Fischer (NJ, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture; Marche Slav; Romeo & Juliet Overture (Audio CD)

I bought this CD because I would get two delights in one: Leonard Bernstein conducting almost anything and The 1812 Overture - as conducted by Leonard Bernstein. After listening to the whole CD, I am quite pleased with my purchase. Here's the bargain part - along with the music that I was planning on hearing, I got four additional compositions by Tchaikovsky that I could appreciate whenever I tired of cannon fire. Now, I play the entire 1812 on the way to work and the entire Romeo & Juliet Overture on the way home. 1812 on the way to work the next day and another Tchaikovsky piece on the way home. It's a nice way to begin and end the workday.