COMPOSERS: Glinka & Mussorgsky (orch. Ravel),Prokofiev,Tchaikovsky
LABELS: Music & Arts
ALBUM TITLE: Arturo Toscanini
WORKS: Works by Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev, Glinka & Mussorgsky (orch. Ravel)
PERFORMER: NBC SO/Arturo Toscanini
CATALOGUE NO: CD 1115
This rules out the Mussorgsky Pictures as well, despite some eloquence in the slower music – ‘The Great Gate of Kiev’ just isn’t massive enough. On the other hand, the more transparent textures of Prokofiev’s Classical Symphony come across well, and the last movement’s helter-skelter progress is all the more effective for being tightly controlled, though there’s some intrusive surface noise from the original acetates. Tchaikovsky’s Pathétique is most convincing in the inner movements where the tempi are perfectly judged, but Toscanini’s reputation as a speed merchant isn’t helped by the rest.
Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev, Glinka & Mussorgsky (orch. Ravel)
This rules out the Mussorgsky Pictures as well, despite some eloquence in the slower music – ‘The Great Gate of Kiev’ just isn’t massive enough. On the other hand, the more transparent textures of Prokofiev’s Classical Symphony come across well, and the last movement’s helter-skelter progress is all the more effective for being tightly controlled, though there’s some intrusive surface noise from the original acetates. Tchaikovsky’s Pathétique is most convincing in the inner movements where the tempi are perfectly judged, but Toscanini’s reputation as a speed merchant isn’t helped by the rest.
Published: January 20, 2012 at 3:52 pm