Lover of all things classical, player of piano, disciple of Stravinsky, Shostakovich, and Mahler.
Classic Reviewer Rank: 33,574
Helpful votes received on reviews, lists & guides:
87% (127 of 147)
Nickname: brmerrick3
In My Own Words:
I am currently writing articles for strike-the-root.com and doing my best to live peacefully with my neighbors. You should, too.
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Contributions
Classic Reviewer Rank: 33,574
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Years ago, I had a cassette tape of Michael Tilson Thomas conducting the BSO in "The Rite of Spring," "The Firebird Suite," and "The King of the Stars." That tape was my first exposure to all three works. After browsing around for other, better CDs for years, I had hoped to find something superior to what I had first experienced with this recording.
Deutsche Grammaphon hasn't bothered to bring all three recordings together on this album. Instead, they've eliminated "The Firebird" and replaced it with Dutoit conducting "Petrushka," but these are indeed the first recordings I had of "Rite" and "King." Everything on this album is good, but Tilson Thomas's interpretation of… Read more
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Menotti wrote some truly beautiful music. The Spoleto Festival has put out at least one other phenomenal recording of his works. The concerto is played very well here. There's a lot of life and color, though it seems to me that that has slightly more to do with what was written than with how it's played.
Koh is sing-song throughout, which is required for Menotti, who was a fantastic operatic composer. But it seems to me that the orchestral forces are held back just a touch. It's still worth listening to, and it's definitely enjoyable.
The works for orchestra, chorus and vocal soloists, on the other hand, do not sound nearly as great as they should. If you've… Read more
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Boulez is comfortable to stay in softer dynamics for much of this CD, especially in "The King of the Stars" and the Scherzo fantastique. On the latter, it works. The Scherzo shines as it is handled delicately here. The tempos are just right for the listener to hear the details and subtleties. With "The King of the Stars," however, there is virtually no contrast, certainly not the sort that is provided by Michael Tilson Thomas with the BSO (also on Deutsche Grammaphon). Boulez never even bothers to reach forte.
On the other hand, "The Song of the Nightingale" is played with a lot of dynamic contrast and vigor. Boulez's metronomic approach works well in many places, most… Read more
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