Customer Reviews

Tomasi: Concerto For Trumpet & Orchestra/Jolivet: Concertino For Trumpet, String Orchestra & Piano/Concerto No.2 For Trumpet

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

 

 

This recording is now 12 years old and has few alternatives in the US market. Sergei Nakariakov recently recorded the concerti of Tomasi and Jolivet for Teldec. Maurice Andre and Eric Aubier both give excellent accounts on Foreign labels. Musically, I agree with most of what Marsalis says in these interpretations. However, I am dissapointed in his choice of instrument. By this time, Marsalis was already using instruments made by Dave Monette which I do not feel are idiomatic. Andre's account of the Tomasi with the Radio-Luxembourg is right on track in terms of sound and style. The playing here is too heavy at times and is too often not light and resilient -qualities the piece needs. The performances are rather exciting. Both of Jolivet's works are given exceptional readings. My same aural criticisms apply, but Marsalis seems better suited in these works. The Concerto No. 2 is wildly ecclectic and rarely recorded - it is the highlight of the recording. Salonen and the Philharmonia work hard and are well-suited while remaining English and not French. The Paris Opera Orchestra accompanies Eric Aubier in his account splendidly. Recommended highly on the fact that comparable recordings are not only rare but more-often-than-not nonexistent or out of print.

Repertoire-wise, this is an interesting release of three rather fine 20th century works. Henri Tomasi is stylish, elegant and urbanely neo-classical with some memorable ideas and skillful writing both for soloist and orchestra in the outer movement but a rather less memorable, slightly wayward and sentimental central Nocturne. Jolivet's concertino for trumpet, piano and strings is more propulsively energetic with syncopated, slightly jazzy writing. The second trumpet concerto also includes elements of jazz, in particular the opening for muted trumpet, and is overall an engaging, variegated work, generally buoyant and high-spirited.

The question is whether Marsalis is the best advocate for this music - his approach is certainly more jazzy than classically oriented, and he is too often accusable of taking the presence of jazz elements as a license to exaggerate. The music would almost universally benefit from a more restrained approach playing out the more detached neo-classical elements - and not the least a lighter touch; as it is, all three works come across of some sort of strange hybrids with Marsalis attempting to realize an improvisatory, deeply emotional quality which simply isn't there. In short, everything sounds rather wrong.

The London Philharmonic also sounds tentative, almost as if they are wondering what is really going on here. Their playing is of course technically impeccable, but too often they (and Salonen) seems confused about the overall structures of the works. And a disc playing for less than 35 minutes is stingy, regardless of price. Overall, then, I cannot really recommend this disc to anyone but ardent Marsalis fans.

These are excellent performances of French solo trumpet masterpieces. Wynton's jazz background works well here, as all of these pieces are jazz-influenced. While there are fine (though hard to find) recordings of these works by Sergei Nakariakov and Maurice Andre, Marsalis' more subtle approach, Sony's excllent recording and mastering, and excellent orchestral accompaniments (the Philharmonia Orchestra and a then-unknown Esa-Pekka Salonen) make this recording the standard of excellence in this genre. Enjoy.