Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring; The Firebird Suite (1919) [EXTRA TRACKS] [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED]

Sergey Prokofiev (Composer), Igor Stravinsky (Composer), Leonard Bernstein (Conductor), London Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra), New York Philharmonic (Orchestra)

Product Details

• Orchestra: London Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic
• Conductor: Leonard Bernstein
• Composer: Sergey Prokofiev, Igor Stravinsky
• Audio CD (February 24, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Extra tracks, Original recording remastered
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B0001ENYLM
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #6,661 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #3 in	Music > Classical > Featured Composers, A-Z > ( S ) > Stravinsky, Igor
  #5 in	Music > Classical > Featured Composers, A-Z > ( P ) > Prokofiev, Sergei
  #5 in	Music > Classical > Featured Performers, A-Z > ( N ) > New York Philharmonic Orchestra

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Considering that Stravinsky's Rite of Spring has been around for nearly a century, it's surprising that even today, conductors literally get lost while attempting to beat through it--and that goes for some of the biggest names. Difficult as the piece is, conductors have no excuse for major lapses, now that this recording is available for study. Bernstein not only keeps complete control of the complex rhythms and constantly-switching meters throughout the work but he also interprets it with fire and sweep and emotional versatility. The Firebird is equally breathtaking. It's priceless, too, for the fabulous horn solo played by the New York Philharmonic's legendary James Chambers. --Gwendolyn Freed

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Commonplace "Rite"... and a TERRIFIC "Firebird", July 25, 2005

By	Shota Hanai (Torrance, CA) - See all my reviews

It's a pity for me for this album to put the 70s recording Lenny did with the LSO on Stravinsky's revolutionary "Rite of Spring" instead of the performance he did with the NYPO about a decade earlier.
The 60s recording (which sadly may be only available in the "Royal Edition" series) remains on of my favorite performance of the "Rite" (along with the "Fast and the Furious" Ozawa's with the CSO on RCA), because it has more brashness in the music, more savagery, more tension. His interpretation is far more extraordinary compared to this recording in this album. The extra "ornaments" Lenny added to further exxagerate the wildness and primitiveness in the 60s recording has competely disappeared in this performance, making a more commonplace, even tamed, performance. Same goes with the 80s performance on DG with the Isreal Phil.

Lenny's performance "Firebird" Suite, on the other hand... is an electrifying 5 Star performance... THE main attraction of the album, not the 70s "Rite". This recording was done in the 60s with the NYPO, so there is more youthness and vigor in the performance. While the sound quality is not at its best, the performace is as hot as it can get. You will especially love the climax of the "Infernal Dance" and the "Finale". The only other recording I equally love is Claudio Abbado's performance with the LSO on DG, powerful in its own way... and more crystal-clear).

Proikofiev's "Scythian Suite" (the Bonus tracks) is another plus in this album. The "Dance of the Dark Spirits" is especially thrilling, as Lenny actually takes the tempo a bit faster compared to most other performances, including Abbado on DG and Jarvi on Chandos.

P.S. - Do you notice the "Jaws" theme hidden under the movment?

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WOW., September 12, 2005

By	John Herman (New York, USA) - See all my reviews

This recording really is something. Considering how old this rendition is, the depth at which bernstein controls the LSO is remarkable. There are moments when he lets the LSO loose, like letting the animals come out of their cages. He knows exactly how and exactly when to create, what I can only describe as "chaos". Bernstein's love for this arresting piece shines through the second half.
I only complain of the sound quality and the firebird. It is NOT A GOOD FIREBIRD.

BUY IT

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Three Le Sacres from Bernstein, September 30, 2005

By	Santa Fe listener - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)

In the Royal Edition of Bernstein's recordings with the NY Phil., there was a hair-raising Le Sacre dating from 1958 in vivid sound with lots of impact and incredibly virtuosic playing. This was followed by a surround-sound remake with the London Sym. in 1972 as the fflagship for Columbia's attempt to promote "quadraphoonic sound," which never cuaght on.

The first recording occasioned a "wow" from Stravinsky in one of his memoirs (no doubt in part being ironic). The second recordingt is just as splashy and extroverted, although I prefer the 1958 version as the more flexible and less blatant. Both are wonderful and show off Bernstein's exuberance at its best.

This is the second reading from 1972, now in stereo, the 1958 being out of print. The Israel Phil. version made for DG in the Eighties--I don't have the exact date since I threw away the CD--is a parody of the young Bernstein by the old one, and the orchestra is far from being able to master the score.